When I went to the Grand Cayman Islands and Cozumel I did a little too much drinking. This was new to me cause I had never drunk before and some of my friends that went hadn’t either. Some of my friends went a little crazy. They had gone crazy with alcohol because they could drink and not be put punished for it. Here in the United States it is illegal for some one under the age of twenty-one but articles such as “Should the Drinking Age Be Lowered?” say that more and more teens are being put in AA (Alcoholics Anonymous) meeting than ever and even more under age people are driving under the influence. In the army you can join at the age of eighteen so why can’t I drink. The way I see it if I am able to go over seas and die for my country I should be able to throw a few back when I want to.This is shown in the article "15 reasons why the drinking age should be 18". The law says that people under the age of twenty-one should not drink then why are there more and more college students dinking and why haven’t the police and government cracked down on this? Maybe instead of trying to stop us they should do the opposite they should teach us how to be smart about how we consume alcohol. Like Ruth C. Engs a professor at Indiana University suggested the government do.
The drinking age now is a joke and it is not enforced have been to a good bit of parties and 5 of the parties I have been to have been busted by the police. Each time everyone at the party was obviously hammered and all we were forced to do is pour out the rest of the alcohol. I strongly think that "if I am able to go overseas and die for my country I should be able to throw a few back when I want to." some of the other blogs are against lowering the drinking age because they state "there will be more drunk teenage drivers on the road," if it is legal to drink at 18 teenage drinkers would be more responsible when drinking because they don’t have to hide it from anyone right? Drunk driving is not what everyone does when they drink. Adults get drunk, party, drink and drive, and act crazy too so automatically everyone assumes teenagers will do the same, it’s all prejudice, times have changed and I think they should give us a chance.
ReplyDeleteThe drinking age should be lowered, not to let younger teens party, but to introduce a new thing in their life before they get to college. Nowadays, a lot of high school students see college as a place that they can get away from their parents and finally start drinking. Football7413 said "This was new to me cause I had never drunk before and some of my friends that went hadn’t either." If the drinking age is lowered, students would have already drank before college so the "new" would have had a chance to wear off. When new students get to college, they are encouraged to practice in drinking. Gordie Bailey died in 2004 from alcohol poisoning because it was part of his initiation for a fraternity (http://brighthall.aol.com/2009/02/20/why-the-drinking-age-should-be-lowered-to-18/). If the drinking age was lowered to an age before you get to college, it won't be as much of a big deal and students would then be able to drink to enjoy, and not participate in binge drinking. Do you think that lowering the age to an age before college would reduce the number of MUI's (Minor Under the Influence)?
ReplyDeleteThe drinking age shouldn't be lowered to eighteen because of the number of increasing deaths caused by DUI's (Driving Under the Influence). Above, Owen referred to drinking as something that should be controlled before a student reaches college. Unfortunately, drinking not only brings about DUI's, but also mishaps that would not occur if one wasd sober. Although it would lower the number of MUI's (Minor Under the Influence), it would increase the number DUI's recorded daily. Being a college student, I have come to the realization that numerous students beginning at the age of 18 attend college parties. At these parties, alcohol is distributed and students take advantage of this. According to the Georgia Department of Revenue, it is clearly stated that the legal age for drinking and distribution of alcohol is 21 and anyone under that age wouls be fined, sentenced to jail, etc. The amount of students drinking under age in college has caused permanent records to no longer be clear and also students lose their privileges by having a suspended license. This law being created would not only get more in toruble, but also cause many parents to be without their kids or have the ones who cause deaths by DUI's.
ReplyDeleteThe drinking age should be lowered simply because no matter what age a person is they are going to do whatever they want to do anyway. Getting alcohol is very easy to do and if their parents or guardians or whoever they are around doesn’t care about what they do then why should the government. I agree that “maybe instead of trying to stop us they should do the opposite they should teach us how to be smart about how we consume alcohol.”
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ReplyDeleteThe current drinking age is actually counterproductive. By introducing alcohol at 18, we can remove the mystery behind alcohol; that is, we can take underage drinking and bring it into the open. We already know that teenagers drink. What is more concerning is that 24% of high school students binge drink. It promotes ‘drinking to get drunk.’
ReplyDelete“In the army you can join at the age of eighteen so why can’t I drink.[sic]”
We expect eighteen year olds to live independently and make their own choices; if they decide to drink, what actions can really be taken to stop them? You can put the burden on vendors and hold them liable for selling to minors, but it’s not that hard to get someone else to make the buy on your behalf. You can punish them through fines and jail time, but that’s only if they get caught; the current law pushes this behavior behind closed doors.
We have to accept that after high school, they’re not under the same control anymore! They are not under constant supervision! What could really stop a college student with a conviction to drink? The most we can do is teach them how to drink responsibly. Why not start early and give them every opportunity before it’s too late? Let’s take a page from Europe’s book: I think we should lower the drinking age to sixteen with parental consent and eighteen without it. Let’s formally introduce teenagers to something we know they’ve already been acquainted with.
I'm guilty of underage drinking. In fact, I've been guilty for 16 years. I started drinking watered down wine at the age of two, and as the years passed, less water has been added. I was taught to drink in moderation and not get drunk. My sister, as well as my parents, and even my grandparents grew up this way because it's the culture in South Africa. Because of the way I grew up, alcohol is nothing new to me.
ReplyDeleteOf course, South Africa has a legal drinking age (18), but it is not enforced. If America had the same type of culture and law, I’m sure it would have the same effect. The key isn’t maturity; it is familiarizing people with alcohol. Parents should take a lesson from other cultures and teach their children about alcohol, maybe even give them watered down alcohol.
I personally think that the drinking age should be brought down a little. It really doesn't matter because kids these days find all kinds of ways to get liquor. There are many kids who are very careful when they drink and I seriously think that all of us have learned from all the previous accidents that have happen that people have been killed or seriously injured from. We see what can happen so I seriously think that we understand what can happend if we drink and drive. There are adults who drink and drive and kill people no just kids so if that's the case they should just banned alcohol all the way don't stop one group of people if your not going to stop the other millions of people who do the same thing we do..
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