Lowering the Drinking Age

"The presidents of 135 colleges have called for lowering the drinking age from 21. They note that the age restriction hasn 't stopped binge drinking on campus and argue, not without reason, that it has turned alcohol into forbidden fruit begging to be picked. Perhaps teaching young adults how to imbibe in moderation is the safer direction to go (Harrop)." Having the drinking age at 21 does not teach young adults who are starting to pledge anyway, how to drink responsibly. It makes them hide away from adult supervision and makes alcohol seem that a great deal more appealing. Office of the trill of drinking underage is hiding and getting away with it, so lowering it to 18 would take the thrill of drinking underage away. Things cannot go on this path.

Because the drinking age is lower in other countries, such as Europe, the drinking that occurs there demonstrates moderate, responsible alcohol intake and allows teenagers to ease into drinking at their own pace. One of the main reasons of binge drinking, drinking in unsafe environments, and alcohol related accidents is because teenagers enjoy the thrill of being able to do something that is illegal. However, in countries such as Europe, having a glass of wine at dinner or a beer while watching television, isn’t anything out of the ordinary to them. Since their parents allow it, because the government allows it, there is no real motive to hide in a basement or dorm room and binge drink. They are also provided with a safe environment with legal adults who will know how to react in a dangerous situation. Often when teenagers are drinking and faced with a dangerous issue, such as if someone is too drunk and unconscious, they flee the scene in fear of getting in trouble. Any legal adult would take the right actions and give that person the treatment and care he or she needs or take them to seek medical help. That kind of care can be seen in other countries, where it is not wrong for an adult to be at the scene with teenagers drinking if it is legal. If the drinking age remains 21 here, there will be less and less adults at a scene of underage kids drinking, and therefore there will be no supervision if something goes wrong. According to the World Health Organization, 15 and 16 year old teens in many European states, where the drinking age is 18 and often not enforced, although have more drinking occasions per month, they have fewer dangerous, intoxication occasions than their American

Studies show that keeping the drinking age at twenty-one improves lives. When the United States raised the age limit to twenty-one in 1985, a shortage of drinking occurred at a whopping 40% by 1991. As a result, fewer students drop out of high school, less motor accidents occur, and suicides rates dropped significantly. However, lowering the drinking age to eighteen will bring serious consequences on young adults by reversing these statistics. Lowering the drinking age will cause significant health problems, draw youth to poor judgment situations, before they are even old enough to handle the responsibility of drinking.

It has been a rising issue within the past century to have the drinking age set at 21, but many people are more in favor of having the age set at 18. For instance, “’Raising the drinking age to 21 was passed with the very best of intentions, but it’s had the very worst of outcomes,’ stated by David J. Hanson, an alcohol policy expert” (Johnson). Many people believe that having the drinking age set at 21 was a smart idea, but it has caused many more deaths and injuries over the years. Most of these fatalities are cause from people who are underage and choose to consume alcohol. Again, “Libertarian groups and some conservative economic foundations, seeing the age limits as having been extorted by Washington, have long championed lowering the drinking age” (Johnson). These groups see that keeping the drinking age set at 21 is dangerous as it causes more problems to the Untied States. If the drinking age was lowered, or set at 18, there would not be such unforgiving outcomes, like deaths and lifelong injuries, which are usually caused from people who are under the age of 21 drinking alcohol. Although there are numerous groups that are fighting to keep the age

Winston Churchill was infamous for his one liners and occasional drunken outbursts. One night at a party, he shocked a rather prominent woman with his drunken atrocities. Insulted, she turned to him and said, “Mr. Churchill, you are as drunk as a dog.” The Prime Minister returned, “Madam, I may be very drunk, but you are very ugly. But tomorrow,” he added, “I shall be sober” (Churchill, W). The use and abuse of alcohol is a centuries old vice that has circumnavigated the globe and all eras of humanity; young and old, man and woman. Alcohol is an inhibitor of logical thought. However, it is an enjoyable pastime as well as custom in almost every society as long as it is used within reason. Recently however, laws have been placed in many nations restricting drinking to only certain age groups. In America, the legal age to purchase and consume alcohol has fluxuated between 18 and 21, coming to rest at 21 in 1984. (CITE) This law is understandably strict, but also somewhat toying with a person 's free abilities. Aggravating the threat of binge-drinking and alcohol poisoning, this exceptionally high age limit has promoted more hindrances than benefits. Currently a great debate among lawmakers is whether the minimum legal drinking age (MLDA) should be lowered to 18; mirroring other nations in their practices. A lower limit would be exceptionally beneficial and fair legally, health-wise, and economically towards not only young adults, but society

These statistics’ prove Engs theory that because Alcohol consumption is illegal for young adults tend to consume alcohol and abuse alcohol more often. If their theory was true the binge drinking rate for 21 to 25 years olds would not be 45.5% in 2010. Another statistic that proves Engs “forbidden fruit theory” wrong is the statistic noted by the University of Michigan's Monitoring the Future study, they found that a proportion of those 19- to 22-year-olds that binged drank two weeks prior to their surveyed in 1984 was 40.7% and their current study in 2006 found that only 38.1% binged drank 2 weeks prior to the recent survey, Which; proves that the 1984 act has decreased binge drinking by 2% in America. This drop in binge drinking rates may only be a small drop in binge drinking rates. Which, convey that Americans do have a high percentage of binge drinkers. This problem brings up another argument that supporters of lowering the drinking age bring up.

The concerns about safety involving alcohol, including alcohol-related fatalities, “binge drinking”, and long-term health effects, will not be compromised by lowering the legal drinking age to nineteen in the United States. Activists who wish to raise the legal minimum age frequently discuss the ways that driving while intoxicated endangers countless lives every day in the United States, and is an increasing problem in "model" Europe as well. However, drunk driving increases will secrecy, not with accessibility. This concept only increases with teenagers, because avoiding parental guardians and the police are two of the main goals for the average underage party member. Following the inevitable secrecy is where problems generate as teenagers drive while drunk out of ignorance, lack of care, or fear of retribution as a result of calling for assistance. At this point where this occurs, the legal drinking age does not change a thing one way or another. Yet, if it was a twenty-one year-old drinking one-too-many beers at the local sports bar, a cab would have been called with very little ease, and no lives would be endangered. The aspect of secrecy is why the legal drinking age in the United States must be lowered to nineteen.

Although the legal drinking age in the U.S. should stay at twenty-one years old due to small reasons such as, drinking under the influence or alcohol poisoning, the MLDA has helped teens with larger reasons such as the avoidance of tobacco, cannabinoids, opioids or club drugs. Another extensive reason why the legal drinking age should not be lowered is because of the unsafe surroundings teens would be allowed into such as bars and nightclubs. Last, exposing the brain to alcohol in the teen years will hinder the process of brain development.

Recently, many researchers have questioned whether the legal drinking age in the United States should remain at twenty-one years old or if it should be lowered. This debate has been going on for years. Underage Drinking and the Drinking age”, written by Carla T. Main, represents the side of the argument that believes that the drinking age should remain at twenty-one. While,” Underage drinking: Does Current Policy Make Sense, written by Judith G. McMullen, represents the side of the argument that believes that the United States drinking should be lowered.

The legal drinking age in the United States was ruled to be 21 in 1984, setting the country apart from almost all other western nations. These past 30 years have contained as much problems regarding the consumption of alcohol as one of the country’s biggest failures ever, the 18th amendment, otherwise known as prohibition. Also, the legal drinking age in the United States can be considered violation of states liberties, as the national government, albeit with good intentions, has intervened and only made matters worse. The problem of a too high drinking age has been pushed to the side and overlooked by politicians because it only affects 18 to 20 year olds. Based on the increase in teenage binge drinking, the history of altering legal consumption of alcohol, and its unenforceable nature, the legal drinking age in the United States should be lowered to 18.

Almost everyone can agree that alcohol should not be given or allowed to children or young adults under a certain age. Alcohol is a substance that is very dangerous and if you used incorrectly or immaturely the consequences can be great danger to the users or the ones around them. The topic of lowering the drinking age has been in discussion for many decades. “Between 1970 and 1976, 29 states lowered their age for drinking alcohol. The results were catastrophic. Highway deaths among teenagers and young adults skyrocketed. Almost immediately, states began raising the minimum drinking age again.” “In 1984, Congress passed the Uniform Drinking Age Act, which required states to have a minimum drinking age of 21 for all types of alcohol

Lowering the drinking age will damage the teenagers’s still -developing brain. Different sections of the brain develop at different times. The human brain is not fully developed until the mid-twenties. The use of alcohol before full development can cause many issues down the road. “The brain’s frontal lobes are important for planning, forming ideas, making decisions, and using self-control” 5 Lowering the drinking age to eighteen leaves room for six to eight more years of development. If teens are allowed to drink, their ability to make decisions and their self-control is affected; this puts them in harm’s way and could put them in difficult situations that they are not able to handle. Too much alcohol can make someone act without thinking or even become violent at times. “Drinking alcohol over a long period of time can damage the frontal lobes forever.” 5 The frontal lobes are responsible for so much a person’s life and if they are damaged before they are developed then there can be long-term. A lower drinking age will make teenagers more susceptible to brain damage in their underdeveloped brains both at the moment of intoxication and long-term.

In today’s world alcohol has a major role. Whether it be for celebratory reasons or the exact opposite many people love to have an alcoholic beverage. Some enjoy getting a slight buzz off of it while others love to let go and and get drunk but for the most part it is an enjoyable act. Around the world many different countries have different laws placed on drinking alcohol and some are controversial. With the majority of the world having a drinking age of 18 years old many often wonder why does the United States have their own at 21 years of age. This has been a topic of much discussion and drama ever since the law was put in place by the US government. There are many people who agree with the law the US have placed on alcohol but there are even more people who have a problem with it. Not only do these people have a problem with the age but they also have their points in why the drinking age should be lowered to 18 years.

It seemed to work, since drinking by 12th graders in high school dropped 24% from 66%. Binge drinking has also decreased by a substantial amount at a 13% decrease. However, there is still a large number of minors who consume alcohol, at 42% of 12th graders still reporting drinking. The debate around the drinking age continues to this day, as many people believe that since one can join the Army and put their life on the line when they are 18, then they should also be able to buy a drink. 18 year olds can also vote and make decisions that affect the outcome of the country. However, there are still many people who argue that the drinking age should not be lowered to 18 due to the risk of injury and accidents relating to alcohol use.They also argue that the brain is not fully developed at this age, and not even at 21, so 18 year olds should especially not be consuming a substance that can harm their development. The advocators for lowering the drinking age believe that since 18 year olds can make decisions that affect both the country and their own lives, then they should be able to buy a

“In America, eighteen-year-olds can vote, operate a motor vehicle, pay taxes, marry, become a legal guardian, own a gun, fight and die in a foreign country….”(Fulton). An argument can be made that those responsibilities outweigh the responsibility of consuming alcohol .After prohibition ended in America, states were allowed to choose their own drinking age. In the 1970’s, 30 states lowered their drinking age to tie into the 26th amendment lowering of the voting age to 18. In 1984 US congress decided they would put a ten percent cut to infrastructure funding to states who did not adopt a 21 year old drinking age. Many countries around the world have a legal drinking age or 18 years old and sometimes even younger. There are only three other countries that have a drinking age of 21 years old and those countries are Mongolia, Indonesia, and Palau. After prohibition ended in America states were allowed to choose their own drinking age. Many states decided to match the drinking age with the national voting age, which is 18. The United States Of America is pledged with underage drinking problems and DUIs. Lowering the legal drinking age can help limit those problems and even save lives. Having a drinking age of 18 years old will lower DUI and drinking related charges, reduce binge drinking, and save lives .