The Pros And Cons Of The Drinking Age

In 1984 Ronald Reagan proposed a new law that declared that the legal drinking age must raised up to 21 instead of the age of 18. The law was forced upon the states by threatening them by stating that the government will reduce their highway funding until the states passed the law. Of course all the states eventually change their legal drinking age to 21. Some critics believe that this law’s results have been very successful, however the law possesses many insecurities, but certain programs can be arranged to help educate teenagers on alcohol.

There are several controversies in the world today, but one that really catches my attention is on the topic of whether or not the drinking age in the United States should be lowered from 21 to 18. Many people have debated about this topic for several years, and there are several different opinions on this topic. Some people think it is dangerous to lower the drinking age; some people support it. Some children think it is stupid to lower the drinking age; some children support it. However, I strongly believe that the legal drinking age should be lowered from 21 to 18 for several reasons, such as 18 year olds are allowed to do several other adult activities, other countries have the legal age at 21, and people who are under the age of 18 are still going to drink alcohol whether it is illegal or not.

Everyone in today’s society knows that the minimum legal drinking age in the U.S. is 21. But nobody really knows why. In the year 1984, President Reagan informed the states that if they didn’t change their drinking age to 21, they would lose 10% of their federal funding for their highways(Why is the Drinking Age 21?). In fear of losing their funding, all the states changed their MLDA (minimum legal drinking age) to 21, instead of 18. Some people were outraged that the age had been raised, and believed that if they were 18+ whenever the law was changed, they should still be able to purchase alcohol. However, the states disagreed. There are many different opinions on the MLDA. Many people believe that it should be lowered back down to 18, while some people believe even 21 is almost too young. But what are these people’s arguments?

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

Half the United States population starts drinking at the age of 14.When you are 18 you have privileges like joining the army. (Mitch Adams Lowering the drinking age page 1) You can go to war and die for your country but you still can not enjoy an ice cold beer. (Mitch Adams Lowering the drinking age page 1) How is being 21 different from being 18? How does three more years of not drinking make you mature enough to drink? The longer you drink the more you start to drink responsibly. (Katherine Reilly Why 21? Page 1) The legal drinking age should be lowered to 18 because most teens under 21 drink, when you turn 18 you get tons of privileges, at you 18 are considered an adult and what is so special about the

In over 100 countries across the world, the act of legally possessing and consuming alcohol is permissible below the age of 21, most often within the age range of 18-20. Nevertheless, there are many additional countries such as Spain and Haiti, which enforce a minimum age of 16 years among citizens. With the ratification of the controversial 1984 National Minimum Drinking Age Act, the United States federal government now requires each state to conform to the drinking age restriction of 21, or otherwise endure a penalty, encompassing a 10% reduction of federal highway transportation funds, attributed to the state in violation. Unfortunately, despite the conviction that a higher minimum drinking age prevents destructive, irrational actions conducted as a product of holding an underdeveloped brain, this federal ruling not only increases the seductive temptation of underage drinking, but additionally and equally promotes organized crime within the United States-a toxic societal conflict which would effectively be negated by a reduction of the minimum federal drinking age.

Over the years, there have been debates about lowering the drinking age in the United States to eighteen. People argue that if a person can fight in the military or vote in elections, then he or she should be allowed the right to drink alcohol. Others feel that it is not wise to lower the legal drinking age because the results would be dangerous. Alcohol is a substance that is extremely destructive and if it is used incorrectly or immaturely the consequences can be dangerous to the users and the ones around them. Underage drinking, specifically under the age of twenty-one, should not be allowed in the United States because it is dangerous. Although there are arguments for lowering

In the United States, the legal age of drinking is 21. Drinking is huge everywhere you go, some people do it for fun and celebration and some other people do it because they are stressed and need to release stress. Most people in the United States like young people binge drink when I mean “young” I mean like 18 years old young. At the age 18 many people are heading to college or just graduating high school and younger adults look forward on that beer being handed to them. When the young adults are out of high school they want to celebrate freely and just have fun and drink a beer, but guess what they can’t because they are considered underage, and they can’t buy their own beer. And banning the sale of alcohol to people under 21 is certain to encourage binge drinking. So should the legal drinking age be lowered? It can have many pros and cons on this situation. The legal drinking age should be lowered. We should lower the drinking age because it would decrease binge drinking, 18 is the legal age of adulthood, and lastly it is an enjoyable activity and is a freedom everyone should have.

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.

Alcohol has been a large part of society for many years. Currently out of the 190 countries in the world, 61% of them have drinking ages of 18 or 19. While 12 other countries have their drinking ages set at 21. In those 12 countries is the United States, who after 1984 raised their national minimum drinking age when Congress passed the Minimum Drinking Age Act. The drinking age in recent years has became a topic of controversy with people arguing that it showed be lowered back to 18 or 19. Their reasoning for this is that when a citizen in the United States turns 18 they are allowed to vote, enlist for the draft, serve in the armed forces, and get married, and serve on a jury. They are now considered adults in the eyes of the government. However while being considered a legal adult, individuals cannot drink. The argument for lowering the drinking age is that if an individual is treated as an adult and can die for their country, individuals should be able to drink alcohol legally. While there is support for lowering the drinking age, there is also support for keeping the drinking age where it is currently set. The common argument for keeping the drinking age at twenty-one is that the brain is not fully developed and alcohol usage before a developed brain can cause side effects. There are studies supporting both sides’ arguments for lowering the drinking age and keeping the drinking age.

At the age of 18, any individual who is a legal citizen of the United States of America has the option to vote, marry the love of their life, enter law abiding contracts with banks, see R rated movies without the presence of an adult, serve in any branch of the military, and buy tobacco products. These are important choices given to those entering adulthood, but one choice not given to those who are legally considered adults is drinking. 30 years ago this July, the National Drinking Age Act was passed. This act required that those who are in the United States must wait till the age of 21 to consume alcohol legally. According to Camile Pagila, this is “absurd”, “unjust”, and “a violation of civil liberties.” Although those words could be used to describe forcing adults to wait till they are 21 to drink, in “Keeping Legal Drinking Age at 21 Saves 900 Lives Yearly: Study,” Bahar Gholipour shows that these laws that keep the drinking age at 21, save lives and protect young adults from the dangers that come from drinking.

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.

The legal age of drinking should be raised to twenty-one as it will be beneficial for all Canadians. Primarily, this act would promote an increase of security for young adults that on occasion fail to realize the repercussions of alcohol. Studies have shown, taken from International Survey Associates, that adolescent brains aren’t fully developed at age eighteen. In fact, there is reason to believe, experts representatives from Mental Health Daily explain, that our brains aren’t fully developed until well in our twenties; age twenty-five more specifically. That is due to the synaptic pruning, a process by which brain synapses are selectively eliminated which peaks during puberty and can remain that way for many

There are many sides to one argument just like in whether the drinking age should be lowered. Many people think that it should be lowered, so young adults don’t drink in unsafe or unsupervised environments. Although, many people think that it shouldn’t be lowered because brains aren’t done developing until 22 and drinking can lead to health problems later in life. There are many positives and negatives to lowering the drinking age, but there are also some advantages such as diminishing binge drinking in young adults.

Would raising the legal drinking age to twenty-five years benefit our country from hurting the youth? If a twenty-one-year-old can join the military and can help defend the country, then why not keep the legal drinking age there? The drinking age should not be raised to age twenty-five. There are many important reasons that should be considered first. There are some reasons why; you are a legal adult at twenty-one, most people at the age are already out from under their parents, and maybe even in their third year of college living on their own.