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That's discrimination in itself, really. The law is basically saying that until you hit 40, it's perfectly fine to discriminate against you under the basis of "age requirement".
If you're an adult at 18 - you shouldn't be discriminated against for anything at all. 18 is an arbitrary number, but it's also the general age of high school graduates. It basically says that once you graduate from school, you're an adult.
You also get to pay adult prices at movie theaters at 12 but can't chose the movie you want to watch.
At 14, any movie worth seeing was an R movie. I always liked the movies, the one's that usually win academy awards, and they were always R.
Many 18 year olds are still in school, this lends to buying for everybody...a few stats,
Motor vehicle crashes remain the number one cause of death among youth ages 15-20. There were 7,460 youth motor vehicle deaths in 2005. (This includes both drivers and passengers.)
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (broken link)
Twenty-eight percent (28%) of 15- to 20-year-old drivers who were killed in motor vehicle crashes in 2005 had been drinking.[/SIZE]
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
For young drivers (15-20 years old), alcohol involvement is higher among males than among females. In 2005, 24% of the young male drivers involved in fatal crashes had been drinking at the time of the crash, compared with 12% of the young female drivers involved in fatal crashes.
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Drivers are less likely to use seat belts when they have been drinking. In 2005, 64% of the young drivers of passenger vehicles involved in fatal crashes who had been drinking were unrestrained. Of the young drivers who had been drinking and were killed in crashes, 74% were unrestrained
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (broken link)
It is estimated that 24,560 lives have been saved by minimum drinking age laws since 1975
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (broken link)
In 2005, an estimated 906 lives were saved by minimum drinking age laws.
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (broken link)
Among the 33.9% of currently sexually active high school students nationwide, 23.3% had drunk alcohol or used drugs before their last sexual intercourse. 2005 CDC Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance
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Maybe this has already been mentioned, but...
It should be 21, with an exception for active miltary personnel, then it should be 19 for them.
19 would give a little bit of a transistion to more responsiblity. It's just sad that a country like this would let one get killed, or kill someone, in a war (and god forbid have a draft sometime soon) if one turns 18, but won't let you have a simple beer if you are under 21, it's stupid.
On top of that, it may, in a twisted way, increase voluntary miltary service, which the US really needs.
Canada does not seem to have it worse with their drinking age being either 18 or 19 in all provinces.
Last edited by beenhereandthere; 01-09-2008 at 04:52 PM..
Reason: additional comment
Maybe one solution would be to make it legal for someone aged 18 to drink, but not to buy alcohol before the age of 21?
In Sweden, I can (as an 18-year-old) drink alcohol, but I can't buy anything stronger than light beer until I'm 20. (And since only Systembolaget - governmentally owned- can sell alcohol stronger than light beer, it is impossible for people below age 20 to buy alcohol).
It's legal to drink at age 18, but in reality you cannot drink unless you're with other adults (age 20 or above).
(Ok, just need to say this: why in the world anyone would want to drink alcohol is beyond me. It's discusting!)
I think the drinking age is absurd. But I also think there is a problem of duality in the US. One one hand, you have a boozy culture fueled by a marketing regime that screams, "DO IT!". On the other hand is a latter day puritanical message of "No, no, no. Booze is bad."
Here is where we could maybe learn something from our European friends who are known to slowly introduce their kids to booze in small amounts at an earlier age. How are teenagers supposed to avoid drinking when they have been watching their parents hit the sauce for years?
How about emphasizing responsible drinking so as to avoid drunk driving?
It is an urban legend that European countries have less of an alcohol problem than the US. Most are just beginning to catch up with us in terms of DUI. I have read many articles stating that many European countries have more of an alcohol problem than the US. One exception that keeps popping up is Italy.
I do not think there is a definition of "responsible drinking".
Quote:
Originally Posted by ANewChapter
Maybe, like driver's education, they should have classes informing people of the dangers of alcohol assumption, maybe their senior year of high school. I think educating them would be more practive then just banning them until they are a bit older, and still not completely aware of how alcohol truly affects you.
Actually, quite a bit of such education does go on in health classes in the high schools. Most teens (if mine are any example) can "talk the talk". The problem is that they don't always "walk the walk". Sometimes the designated driver gets drunk, too, etc.
Quote:
Originally Posted by StillwaterTownie
No way. We as a nation feel it's a bad idea to teach teenagers responsible sex because it might give them screwy ideas to actually try out sex to see how it feels like. So we don't dare teach them responsible drinking, either.
That is not the case in every school district. It was not the case where my kids went to school. They had an "abstinece plus" program where they were taught the only surefire way to avoid pregnancy, STDs, etc was to be abstinent, but were also taught about birth control, AIDS, etc.
I am totally opposed to lowering the drinking age to 18. Most kids turn 18 while still in high school. 18 yr olds would be buying alcohol for 15 yr olds. I could accept 19 or 20, but I really have no problem with 21.
According to Wikipedia "drinking age", the only other countries where it is 21 are Ukraine and a few Muslim countries, where for Muslims, it is illegal at any age. The lowest drinking age is 5 (yes, five) in the Isle of Man.
Next time you travel abroad, go around to the youth hostal and hang out with the European kids there. You'll be the life of the party. They roar with laughter when Americans tell them about life in this country, like how you have to work 5 years to get a second week of vacation, if you get any vacation at all. Show them your passport so they can regale themselves looking at the latest list of countries that you are not allowed to go to. It's hilarious being an American abroad. Get out a dollar bill and tell how much it's worth in real money. And the part where God has official US government recognition.
despite what others think, i think the drinking age should be 21 with an exception for those who are in the military armed forces. its kinda messed up that u can kill or die for your country but yet u can not get a drink because u are under the age of 21?
Last edited by littleword; 01-11-2008 at 11:30 PM..
How about those that are 18 and could join the armed forces, but don't? They are also old enough to kill for their country, but they don't. Why should people who DON"T want to kill be disqualified from getting drunk? But for people in training to become professional killers, it's OK to get drunk, even though you wouldn't be mature enough as a civilian.
According to Wikipedia "drinking age", the only other countries where it is 21 are Ukraine and a few Muslim countries, where for Muslims, it is illegal at any age. The lowest drinking age is 5 (yes, five) in the Isle of Man.
Next time you travel abroad, go around to the youth hostal and hang out with the European kids there. You'll be the life of the party. They roar with laughter when Americans tell them about life in this country, like how you have to work 5 years to get a second week of vacation, if you get any vacation at all. Show them your passport so they can regale themselves looking at the latest list of countries that you are not allowed to go to. It's hilarious being an American abroad. Get out a dollar bill and tell how much it's worth in real money. And the part where God has official US government recognition.
Well, I've never worked anywhere that only gave one week of vacation for five years, and I've worked for some pretty hard-nosed employers. I've alwasy gotten two to start, then three after 3 - 5 yrs. I'm not sure what this has to do with drinking age, anyway.
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Swedes like their booze....
