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The Drinking Age Should Be 18 Essay

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Unsupervised, underage drinking has become an epidemic throughout the world, but in the in America more than anywhere else. America has the highest legalized drinking age in the world. In fact, only four countries in the world have a legalized drinking age over 18. In the United States, the legal drinking age for all 50 States and the District of Columbia is 21 years of age. The drinking age is 21 because the powers that control our government decided that when one becomes 21, one is magically transformed into a responsible person capable of handling the burden that comes with the right to consume alcohol. When we turn 18 in America we are supposed to be adults, but then what is the 21 age mark it is like we get an adult trial version for three…show more content…
The majority of people in these countries are very responsible with alcohol and I believe it has to do with their upbringing, what their parents taught them about drinking and allowing them to drink at a young age so it doesn’t feel like it is something evil and exotic you have to do behind your parent’s backs. Why can other countries condone the act of consuming alcohol as a young person when it is such an "immoral" act in the United States? In many other countries it is a widely accepted practice to drink a glass of wine or other alcoholic beverage with their meal. In this way, they learn moderation.
If people in the United States learned moderation at a young age, then they would be less apt to binge drink. This would result in far fewer deaths from alcohol related causes since more people would know how to imbibe without excess. My opinion is that we should lower the drinking age to 18 years of age or let separate states decide, but stress alcohol education in schools at an early age. One thing that seems to work in some countries is to allow children as young as 14-16 to drink in a restaurant when accompanied by a legal guardian. This allows parents to teach responsible drinking in public place. I think that if we could allow children to make the right choices with support from the parents they will be more likely to make wise decisions later on their
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