The issue for many people is that 18-year-olds who can vote, marry, sign contracts in some states and join the military should be able to drink. We understand the seeming contradiction but can't get beyond the evidence that the current minimum drinking age saves lives.
24 Ağustos 2008 Pazar
Drinking Age Debate
The Amethyst Initiative is attempting to get college presidents to sign a petition to have a reasoned national debate on lowering the drinking age from 21 to 18. Those signing are not necessarily saying that the drinking age should be lowered, but rather agreeing that there should be a debate on it. What do Mod-Bloggers think about lowering the drinking age? In some countries, the drinking age is even lower than 18. Is there something about Americans that makes it in our best interest to keep the drinking age at 21? On the one hand, I'd hate to lower the drinking age only to have binge drinking move from a problem on college campuses to a problem in high schools. On the other hand, 18 year olds are allowed to vote and fight in the military. An article on the issue I think sums up the conundrum in my mind well:
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If such a debate is opened - and honestly, I don't think a national debate on this is timely right now - both sides need to be ready for the debate to go unexpected places. What is magical about 18? Why not 16? Or why not 25 instead of 21 (which has also been proposed by anti-alcohol forces)? Or why not go the way of the speed limit, and let each state set their own minimum drinking age?
YanıtlaSilThe 21-year drinking age is consensus at the moment in the culture and I do not see a wide demand to change it. I suspect this is one of those "debates" that it'll be useful to have during the next lull between periods of international unrest. Not now.
It does seem like it is mostly teens and college presidents who want this. The teens want to be able to drink, and the college presidents want it so they won't have to worry about restricting drinking on campus and enforcing the law.
YanıtlaSilclose, college presidents want it to lower their liability for binge drinking deaths.
YanıtlaSilBinge drinking is already a problem in HS so lowering the drinking isn't going to create a problem we don't already have. Why don't we just ban drinking at any age - it worked so well in the past. :)
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