Comments (153)

1. I’m not sure what their point is, or why they’re so concerned that the drinking age “forced” these young people to imbibe in a “culture of dangerous, clandestine binge-drinking,”.

   Really?? “Forced”?? I had no idea that young people were being forced to drink alcohol. It’s shocking. First their parents force them to eat their vegetables and now this!

   The fact that they engage in binge drinking is pretty much proof that they cant make responsible decisions when it comes to alcohol. Thes college presidents need to take a course in common sense.

   posted by Chris on 8-26-2008 at 7:01 am

2. So…. The college administrators would prefer that under 21-year-olds do their binge drinking off campus, then die on their way back?

   There’s nothing stopping them from teaching their students the hazards of alcohol abuse _now_. The fact that alcohol use by minors is illegal does not mean you can’t talk about it. In fact, what better time to advise them of what kind of trouble they can get into than before they get into it?

   posted by Mike on 8-26-2008 at 7:05 am

3. Not that I am supporting changing the drinking age to 18, but we must look at the fact that if our sons and daughters are responsible enough to vote for the leaders of our country and they can fight and die for our country in war, then they should obviously be responsible enough to purchase alcohol.

   posted by Sue on 8-26-2008 at 7:18 am

4. When I was in the Navy at Great Lakes in the mid-1980s, even though Illinois state law said you had to be 21, you were allowed to drink on base at the age of 19 (at least at the EM Club). I doubt that’s still the case.

   posted by Sandy on 8-26-2008 at 7:50 am

5. Here in the great state of Michigan it is illegal for any person under the age of 21 to posses, use or otherwise consume acohol.

   Also, and I am not too sure if it still is, but while stationed breifly at Camp Pendleton, CA in the early 90′s. Any active military member between 18 and 21 could purchase and consume beer only at enlisted ‘clubs’. You could not however, buy it at the package store, and you could not purchase so called hard liquer. I was always led to beleive that this was due to the ownership of the actual land the base was on. Most bases in the continuous 48 states are on leased land. Camp Pendleton is the only federally owned base.

   posted by RobVan on 8-26-2008 at 8:00 am

6. I just got out of the Air Force about a year ago and the rules have changed now, you can’t buy alcohol anywhere on base until you’re of age. My first assignment was in Japan where the drinking age is 20, so the AF allowed us to drink at that age as well. For anyone over there under the age of 20 though, none of the Japanese carded Americans (they just wanted our money), so you could drink off base all you wanted. You just had to be careful gettting back on base… sometimes they did mandatory breathalizers (sp?).

   posted by Sally on 8-26-2008 at 8:17 am

7. As an RA at a college campus, I can tell you that there is no way that underage drinking is going to stop. The only way to make it safer it to educate students on safe drinking practices, encouraging moderation over binging. This would be a hell of a lot easier if there could be adults present (or any kind of responsible supervision). However, the drinking age makes the act clandestine, and therefore students who wish to drink are forced to do so in secrecy.

   Also, studies have shown that the vast majority of underage drinkers do so in moderation, but perceive that others do not. So basically, peoples preconceived notions that their friends drink to excess encourages them to do the same.

   Don’t patronize all teenagers and make it seem like we’re all incapable of making smart decisions. Prejudices like that only encourage dangerous behavior.

   posted by Meghan on 8-26-2008 at 8:19 am

8. Not that I advocate for changing the drinking age, but I believe that if our sons and daughters are old and “responsible” enough to serve our country in the military and to be able to vote for our leaders, they should be responsible for purchasing alcohol.

   posted by Sue on 8-26-2008 at 8:37 am

9. “This law basically told states that they had to enact a minimum drinking age of 21 or lose up to ten percent of their federal highway funding.”

   This is the part that bugs me (but I also believe in more power for the states and less for the feds). Either make a national law or let the states decide, don’t force them and then pretend it’s a federal law.

   posted by Lynn on 8-26-2008 at 8:42 am

10. Just to be a bit clearer–I don’t think people pretend it’s a a federal law (poor choice of words there). Just that the fact that many states were orginally opposed is usally left out.

    posted by Lynn on 8-26-2008 at 8:44 am

11. I think its fair to say the 21 year old drinking age has given rise to some pretty stupid practices that wouldn’t necessarily happen if 18-20 year olds could openly and legally drink. “Pre-gaming” is right on the top of that list for me. Don’t know about other college campuses, but at the University of Delaware underage students like to get completely and utterly trashed before they start going to parties. I don’t know if its to limit the risk of being caught with a beer when the party gets broken up by the cops for a noise violation or what. I just know I’ve wanted to smack some sense into every intern in this office who has decided to give me a play-by-play of their pre-gaming activities.

    posted by Stacey on 8-26-2008 at 8:57 am

12. Part of the arguement is that it is just as illegial to drink one beer as a case if you are underage. So underage drinkers who do break the law figure they might as well drink the whole case.

    So if the drinking age is lower, the university presidents believe a large portion of the current underage binge drinks would choice to go to a bar with friends, have a beer or two and then call it a night.

    posted by eeVas on 8-26-2008 at 9:11 am

13. My parents speak wistfully of the days growing up in PA (21 state) but driving to NJ (18 state). If nothing else there is at least a benefit to uniformity.

    I wonder if those commenting recall their own college days? Even if you weren’t the one doing the drinking, you had to know people that were. I’m amazed at how easily we tend to forget what it was like for us at (insert age). To be fair I’m 28 so not all that far out of the loop, as well as have 4 brothers all under the age of 14, so it is a bit easier to stay connected.

    I just see a pattern of “When I was your age” and “These darn kids today” starting to develop. Never beneficial.

    posted by Jessica on 8-26-2008 at 9:23 am

14. An older drinking age does not limit binge drinking. I know plenty of 26, 30 even 40 year olds that will occasionally go out and get blind-drunk; these people have careers and apartments, are obviously mature and educated…they just want to have fun.

    Even if a person waits until they are legal drinking age, if they are the sort of person who wants to “get wasted” they will. Regardless of whether they are 16, 19 or 21 years old, they can all make the same choices (though I do give you that an older person may have learnt his limit by then…after a few years of drinking).

    As for drinking and driving – I was under the impression that more often than not, impaired drivers aren’t teenagers, but rather are adults who “know their limit” or “only had a couple” and figure they are okay to drive. Now that I’m an adult, I find that I’m taking car keys away much MUCH more often than when I was a teenager. To be fair, however, I haven’t researched much in to that, aside from a few articles here and there.

    In Canada the drinking age is 18 or 19 (depending on the province) and I really don’t think it did any harm. If anything, by the age of 21 you’ve got your ‘stupid drinking days’ out of the way and are more likely to be okay with having one beer at dinner, rather than eight. Universities have always been places to drink; whether someone is 19 or 21 when they crack a beer open, they could – and often will – still drink irresponsibly.

    posted by Jenny on 8-26-2008 at 9:31 am

15. Certainly, among the people I know, drinking lost a bit of its status once you became legal. I don’t know if you got it out of your system or if it stopped being seen as something rebellious, but it was a pretty consistant pattern. When you didn’t have to sneak around, it wasn’t as fun.

    posted by Lynn on 8-26-2008 at 9:40 am

16. Alcohol abuse will continue to be a problem until it’s demystified. When people are allowed to do something without restrictions, then people will accept it and it will stop being a problem.
    In Europe, people are allowed to drink at vertually any age. This effectively demystifies it for younger folks. They don’t sneek out for drinks and they tend not to abuse it because it’s accepted behavior.
    I think that once the United States removes restrictions on alcohol, then we’ll see a dramatic decrease in alcohol related incidents involving younger people.

    posted by Lee on 8-26-2008 at 10:34 am

17. I went to college in the early ’90s in Pensacola, about a 3 hour drive from New Orleans. There, it was lax regarding drinking by those under 21, so we used to make the trek over there all the time to drink. Then in 1995, they got tough, but by then my friends and I were of age and we didn’t care.

    posted by Kim on 8-26-2008 at 11:09 am

18. Why not just make the drinking age 19, as it is here in Canada? Keep the alcohol out of the hands of high schoolers, but keep that line at a respectable, responsible level.

    posted by Martin on 8-26-2008 at 11:39 am

19. All I know is, I don’t want to be at a bar serving or hanging out with a bunch of 18 year olds. It sounds like the worst time in the world.

    posted by JHop on 8-26-2008 at 12:28 pm

20. I am all for lowering the drinking age, but at the same time, there needs to be an investigation into some state’s legal limit for being considered drunk. In a lot of states it’s so low that drinking ONE BEER will make you over the limit. So perhaps teens are getting caught in this way and being termined as “abusing alcohol” or “intoxicated”. It’s kind of a double standard.

    posted by Katy on 8-26-2008 at 12:56 pm

21. I studied abroad in Sicily and it was QUITE obvious who the Americans were and who the Europeans were. The Americans were falling down drunk at the end of the night, while the Europeans were controlled. We would see middle-school aged kids gather at bars and have drinks- some had pop, some had actual drinks- and they wouldn’t get wasted or even drunk. It’s a cultural thing more than a 3 year gap. If Americans were immersed with appreciation of fine wine, great beer, etc, at an early age, they’d never do beer bongs full of natty lite.

    Oh and re: pregaming, Stacey- I think it’s a money thing as well as a not getting caught thing. You can still get in trouble for being drunk publicly, so it’s not so much not getting caught with a beer in hand. However, a case of cheap beer or a bottle of wine from the gas station, while not so tasty, are much cheaper than the beers and drinks available behind the bar.

    posted by Kelly J on 8-26-2008 at 1:27 pm

22. When the presidents refer to “Clandestine” they don’t just mean the act of drinking. They are also referring to the places and manner in which underage students are getting drunk, and dealing with being drunk. Underage drunks are less likely to use campus transportation, or go to the health center if they drank too much. They are also more likely to drink in a private setting(i.e. unsupervised), rather than a place like a bar, which has bartenders and bouncers watching. It is much easier for someone to drink responsibly when they have the same options available to them as other “responsible” adults.

    posted by John on 8-26-2008 at 1:31 pm

23. The issue isn’t so much of an age but the culture in the US. Here it considered acceptable to get totally wasted. Last week at a team meeting my co-workers who were about 24-27 in age, were so drunk they were slurring their words, dropping drinks on the floor, and almost causing a fight. They thought it was fun. If 21 is consdered an age where people are “mature” then they should meet some of my co-workers.

    In Europe, people drink at 18 but they just have one or two drinks, they are not drunk. When I was in San Sebastian, Spain all the drunk/intoxicated people were tourists from the US. It is a culture issue than so much of an age issue.

    posted by Gina on 8-26-2008 at 1:50 pm

24. Hmm.. I always thought it was 21 because that was the age at which one is fully developed (when the skull fuses completely), hence being an adult. Interesting. Any idea why 21 was chosen for knighthood & voting purposes??

    As for the whole 21-18-21 mess, when the drinking age was lowered many more 16-year-olds were getting their hands on liquor, since many of them had 18-year-old friends, as a 2 year gap is much less than a 5 year gap. Of course, high schoolers still find a way to get their hands on booze(heck, some parents provide it!) but underage drinking incidents went way down when the drinking age was changed back to 21 (according to MADD, anyway).

    Finally, I don’t buy that whole European “let-them-drink-whenever” argument. All the European kids I knew in college drank just as much as, if not more than those who were raised in the states. For them, drinking was acceptable at all times and occassions but they still had the urge to binge. This just led to being drunk every day rather than just on the weekends and times of showing up drunk or hungover to class.

    Interesting etymology tidbit: Orignally, “drunk” was meant as an understatement to suggest that one had only had 1 drink and therefore was not inebriated.

    posted by Bri on 8-26-2008 at 2:53 pm

25. I meant to add: perhaps, due to the underage business, they should only sell to those 21+, but not prosecute anyone 18+ who is caught in possession of alcohol?

    Oh, and RI state law is such that anyone under 21 who has any alcohol in their system (.08 is the legal limit, but under 21 is .00) while operating a vehicle gets slapped with possession, ingestion, and transportation of alcohol as well as a DUI. (source: RI state trooper speaking at a SADD event)
    (transportation due to it being in your stomach.. seems a little unfair??)

    posted by Bri on 8-26-2008 at 3:00 pm

26. Maybe instead of lowering the drinking age to 18, we should raise the minimum age for military service and voting back to 21? Our society is consistently and gradually increasing the age at which people are expected to act like adults, not lowering it.

    A 21 year old in 17th century England probably had a couple kids already, and could only be expected to live another 40 years or so. If anything, we ought to be talking about raising the drinking and voting ages to 25 or 30.

    posted by superbad on 8-26-2008 at 4:43 pm

27. I agree with Martin above, make it 19 so the high school kids don’t come to school drunk or buy for the 16 year olds.

    From my experiences in college, binging happens because you have very limited access to alcohol and you have to drink it in private. That means go to a party where they serve it, or down the bottle of Jack before you get caught with it.

    After turning 21 we still drank, but there was a lot more going out for a few beers and a lot less getting hammered.

    posted by Dave on 8-26-2008 at 4:48 pm

28. As for the ‘they can go to war at 18, but can’t drink until 21′ arguement, I say let anyone with a military ID drink at 18.

    posted by Vickey on 8-26-2008 at 5:51 pm

29. I grew up in Germany. And i would never say Europeans do not binge. but i also would say that they are smarter about it. The fact that it is not against the law means they would call an ambulance if someone imbibed enough alcohol to be fatal. I also work on an ambulance and have seen many kids either dropped off at the parents, on a street in the city, or in front of a fire station. because their friends dont want to get in trouble.

    Kids are going to drink and the Dare programs dont work because they make it confusing saying its bad and pointing out all the harmful effects but then the kid sees his dad or mom at the family reunion quaffing beers with his or her crabs. I say we educate out kids and way not have them start drinking before they leave the house. you wouldn’t send them to college and have their friends teach them to drive would you?

    posted by Brian on 8-26-2008 at 6:06 pm

30. Liquor is a toxic garbage that a half-man, half-monkey “invented” in a cave some 6,000-dd years ago. Now it helps spawn 75% of the mayhem in society today. You’d figure that some scientist would figure out some new form of booze that wouldn’t make you crash your car, punch out your wife, quit your job, etc. etc…but then the paycheque addicted cops and politicians and lawyers and insurance companies and doctors and liquor companies wouldn’t like that at all, they’d call it DOPE, and don’t allow us to be happy.

    posted by Feldwebel Wolfenstool on 8-26-2008 at 8:02 pm

31. honestly, im just turning 18. the fact that the drinking age has not once stopped me from drinking since i was 15. do i binge? never. have a drink or two when im at a party? of course. having the drinking age at 21 is more of an inconvience than anything.

    it will never ever stop kids from purchasing alcohol, and all it encourages is reckless behavior. since they have to regardless find someone, or pay someone to buy them alcohol, never will underage kids buy just one six pack, or twelve pack, it encourages them to binge and buy bottles of alcohol and dozens of beers.

    you want to recruit me into the military at 18, want me to vote, my patriotic duty..but i cant drink. i can smoke, which is toxic and kills hundreds of thousands of people a year, but god forbid i drink. people need to wake up.

    yes people will die from drunk driving, its inevitable, be it w/ or w/o the drinking age. but more people will die from smoking for sure. innocent people at that, more from second hand smoke, then alcohol consumption, reckless driving, poisoning.

    sorry priorities are not in line. tobacco makes the government billions in taxes, and that makes death ok? but drinking is not. alright. its always nice to see what our country is made up on. dishonest, underhand tactics, never caring bout the little people.

    posted by ridiculous on 8-26-2008 at 8:05 pm

32. I am glad the drinking age is 21 and hope it stays there. These dumb kids of today are too ignorant as it is.

    RD
    http://www.useurl.us/17n

    posted by Jim Beam on 8-26-2008 at 8:14 pm

33. If you ask me…
    18 should be the age. ( and 18 should be the age for driving as well )

    Free Web Powered Digital Signage:
    MediaSignage.com

    posted by Sean on 8-26-2008 at 8:14 pm

34. If you’re 18 and from the US, you can go without a passport to Puerto Rico and drink to your heart’s content.

    posted by Rogelio on 8-26-2008 at 8:19 pm

35. I turn 21 in just over a month, so changing this wouldn’t effect me. I have been binge drinking since the end of sophomore year of high school and the main reason I have always done it, is simply because it’s fun, not because it’s “cool”, illegal, or dangerous. I’m aware is extremely harmful for my body and I’ll probably pay the price down the line, but I simply think the amount of fun I’ve had is worth it.

    That said, why can’t the drinking age be 19? Anyone can get alcohol at college so what’s the point of anything higher. 18 provides that same easy access for anyone in in HS, meaning potentially a 14 year old freshman could get blind drunk fairly easy. Personally, I think that’s too young based on both physical and mental maturity.

    posted by Illini21 on 8-26-2008 at 8:22 pm

36. Lol. This suggests clearly that if you are not 21:
    1. you can drink at work
    2. once you are able to drink and get completely booze retarded, you may vote for the drunken politicians who hope you are too pissed to notice they are utter liars.

    posted by Etienne on 8-26-2008 at 8:26 pm

37. I really wish someone would compare the statistics between Canada, the US, and Europe.

    They all have different drinking ages with the US the highest, Europe the lowest, and Canada in between. I believe it would be a lot more accurate, especially if one would look at the drinking cultures of the separate nations. In the US it’s all about binge drinking because alcohol is harder to come by for those underaged.

    It’s definitely not the same in Canada. When I go out to bars it’s more casual drinking than binge drinking. After that, I just walk home. Don’t tell me that as an 18 year old, I’m too irresponsible for that.

    posted by Johnny on 8-26-2008 at 8:28 pm

38. Maybe the parents should step up to the plate take responsibility for their “children”

    Maybe we should raise the age of parenting! OH, but that would raise another topic wouldn’t it???

    posted by Paul on 8-26-2008 at 8:36 pm

39. Leave it at 21, I grew up in the 70′s and we lost too many folks to drinking and driving and it is true deaths went way down when the age went back up. Besides y’all have enough trouble texting and driving, imagine doing it drunk. Kids will always find booze, they don;t need it made easier.
    Or if it does go down, make 1st time offenders do jail time no matter their age, hell make do jail time even if it doesn’t go down.
    Drunks on the road are not needed.

    posted by Vrent on 8-26-2008 at 8:42 pm

40. I understand this debate: why should an 18 year old who can fight in iraq not be able to enjoy a cold one?

    Although there’s a lot of good arguments for changing the drinking age, I think doing so would really hurt some people. As for the binge drinking, college aged kids are going to do it whether or not the beer is legal.

    See, the drinking age is 21, but 18 year olds seem to get alcohol fairly easily. If the drinking age were 18, think about how much easier it would be for a 15, 16 and 17 year olds to obtain alcohol. Drinking in high school is already a problem.

    I think the buffer between 18 and 21 prevents a lot of alcohol from reaching high school students.

    And for now, those 18 year olds can drink some Vivi Acai Berry Soda, it’s much healthier and better tasting anyway

    posted by Newmy on 8-26-2008 at 10:05 pm

41. How about the fact that the human body isn’t fully grown till sometime in the early to mid 20′s.
    With that growth the liver is also included. If over indulging of alcohol takes place before the liver is fully grown the alcohol can stunt, and degrade the quality of the liver even before it has reached full maturity. There are plenty more health reasons as to why the age is limited to 21. Just follow the rules. No one likes an ignorant drunk anyway kids. Have some water.

    posted by Big T on 8-26-2008 at 10:23 pm

42. 21 is too young for drinking.
    16 is far too young for driving.
    Both should be raised 5 years.

    posted by mike on 8-26-2008 at 10:47 pm

43. I believe that the drinking age should be lowered. Teen’s today are already exposed to alcohol (even as young as 14 years old). To say this isn’t true is being ignorant. Now if the drinking age was lowered, teens would get exposed to drinking in a more mature environment, aka while their still living at home and have parents who can teach them right from wrong. I do enjoy a few drinks now and then, usually a beer with pizza or wine with Italian food. A mixed drink at my friend’s house to relax by the pool. The people who drink to get passed out, eventually learn how immature their binge drinking really is right after their first bad hangover. I mean seriously these laws are messed up, you can die for your country but you can’t even touch a beer without the fear of getting arrested. The more people wake up and realize this, the sooner the drinking age will be lowered

    posted by James on 8-27-2008 at 12:38 am

44. The legal drinking age is 18.

    posted by Matt on 8-27-2008 at 1:55 am

45. Lowering the drinking age to 18 wouldn’t make much of a difference. There are probably some people who party in college who didn’t party in high school, but truthfully a huge number of underage binge drinkers are in high school or younger.

    How about do something to change the obnoxious “let’s go out and get trashed every night!” culture that seems to pervade our society. Whether it’s legal or not doesn’t make it any less a waste of time.

    Those exceptions are interesting, though — does that mean if you’re 19 but married to a 22-year-old you can drink all you want as long as they’re present? And what’s the deal with the “medical uses” and “during the course of legal employment” bits?

    posted by Celeste M. on 8-27-2008 at 2:05 am

46. Based on my real experience -that is fact – drink period is from 18 to 21!

    posted by rock on 8-27-2008 at 2:22 am

47. The drinking age is 21 in the states due to the fact that your youth isn’t mature enough to handle alcohol until that time. Look at Europe… Do they have the same problems with booze as you Americans do? Up here, past your northern borders in ‘Snowland’, where we all drive dog sleds to work, live in igloos, and smash baby seals on the head for fun, our drinking age is 18, and we don’t have problems with alcohol like you highly educated people down south…

    Hmmm… Outside of Canada everyone hates Canadians because we are so arrogant and assholish and think that the world revolves around us. It’s amazing how many Canadians can make it through high school and don’t even know how to read… Your system is broken US… Hopefully Obama is going to fix it for you…

    posted by Omicron on 8-27-2008 at 2:29 am

48. i think calling it “dangerous, clandestine binge-drinking” just makes it sound even cooler. if anything this article is contributing to underage drinking.

    posted by pescolly on 8-27-2008 at 3:31 am

49. it is not a big deal. It is like Curfew in some university. I don’t either understand. We are not in army!

    posted by erichansa on 8-27-2008 at 4:35 am

50. Everyone seems to be looking at this the wrong way. Giving them more freedom means they have to learn how to use it THEMSELVES. No teen or “young adult” that has ever had to sit in class and watch a film on alcohol abuse really ever walks away saying, “Hey, that’s dangerous. I shouldn’t do it.” They never think a crash can happen to them. You can’t HAND knowledge like this to them and expect them to use it wisely. You have to throw them out there and let them experience it.

    And who’s to say being 21 means you can’t abuse alcohol? Do people stop binge drinking after they can legally buy alcohol? After a certain period of time, everyone that binge drinks will either get in a crash or stop binge drinking because it takes a tole on them anyway.

    So, without experience and responsibility college kids and anyone else that is between the age of 18 and 20 won’t know how to control their freedom and set their own limits. It’s a do or die situation, and for some people who can’t handle it, a do AND die situation.

    posted by James on 8-27-2008 at 6:30 am

51. Alcohol is a federally funded, politically immune drug. Marketing, peer pressure, and the overwhelming urge to use again is enough to make just about anyone a “irresponsible” user at some point in his/her life. Isn’t it weird we have to resist government approved advertising of a drug in order to make a “responsible” decision?

    posted by Cameron on 8-27-2008 at 9:51 am

52. If someone is told that something (alcohol) is bad and that they shouldn’t do it or use it then that person usually wants to try it. We’re told that speeding leads to more motor vehicle accidents, yet most people on the roads drive at least 5 or 10 mph over the speed limit. The surgeon general tells us that cigarettes cause cancer, but thousands upon thousands of people still smoke. We have to have faith in people to make the right decision…and even if it’s not the right decision it is still one that everyone has to make for themselves. After spending 6 weeks in Italy this past summer, I have seen first hand that a drinking age of 18 does not cause lawlessness and chaos. It was quite the opposite, actually. The bars were much calmer and more relaxed. The people didn’t drink to get drunk, they drank to relax and it was more about the people they were with. This seemed to be true in every region that I visited. The problem is that alcohol in the states has a negative stigma surrounding it. Children in Italy grow up with wine at the table. Children in the states grow up being told that alcohol is evil. Just my opinion. Thanks for reading.

    posted by Tanner on 8-27-2008 at 11:08 am

53. The drinking age and the age KIDS can join the military should be 21.

    posted by Kevin on 8-27-2008 at 12:09 pm

54. I’m gonna have to call bullshit on that 21 being the age of adulthood in English common law for centuries until I see some substantiation. The “you’re not a grownup until your 30″ movement is a recent phenomenon. Back in the day children were forced to grow up much younger and work, and back in the days of feudalism beer was healthier than water because the fermentation process killed bacteria that might have been in drinking water. There was no drinking age.

    posted by Jim on 8-27-2008 at 2:54 pm

55. There was mention of how drunk driving fatalities have decreased over the last 26 years. It would be interesting to look into the statistic of alcohol related deaths on college campuses over that same period of time.

    Also, somebody said because 18 year olds binge drink they are not responsible enough to drink legally. 2 points to that. 1. Plently of people that are legal to drink still binge drink a good amount, there are some 18 year olds that are much more responsible than 21 year olds out there. 2. If 18 year olds were allowed to drink they wouldn’t try to drink as much as they could while they had access to it. They would drink in more moderate amounts.

    Its like finding gold if your a poor man, your going to consume as much as possible while you have access to it. While if you find gold as a wealthy person your less likely to get your hands on as much as you possibly can.

    posted by Steve on 8-27-2008 at 3:22 pm

56. to all of you that say that the drinking age should be 21…i want to ask you how old you were when you bought your first beer? probably 18. Being from New Olreans, i have been drinking since the ripe age of 12. But fortunately, i have understanding parents who let me drink with them to learn my limits. now that i am 20 and in college, i find that the kids lying in the parking lot outside of the bars about to puke are the ones that were never allowed to drink in a supervised setting. Most of the bars in New Olreans and in Baton Rouge(by LSU) are 18+. this means that even if you are 21…you are still going to be hanging at bars with a bunch of 18 year olds. changing the drinking age would change out culture to be more relaxed about alcohol

    posted by Ambi on 8-27-2008 at 6:48 pm

57. your not a grownup till 25 or 30 when you can actually rent a car.

    posted by BoreQuiz on 8-27-2008 at 7:26 pm

58. When i was 18 you never knew when we would get booze again so of course we drank it till we passed out. This is the problem. Having 18-20 year olds dangerously drunk, frightened to tell or call for help if someone is totally wasted is causing a huge rise in alcohol poisoning cases on campus. The fact your old enough to kill people but not old enough to drink a liquid is crazy. Lower it or raise everything to 21

    posted by eddie on 8-27-2008 at 11:38 pm

59. I remember being an 18 year old in Louisiana in 1994, the year before they changed the above referenced law. My understanding (based on teen-aged rumors, not statute) was that is was legal to purchase alcohol under the age of 21, but illegal to consume alcohol under the age of 21.

    I purchased various forms of alcoholic beverages, as it appears, illegally. (I also drank it, which was also probably illegal).

    posted by Andy on 8-28-2008 at 3:59 pm

60. Speaking as a 21-year-old college student, I support lowering the drinking age. Yeah, you’re all thinking, “Right, 21, she probably goes out and parties,” but I swear, I never touch the stuff – can’t stand the taste. I am the daughter of two paramedics though, I’ve seen and heard about what alcohol does. I think that the major problem with binge drinking is that people want to do it because it’s forbidden. They don’t really care about it, they just want to because people tell them they can’t. I also think it’s ridiculous that we live in a country where we allow people to die for their country at eighteen, but they can’t have any alcohol until they’re 21.

    And Omicron; I’ve never bothered to consider Canadians arrogant, or anything other than ordinary people. But perhaps if people do consider Canadians to be arrogant assholes, it’s because of you.

    posted by Kate on 8-28-2008 at 4:32 pm

61. When I was in college, there was a pub on campus that served beer and pizza. I went back recently — today it is now a cafe serving bran muffins and fruit smoothies. This made me very sad.

    Back then we had dangerous, out-in-the-open, binge drinking. I can’t imagine how annoying the clandestine variety would be.

    Personally, I think we should lower the drinking age to 16, and raise the driving age to 21. I think it would be much safer to learn how to drink before we learn how to drive, rather than the other way around.

    posted by Phineas on 8-28-2008 at 7:13 pm

62. I like to think that since mankind has begun to cure many diseases and other causes of death with medical procedures, medications and protective practices and such like airbags and seatbelts and the like, binge drinking is one of life’s many ways of encouraging mankind to thin out the ranks a little. A little alcohol, a little stupidity and before you know it the only people left are the intelligent ones.

    posted by Roffle on 8-28-2008 at 7:27 pm

63. In Australia the legal drinking age is 18 so most young people start binge drinking when they are about 16.

    posted by Carl on 8-28-2008 at 8:46 pm

64. Agree with Sue.If 18 years old are old enough to be responsible to serve the country in the military and able to vote for our leaders, they must be responsible for purchasing alcohol. I think 18 is not the right age to purchase alcohol but don’t understand either why 21 should be ‘right’ age.

    posted by ady on 8-29-2008 at 6:34 am

65. I myself don’t understand how immature this country can be….well not immature, but overly prudish. Many European countries have a legal drinking age of 18 or some, even lower and yet they don’t even come close to our tallies of drunken related fatalities and statistics. The only way I see this problem is due to a lack of proper education about alcohol both at home and at schools.

    posted by Lance on 8-29-2008 at 12:55 pm

66. First off, I would like to say that I agree with Phineas on the point of lowering the drinking age to 16 and the driving age to 21. It really does make more sense, because a motor vehicle is inherently a much more dangerous thing than alcohol, yet we entrust it to much younger people.

    Secondly, I would like to say that we should stop comparing America to the Eurpoeans in the fact that they have fewer alcohol-related fatalities than we do. Think for a moment about the size of your average European country. It’s going to be the size of one of our average states. That being said, we have a lot more people than they do! Of course we’re going to have more deaths related to alcohol! We have more people!

    Finally, in reference to the difference in mentalities of Americans and Europeans in regards to alcohol, it will take many many years to change the mentality of a people who are already used to the idea of 21 being the legal drinking age, and that when you are 18 the only way to drink is to go out and binge. When you change a law or and regulation, that will not change the mentality of the people, and will ultimately make change for the worse.

    I am 19 years old, for reference.

    posted by Jeremy on 8-29-2008 at 3:07 pm

67. You’re a smart fella, Jeremy.

    posted by trojanhorse on 8-30-2008 at 12:25 pm

68. I think the drinking age should indeed be lowered to 18 or 19. You’re either legally an adult or you aren’t; you can’t have it both ways. Stop the coddling, already, 18 year olds are old enough to vote, enlist in the military, get married, hold jobs, whatever. If you force up on them the responsibilities, give them the rights, too. MADD and the US Government are quite deliberately confusing the drinking issue with the driving issue. You shouldn’t drive when you’ve been drinking to excess whether you are 16, 18, 19, 21, 47, or 75. In fact, several studies have shown that the biggest problem with drunk driving is amongst hard core drinkers who have multiple convictions (and people who do it [on average] only get caught a minimial percentage of the time they actually do it). Also, a lot of othewise law-abiding people in the Baby Boomer generation actually think the 21 age is more or less a joke anyway – even my brother and sister who are pretty tough parents (and have 3 kids each, ages 16-22) and are in their early 50s tend to look aside when their kids after 17-18 or so drink as long as they have a safe ride home (which they will provide if necessary). That is refreshing compared to our mutual parents (now in their late 70s) who set absolute curfews and were happy as long as we were home by 11:00, no matter if upon arrival we were barely capable of staying upright, much less driving. For the record, I am 38.

    posted by kary on 8-31-2008 at 11:24 pm

69. Jeremy: Your ‘we have more people and we’re bigger’ argument doesn’t work. If you researched a little more, then you might have come to the realisation that when statistics on things are made, it’s not done as an exact country-by-country comparison, but in pro-rata to the relevant sizes.

    The various bureaus of statistics don’t just sit there and go “Ha! The US had 48,000 road deaths this year, and Monaco only had 821 – that means Monaco had LESS road fatalities than the US!”

    posted by NerdFury on 9-3-2008 at 5:02 pm

70. In most places in Europe, they can drink beer at 16 and hard liquor at 18 and yet they have fewer problems with binge drinking, drunk driving, etc….

    Case closed.

    posted by Willy on 9-30-2008 at 9:06 pm

71. So you must be 21 to drink that 3% beer of yours but only 17 to enlist and get yourself shot because someone you hand a gun can’t possibly be responsible enough to drink a beer in a bar… Make perfect sense to me ^^ Legal drinking age here is 16 for beer & wine and 18 for booze with the nice side effect that most people know how to handle alcohol by age of 18 and won’t drink and drive….

    posted by mambo on 10-2-2008 at 1:00 am

72. Over here in Europe, the legal drinking age is 18. However, teenagers often drink say, a glass of wine, at dinner with their parents. Europe does not have the alcohol problems that the US does, because people are exposed to it earlier in life, and learn how to do it responsibley. Also, while stationed in Germany, I’m not sure about soldiers, but dependants are allowed to drink at 18.

    posted by Jenn on 10-6-2008 at 6:42 am

73. Actually, Louisiana would have kept the drinking age at 18 if it weren’t for federal laws put in place that would yank federal money from the state for roads, etc. It was either keep the young boozed or keep the roads paved….

    posted by Kim W. on 11-11-2008 at 3:05 pm

74. Alright guys. This is ridiculous.

    1.) Europe’s drinking age is not 18, it varies by country (I was in a bar at 15 in Italy with no problem. The first time I ever actually walked in was when I was 15, and I have never been carded.)

    2.) Whoever got on the kid about the U.S. begin larger and thus has more deaths is being ignorant. Of course they do what you said they didn’t. Statistics are about scare tactics for the most part. Secondly, if there is an accurate test, then the tests are “Per Capita” and therefore 10 U.S. is the same as 10 Monaco.

    3.) Yes, everyone says that if you can vote, enlist, etc. then you should be allowed to drink. This should be the case but that doesn’t necessarily mean the drinking age should be the same as the age you need to be to do those thing; it should be lower. You should definitely be older to put yourself into battle with weapons and wars than to put yourself into a battle with a fifth.

    4.) Raise the driving age and lower the drinking age. This would allow some time to understand how your body works around alcohol. It let’s you understand and feel how impaired you can be.

    5.) MADD is a ridiculous organization. They don’t do a single thing to stop drinking and driving, they are just the ones to complain about it. And, for that matter, they really can’t. They can not regulate under age drinking and driving, nor can they punish for it. They are as useless as a braille playboy.

    6.) I am 24 for your…opinions of my opinions.

    7.) Bring back 80′s Speed Metal. (Joke)

    posted by Chris on 11-13-2008 at 6:39 pm

75. Wow. There are sure a lot of long opinions here.

    posted by . on 11-22-2008 at 8:07 pm

76. In my opinion, people need to be realistic. Many of these posts say that people are concerned about 14, 15, 16 year olds getting access to alcohol if the drinking age lowers. HELLO? Growing up in a small town in NY where everyone knows everyone’s business, most teenagers still drink. They party with college people, or have siblings who are of age, etc.

    Besides, is Marijuana legal? No, but I know 13 year olds who can get it. And alcohol must be SO much harder to come by…?
    Legal or not, teens are going to drink. Having the age lowered might decrease binge drinking.

    posted by Jess on 11-29-2008 at 9:12 pm

77. Underage drinking is something of an inevitabilty. That said, in Europe, Canada and most places around the world, the drinking age is 18, which means that when kids are partying, they are doing it in High School, where their parents have some control over what it is that the teenagers do. Then, by the time they’re in college, drinking has lost a significant amount of its allure, and so binging is less likely.
    I was raised in Asia (Thailand and China), and the drinking laws there are…lax. Most kids in my high school partied on weekends, but they had safe places to go afterwards and largely stayed out of serious trouble. I’m a freshman in college here in the US, and I am consistently bored with the party scene here. The point doesn’t seem to be to have fun, rather it’s to drink as much as you can in as short a time as possible. I did all of this when I was 16 and 17, thus learning that I don’t like the feeling of being drunk, and am not necessarily a happier person for it, something which my 18 and 19 year old peers are learning, but without the safety net of their parents to come pick them up if things go too far.
    If the US were to lower the drinking age, binge drinking and stupid decisions would probably be less likely to occur in the terrifying and relatively unsupportive college environment.

    posted by Arie on 11-30-2008 at 8:29 pm

78. In Quebec, one of my culture shocks came (I am from English Canada) when I would see groups of family members casually stroll down to the beach and stake out sections for themselves. In one area would be the parents with smaller children, in another teenagers with beer. Officially the drinking age is 18, but brought out into the open and enjoyed in the midst of the entire community, the teenagers never left a mess and rarely caused any problems. And many of them were younger than 18. They looked after each other, and the adults looked after everyone.

    In Ontario, where the drinking age is 19, most of us had easy access to alcohol at a much younger age. A police officer who lived in town frequently walked his dog near where we went ‘to party’. Understanding perhaps his own years as a teenager, the officer only offered us one piece of advice: “Don’t break anything or leave anything behind”.

    We honoured his request without fail.

    Responsible drinking is taught by community elders who have the wisdom to know what young people are thinking, and that criminalizing every ‘bad’ behaviour only makes criminals, unnecessarily, out of young people.

    posted by Rob on 12-3-2008 at 7:39 pm

79. I think it should be changed. 18 year olds are considered mature enough to vote and serve in our military but they cant sit down and have a drink. Doesnt make much sense to me.

    posted by Dayton on 12-4-2008 at 12:51 am

80. RE: to Jim Bean-”I am glad the drinking age is 21 and hope it stays there. These dumb kids of today are too ignorant as it is.”
    Funny how you say that when there are ignorant adults as well. My family and I were victims of the outcome of a “responsible adult” and the emotional scars are still there. So for people to say that there should be education for young people ask yourself this-how many times have you had a parent end up in the hospital for open heart surgery and the other sitting in jail hoping that the other lives after a drunken fight? and no wonder people between the ages of 35-65 are in AA meetings…they need the education as well before it gets that far!

    posted by Brianna on 12-9-2008 at 4:37 pm

81. Im a 22 year old who believes the drinking age should be lowered. This opinion is based on personally experience. When i was younger i bined drank on a regular bases. This was the most part because thew authorities said i could not. After i turned 21 though and could go to the bar. I didnt drin nearly as much partially because it was no longer illegal for me to do so and because i did so much of it at a younger age. With the whole cutting state funding if its lower than 21. You shouldnt be suprissed. They use this tactic for multiple things included the illegelization of marijuana. So to some it all up if you can die for your country you should be able to drink in it.

    posted by jay22 on 12-12-2008 at 4:11 am

82. I think it is more then just an age issue. I’m an american and was brought up with European sensibilities about alcohol: drink it with food, as a night cap, or to take the edge off o a really bad day, not to get wasted. I had beer with dinner and amaretto nightcaps.

    But when i want away to college, the only stuff i had access to was natty ice(which tastes like piss), and tequila. I couldn’t buy what I wanted, and suddenly, I started playing drinking games and such. once i turned 21 and could buy what i wanted, that stopped.

    Make everything the same age, be that 18 or 21, including driving. If my brother can be drafted, then he should be able to drink a guinness. the culture issue needs to be looked at, but that will take a long time to change. also, my friend is was an alcoholic at 19, because he had nothing better to do in his hometown. No matter the drinking age, kids will drink. allow them to do it safely and responsibly.

    also, the reason 21 is the age of consent in english common law is that is the age the vast majority of apprentiships during the middle ages and renaissance were over. you weren’t considered an adult until you were no longer an apprentice, but a master. funny, the things you learn in economic history.

    posted by filomena ciardi on 12-12-2008 at 7:36 pm

83. I was going to cite the author as a source for my paper but i then realized he writes for a journal about taking pictures a Ryan Leaf jerseys?
    hm…

    posted by clare on 12-14-2008 at 5:48 pm

84. I think the United States should flip flop the drinking age with the driving age, like they do in Germany. I would much rather face a drunk teen on foot than an easily distracted one behind the wheel. Why do we think people need to be more mature to drink than to drive? A vehicle is a much more deadly weapon.

    posted by Beth on 12-23-2008 at 1:09 pm

85. Does this comment box work yet?

    posted by John on 1-11-2009 at 2:19 pm

86. The fact is young people are going to start drinking around the age of 16, regardless of the legal age limit. I think it is much better to have them drink in bars and clubs, rather than fields and parking lots. In college particularly, where the vast majority of people will drink, forcing them to do it incognito is just turning away from the problem. Drink-driving is of course a serious issue, but arguing that it is affected by what the legal drinking age is, in my opinion, ridiculous. Let people drink at an earlier age, and concentrate on instilling a culture of not drink-driving instead of using resources to find 20 year-olds with a 6-pack.

    posted by Luc on 1-31-2009 at 7:29 pm

87. I completely agree with you, Luc. But actually, it is very common for kids to start drinking around 12, not just 16. I think that if parents would take the time and responsibility to teach their children HOW to drink and do it responsibly, we would not have to worry so much about the reckless and dangerous binge drinking and fields and parking lots. I say lower the age; if you’re too concerned about the high schoolers, make it 19 rather than 18. But I highly doubt that’s going to make a difference. If kids want to drink, they are going to drink, and making it a taboo object is just going to make them want alcohol even more.

    Does anyone have any more information on the little knighting fact in this article??

    posted by Natalie on 2-22-2009 at 11:58 pm

88. The legal drinking age is 18 on the U.S. Territory of Guam.

    posted by Allison on 3-27-2009 at 5:25 pm

89. I was around for 18 legal age to drink in Tenn. came home to Utah and it was 21
    but people drank the same, partied just the same,except in Tenn. on sundays it was dry county so moonshine was all you could get I never could get pass the smell of it to try to drink it.which I’m glad I never did.there have been times in my life I would have loved to get as drunk as people do when they cant remember,but I get sick and go to bed. not a bad thing. My thing is this can we please raise the age for when you can be a cop!!!! thats the only thing I can think of that would need a age change, maybe that way they would have more time to take humanity class’s.

    posted by watcher on 3-31-2009 at 12:16 am

90. Now I see a lot of people are saying that we should raise the driving age to 21 and lower that drinking age 18, but in my opinion that would suck. I love the fact that I have the freedom to drive where I want and when I want. I remember how fustrating it was to have to coordinate between friends parents who’s dropping off and who’s picking up.

    For any of you wondering I am 20 years old.

    posted by Theresa on 4-13-2009 at 10:25 pm

91. Children, and yes, under 21 in my opinion are children, should not drink alcohol!
    Personally, I would raise the age to 25.

    posted by brian j.mack on 4-21-2009 at 8:33 pm

92. I think we should take a lesson from the germans. Beer and wine legal at 16 and any other at 18. Not to mention the attend mandatory drivers training and get their liscense at 18 years old. fatalities and alchol related incidents are lower because lets face it. Nearly everyone has had a long bad night. Do it legal and safe, and BEFORE YOU CAN DRIVE. Then you get your liscense and then begin the most important part of the rest of your life.

    posted by ryan on 4-24-2009 at 11:29 am

93. i think beer is good and i make my own sometime and im only 15.

    posted by tanner on 5-5-2009 at 10:39 am

94. Everyone talks so much about alcohol related deaths. If you consider the vast number of alcohol related births, it more than evens the population out. Plus the alcohol related newborns are likely smarter than the drunk dummies who killed themselves so society is better off. Sounds like a good deal to me…

    posted by scott on 5-7-2009 at 12:07 am

95. I’m an 18 year old Wisconsinite. Here in WI, it’s legal to go to a restaurant and have a drink with your dinner, even if you’re underage, if your parent, legal guardian, or spouse (if he/she’s legal) buys it for you. I grew up in a family who let me drink starting when I was in grade 8 with Wine Coolers. In HS, I was able to have beer and mixed drinks such as brandy slushes or brandy old fashions. Because of that, I do know how to drink responsibly, and I know when to not drink at parties.
    People in my town (at age 15 up) party on weekends. It’s easier because we live by multiple unincorporated towns without their own police force. However, we don’t have many underages or drunk driving incidents because we know to either stay at the person’s house, or to pick someone in our group of friends to be the designated driver.
    As other people have stated, since we were exposed to this early on, and got much of it out of our systems, we’ll be less likely to go binge drinking in college all the time and end up killing ourselves.
    I agree with those of you who think the drinking age should be lowered and the driving age hired. But, how about lets NOT have the driving age be 21, as many were suggesting. Like I previously stated, I’m from small town Wisconsin, we have virtually no public transportation within at least a 30 mile radius. By age 21, many people are halfway through college. From 18 on, we need our vehicles to get us to college and various other places since we’ll no longer be living at home and can’t depend on our parents for a ride anywhere.

    So, to sum it up: Lower drinking age and actually TEACH our youth how to drink responsibly, and a driving age of 17/18 = GOOD
    How things currently are = BAD

    *Fun WI Fact!!* @ 18 you can: die for your country-vote-buy and smoke cigarettes-SERVE ALCOHOL-drop out of school, move out, and work full time-LEGALLY TRANSPORT ALCOHOL-get married

    @ 18 you CANNOT: buy alcohol or drink alcohol without (A) parent/guardian supervision or (B) supervision of your 21+ spouse

    How F-ed up is that?

    posted by KtMisch on 5-13-2009 at 4:34 pm

96. if you can die for america, you can drink to america

    posted by jones on 6-1-2009 at 3:21 pm

97. In response to those saying that no one is being “forced” to drink: Underage college students are not being forced to drink, but those that wish to do so are forced to do so secretely. I have seen firsthand the effects of this many times. About two months ago, I recieved a phone call asking if I would be willing to spend the night with a drunk friend, who was verrry sick (I’ll spare you the details) and should probibly have gone to the hospital. The only problem? Everyone involved was under-21 and no one wanted to risk getting in to trouble for underage drinking. This is a scary thought, knowing that someone is willing to put the health and safety of another human being at risk, simply so they do not get kicked out of school.

    posted by Sasha on 6-5-2009 at 1:03 am

98. when i was 17 living in virginia they changed the age to 21.
    my brother grandfathered in, but i was stuck, and didnt live with him so i didnt have easy access to beer for me and my friends
    living 15 miles from wash d.c. where i was of age, and when they raised the age i was grandfathered in, my friend and i drove there every thursday night after dinner and bought 10-20 cases of beer for us and our friends for the coming weekend.
    we met at another friends house about 8 pm to give everybody their beer so it could be cold by friday night
    i believe if you can be drafted or tried as an adult at 18, you should be afforded all rights in this country, including congress and president
    federal law says no age bias but they have it built into their own job requirements

    posted by mdtljt on 6-6-2009 at 9:48 pm

99. I’m old enough to remember when it became legal to consume alcohol at 18 years of age. If memory serves, in Ohio, where I was 18 year old could only purchase and consume 3.2 beer. Wine and hard liquor still required 21 years of age. This worked quite well there, I thought, as kids drank a lower alcohol content beer and learned how to handle this responsibility. At Ohio State they had numerous clubs and bars that served only 3.2 beer. The students danced, drank, and had fun. The bouncers kept it all in check etc. Now I think they have a huge abuse problem at OSU that frequently results in violence, fires and other issues as a result of this 21 law.

    posted by Robert on 6-7-2009 at 4:26 pm

100. I find it interesting that people are against the idea of drinking at 18 because of possible driving-related dnagers, but only rarely is it brought up that you could avoid all such issues by never driving a car. People seem to presuppose that all college-age kids drive automobiles, despite the fact that you don’t need a car in the big cities, and many colleges have no parking for undergraduates anyway.

     I gre up in New Jersey where the driving age was 17. How about a system where, at age 17, you can either get a driving license or an alcohol-drinking license, but not both?

     Then at 21 you get a license for whichever you didn’t go for at 17.

     posted by Mark in NJ on 6-10-2009 at 10:16 am

101. The drinking age on federal military installations was 18 until January 1, 1992, when it was raised to 21.

     posted by Mark on 6-17-2009 at 1:01 am

102. You should all have a drink and stop bickering. Kids will always be kids and drink before they reach the legal age of comsumption. I drank a LOT when I was 16 and it helped me learn to drink responsibly.

     posted by Nowski on 6-29-2009 at 8:44 pm

103. At 18, you can be tried as an adult and executed for your crimes, you can go to war and die, you can vote, you can be married, have children, a mortgage, a car, bills, credit cards… anything and everything that constitutes what most people would consider both the good and the bad of being a grown-up, but you can’t buy beer.

     I mean, seriously. What is wrong with this country?

     posted by MINDWIRE on 6-30-2009 at 1:57 am

104. I know that this has already been said, but I’ll say it again… plus some.

     I first swore into the US Army at 17, I had to have parental consent, but I could have waited and done the same at 18 anyway. I joined during a time of war, knowing very well that I would end up deploying at least once in a mere three-year contract. Here that deployment comes, here I am at 20, there’s my 21 birthday… in Iraq. So tell me, I’m not responsible enough to have a beer with dinner… but I’m responsible enough to go to Iraq and submit myself to enemy fire, IED’s, mortars, and so many other much more threatening risks that are entirely out of my control? If you’re going to tell me that I’m not responsible enough to drink, and that were truly the belief of all Americans (sadly it seems to be the minority… again, the good ol’ US-of-A appeasing the little man) then all of you had better push for everything to be 21. That means smoking, voting, joining the military, being drafted, driving, etc. I mean, people die all the time in cars, why not just eliminate that threat from teens and young adults? Oh, yeah, and Mom and Dad… I’m sorry, I’m not responsible enough to live on my own, I’m just going to stay here till I’m 21.

     Fucking pawns, some people will just believe anything anyone tells them. It’s called propaganda folks, they put forth anything that promotes their idea and deny and hide anything that doesn’t.

     And allowing college-aged students to drink would benefit alcohol safety. What is the first thing that most people do if they’re asked if they’re doing something illegal? Deny it. What does that mean? It means they ignore it. Common sense dictates the world, so use it.

     Now, onto the stats. The times have changed. Safety devices, parenting methods, our culture. It has become an acceptable standard — nay — the cool thing to do to drink, to be “gangsta”, etc. You wonder why youth now days are so messed up, right? Compare what we were raised with and by compared to what our parents and grandparents were. The world’s morals have reached an all-time low, and are continuing to plummet.

     My rant is over for now.

     posted by Wes on 6-30-2009 at 7:14 pm

105. Come to Puerto Rico and you can legally drink at 18

     posted by Hector on 7-8-2009 at 11:53 am

106. All the theories aside, I believe it has been proven that the human brain is NOT completely developed before the 20′s. I know, this is not what a lot want to hear. It is only the truth backed up by fact. Sorry!

     posted by over21 on 8-3-2009 at 3:14 pm

107. Don’t you idiots realize that if they didn’t allow anyone under 21 to fight in the military there would be no wars??? Of course they will let you die for your country. Most people over 30 don’t want it any other way you fools!

     posted by over21 on 8-3-2009 at 3:18 pm

108. Back in the late 60′s and early 70′s I lived on a “blood boarder” between Missouri (21) and Kansas (18 for 3.2% beer only). I also remember many trips to Kansas and some of my trips home to Missouri. I now have a 15 year old daughter that does not have that choice and finds people to buy whatever she wants a the drop of a hat. I would like the opportunity to be able to teach her about responsible drinking from a young age (European approach) rather than hiding the drinking. If you attempt this in the US today, they would rather lock you up and throw away the key. Keeping the drinking age at 21 and ignoring the drinking that goes on despite the law is just putting our heads in the sand.

     posted by Rob on 8-3-2009 at 7:49 pm

109. My Dad was in 5 major battles in WW II, including Okinawa where the enemy was attacking for 59 days straight. When he got back to the US, he couldn’t get a beer in San Francisco. Stupid.

     Used to be 18 in New York. No big deal. Then the omnipotent Feral Gubmint coerced the States with the narcotic called “revenue sharing”, and they fell in line. Wonderful.

     posted by Joe Schmuckatella on 8-3-2009 at 9:59 pm

110. The entire premise of a “required drinking age” is quite fallible…

     You create this hype about alchohol (much like sex) and it leads to these deaths – simply by imbibing alchohol, in rediculous volumes. (Or by M.V.A.(Motor Vehicle Accident), but the first alchohol-related death I remember, was a college student who drank too much – no vehicle involved.)

     Why do we need these laws, again!? Oh, “because it’s safer”…

     Well, what’s the ratio of deaths from “over-drinking”/alchohol poisoning added to the current m.v.a. deaths involving alchohol and the deaths cerca the 1984 bill? Is the number of deaths lower, or comparably the same? If they’re comparably the same, perhaps the problem lies elsewhere!?

     It’s sad to say, but so many people can see the problem with the system, but too many people hold this heuristic fear of a tragic event… …when all life is ephemeral, anyway.

     So, alchohol exists… …but why is it a “problem”, aside from alchoholism!? Do we, as a society, create this hype and problem ourselves?

     That’s the question that should be answered, because – as was stated before my post – Europe doesn’t treat this with the puritanical view that America does.

     Prove to me that Europe does, and we’ll have a different matter to discuss… …if not, then someone needs to cede (finally) that the problem is domestic.

     posted by John on 8-4-2009 at 2:56 am

111. Everyone seems so concerned about 18-20 year-olds in the military because they can “fight for our country but can’t drink a toast to it.”

     Great! Leave the drinking age at 21 for all non-military personnel. Lower it to 18 for all members of the armed forces.

     Not only would this solve the fighting/toasting dilemna, it might also help military recruitment :-)

     posted by Gary on 8-4-2009 at 9:16 am

112. One must also consider that American’s attitude towards driving is different than that of, say, European countries. Focusing only on drinking and driving, if you consider how typical it is of Americans to own their own car and basically carrying out the most mundane of tasks around town (especially in the southwest), it increases the likely hood of drinking and driving. In Europe, and at least in Germany, where I’ve studied and lived, you’re more likely to rely on public transportation. Or your own two feet. It is far more expensive to fuel and insurance cars there (not to mention how difficult it is to find a parking spot).

     If you consider how Germans learn how to drink before they drive, the world, at least for Americans, is turned up side down. If you’re sixteen, you’ve probably had a sip of grandpa’s beer several times, or champagne here and there on occasion. But when you’re sixteen, you’ll go out with friends after dinner for a beer or two and go home, and possibly resume your life with other activities. Thus is the drinking experience of many 16 year olds in Germany. It even becomes more bizarre for Americans when they find out that their parents will just order another beer for their kids when they eat out, or at home at 16. Considering that, two years later, you probably have a good idea of what makes you buzzed and what doesn’t, and hopefully before you’ve started driver’s ed, you’re understanding of you limitations.

     Here, on the other hand, we learn how to drive as early as 16, and as skillful as younger drivers are cause many accidents before 25. Five years after you are somewhat confident in your driving abilities, you learn how to drink (legally). What do you do? Have all your friends buy you shots, to start, then you move on to binge drinking, etc. It basically becomes reckless. This lack of responsible drinking is ridiculous because it creates the potential for (younger) over confident drivers to hit the road after not understanding their drinking limitations.

     I waited until I was 21 to drink in the States by choice. Had my first drink one month after my 21st B-day because I was going to Germany. I fooled around and learned my limitations, but now I’m past that stage. But I have realized that when Americans want to party, they need to always plan who’s going to be the designated driver, etc. In Europe, unless you were extraordinarily rich and could split gas and parking costs, you all were going to the the subway or bus.

     Let’s not forget the fact that in American we have something called \closing hour.\ In contrast to Germany at least, this concept is inviting binge drinking. When I came back to the states, my idea of drinking was to catch the subway or bus to meet friends, drinking until we were content (not necessarily drunk every time), then we would move on, taking our time throughout the night to sober up and go back at it again and go home when we were tired and had a great time. When I came back here I felt I always had to have my fun before 1:30. Since some things don’t get started until 9 at earliest, that leaves, what, 4 to 4 1/2 hours to enjoy yourself.

     posted by wall-e on 8-9-2009 at 12:15 am

113. i’m 50 and have drank most of my life. after recieving my 2nd DUI in 20 yrs, i’v e learned one thing. Education is worth more than judging a person’s responsibility based on age. some people are more mature and make better decisions than people 20 yrs. older than me. i do believe that if u r old enough to vote, serve your country, and decide which path in life you want to choose, then you are also old enough to make other decisions in your life in cluding the use of alcohol/drugs.

     the important thing that people are missing is, instead of attaching a stigma about it, teach the responsibility that goes along with it.

     Don’t operate a motor vehicle after drinking, and if u become an asshole after alcohol consumption, ie… rapist, child abuser, domestic violence… i could go on forever! educate, educate, educate!

     I still drink and enjoy it, i don’t drink and drive, and thank god, my personality doesn’t change and I don’t become an asshole. What ever happened to common sense???????????

     posted by al on 8-10-2009 at 1:49 am

114. i use to think the drinking age should be lowered for so many reasons…
     if you can have tobacco or get married fight for our country, and blah blah blah….
     i soon realized that at 18 nyou are already given a big responsibility to act upon yourself and do what you want to do with your life
     when some one drinks and gets behind the wheel their not only killing them self but some one else as well those inocent people have families that have to live with the fact that their mom, or dad, brother or sister, or worse yet their 17 year old who just got thier licened, died bkuz of some irresponsiple person got behind the wheel after having “a couple of cold ones”
     point being 18 year olds alredy have to make decisions for themselves if they want to go get lung cancer of lose their life or their money to stuff your aloud to do at 18… give them a chance to respond and mature with that than put someone elses life in thier hands….

     soldier for christ
     16 and maturing =D

     posted by elizabeth on 9-10-2009 at 12:28 am

115. Wow people let kids (and for a twenty year old I’d use that term loosely) take some personal resposibility and make some decisions for themselves. There is nothing that makes a person irresponsible at 20 and responsible at 21. I remember being at a party and seeing guys 6 months younger than me getting $400 underage drinking tickets. This mommy state is horrible, especially since the federal government has forced it upon the states. Parent your own kids, not the nation!

     posted by abe froman on 10-1-2009 at 5:27 pm

116. Drinking should be ilegel because, would you want to be drunk and lose your family and friends for the rest of your life? NO, if you had your drivers license and you were drunk you would get in a rek and maybey you would die. I almost died from drinking and driving, and i think that drinking should be ilegal!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

     posted by Allison Williams on 11-16-2009 at 4:47 pm

117. Like sex education, alcohol consumption among teens can be something that’s difficult to talk about. However, it’s statistically proven that abstinence only education is more likely to result in STD transmission. The same is true for alcohol: if kids could be educated about alcohol, how to tell if you’ve had too much, and they shouldn’t be restricted a sip of beer. If people are really worried about binge drinking, then at least make a restriction on the amount you’re allowed to buy.

     posted by Nick on 11-25-2009 at 12:13 am

118. You can get a hunting license at 12 so how about lowering the MLDA to 12. If you can shoot a deer you should have the right to drink right?
     NO! They are totally unrelated just like the voting age and military enlistment age. C’mon guys!!!

     posted by titanfan29 on 11-30-2009 at 5:49 pm

119. What I always found interesting about being 18 is…

     They say your mature enough to

     -Vote for your president

     -Die for your country

     -Be tried as an adult

     … But you can’t have a beer :/

     posted by GuyAtWork on 12-11-2009 at 3:44 pm

120. There’s no need for a drinking age. It’s ignorant. When I was 18 in ’68 at the Univ of Ariz I could easily get all
     the beer I wanted from friends. the 21 drinking age limit Didn’t slow me down. Now I’m old and still enjoy light beer.

     posted by Googenheim on 12-20-2009 at 12:47 am

121. I live in the province of Alberta in Canada. The legal drinking age here has always been 18, and my parents let me try wine when i was 16. Their philosophy was that when I started experimenting with alcohol it should be in a safe environment, at home or say . . . a dorm room with a floor-parent, instead of somewhere with no adult supervision. There will always be people who are stupid enough to drink and drive, no matter how old they are.

     posted by Zelenka on 4-1-2010 at 8:31 pm

122. i want to drink!!!!!!!!!!!!!

     posted by pawel on 4-13-2010 at 11:38 am

123. you spelled it wrong.and i can drink in france but why not in the US

     posted by pawel on 4-13-2010 at 11:43 am

124. For me there are so many more cons then there is pros to lowering the drinking age. I rather not have a police officer wake me up to let me know my teenager has been arrested for a DUI or even worse, killed in a alcohol related accident. Young teens/adults have enough to worry about why add alcohol into the mix. Here are a few interesting facts I cam across.
     “Research has shown that the harmful effects of alcohol abuse are magnified on a teenager’s still-developing brain” (Dean-Mooney 10). For anyone this should be a “mind-boggling” statement. Who wants their young 18 year old “child” to be at risk for developmental impairments all caused by alcohol? Did you know a person’s brain does not develop until their early to mid- twenties? It is said if the drinking age is lowered there will be a considerable increase in binge drinking rather then a decrease. At 18 there are still some individuals in high school which means even younger kids can get access to alcohol, which, in turn, would create a whole new generation of binge drinkers. There is a group called Support 21 Coalition that
     works their lives around finding factual data around the pros of keeping the drinkingage where it is at. Since the law passed in 1984 to raise the drinking age to 21 they haveestimated there has been over 25,000 lives saved, that is about 1,000 lives per year
     This is all due to less car crashes and other alcohol related deaths.

     posted by Holly on 4-20-2010 at 9:17 pm

125. i think the drinking level should be 10 cause so they can drink early n then show them that drinking is wrong

     posted by george on 4-23-2010 at 2:25 pm

126. Hmm its a toughie. I live in the UK and as to the age of 21, this is the age when one can drive a Heavy Goods Vehicle, deal in scrap metal, etc, etc. It is the age when one is fully regarded as being an adult. Regarding driving hired vehicles, in general one has to be aged 25 for insurance reasons as teens to 25s account for most car wrecks. In Britain we have “permitted drinking hours” dating back to WWI. (intended to stop munitions workers getting drunk) High drink prices, bad weather and heavy policing make going out “after curfew” a real pain and Public Houses (Bars, beerhouses) are closing down everywhere. Throw in the smoking ban in public places, multi-channel digital home TV and there’s hardly any point in going out and in Cornwall the police have even been known to order bicycle owners to walk home “because they have been drinking”! Jeez its the biggest open prison in the world. The result is that many young folk jet off to Ibiza or Falariki and get plastered, cheap drink, sunshine, 24 hour bars and laid-back police combine to make quite a holiday, though probably not memorable – just a blackout! I just hope that the host countries don’t think we are all like that. For most people getting drunk is a phase, its part of growing up. According to NMR brain scans, persons who regularly suffer from hangovers are actually killing their brains. Being 20 with a 100 year olds altzheimers brain isn’t really a recipe for success. From the experience of looking after an alcoholic, spirits are the most dangerous. Incidentally IMHO the term “spirits” is most appropriate as long term usage of over a bottle of whisky per day often results in hearing voices – the spirits! Other effects can be blackouts, epilepsy, falling down the stairs, gullet burned by acid reflux and duodenal ulcer. All this happened to a former colleague but as the best doctor in town said “Oh whisky – that’s harder to give up than heroin”. The #1 rule is to be in control of drink and not the other way round. As to car crashes, old motor engineering books that I own show antique cars that only had rear wheel brakes. One early Vauxhall had 98HP and tyres not much wider than a mountain bike! No seat belts or airbags in those days so amazingly the accident/death rate in the 1920s was higher than that almost 100 years later. Keep the shiny side up and the greasy side down and lay off the pop. NEVER use mind-altering-chemicals unless they are government approved.

     posted by Davey on 5-12-2010 at 10:22 pm

127. “people were understandably a bit peeved that 18-year-old men were mature enough to fight, but not old enough to vote. Thus, in 1971 the states ratified the Twenty-sixth Amendment, which lowered the voting age to 18. Legislators started applying the same logic to drinking.”

     I completly agree with your and FDR’s logic in that having the drinking age limit at 21 is ridiculous to the point of insulting. People should feel just as ‘peeved’ now as they did in 1971 in that if at the age of 18 we are considered legal ‘adults’ and are given the rights to: get married, vote, fight for our country, live on our own, etc. It is simply illogical and insulting to be withheld the adult right to drink alcohol.

     Furthemore I feel there more than just a logical issue surrounding how BS the MIP laws are; its an issue of honesty. If one were to grap a pool of 100 random 21 year olds from various locations around the country and strapped them all to a lie detector tests I would be astonished if even 10 of them had never had a drink of illegal liquor in their systems before. This fact is so blatently obvious to our soceity that I feel bad for cops and parents who KNOW that they drank before 21 and they KNOW that every single college kid on campus has broken this law and are still held to standards (aka cops can lose their jobs) to enforce ideals they don’t believe in. The system is so broken at this point an MIP should no longer stands for ‘Minor In Possession’ but instead for ‘Minor who got caught In Possession.’ I believe that if such an overwhelming number of people in our soceity think, feel, and believe in the same notion that this law IS NOT doing what it was intended for and IS NO LONGER necessary that we as responsible citizens should do something about it.

     posted by Brian on 6-7-2010 at 6:26 pm

128. honestly, people are SO ignorant. even the person who

     ] wrote this article!!!! sure you drank when you were

     18 and you werent irresponsible, fine! but you were

     killing yourself

     i think cigarettes should be illegal at ANY age

     because someone who smokes gets addicted and

     that means you are weak and depend on other

     things which is BAD. depend on friends and family

     but not toxins!

     posted by Aneres Ekcol on 6-9-2010 at 8:00 pm

129. The only other countries to have a drinking age of 21 is Indonesia and
     Palau. Many countries have a drinking age of 16, are they more mature than Americans? There are also many countries with out any law aginst drinking like Italy and Finland. And saying that binge drinking would increase, Im not so sure, I have been in germany for the last three weeks and ive seen a lot more lets go grab A beer and less lets get shit faced.

     posted by Mitch on 7-4-2010 at 5:02 am

130. For a period of time, ending around 2000, the drinking age at Ft Huachuca, AZ was 18. This was policy of the garrison commander to stem the problem of soldiers going across the border to Mexico and drink and get into trouble.

     Ft Huachuca also housed USAF, USMC, and NAVY for training. While the USAF followed the 18 to drink directive, the NAVY and USMC (being part of the NAVY) held to the 21 and over rule. This was an interesting site since the bar set up for the training students was put across the street of the NAVY/Marine barricks.

     This order was pulled after an incident involving several soldiers and the garrision commander’s daughter (much to be said about officer kids, but that is another story).

     Side note, The US military generally goes along with the local drinking laws oversees, unless there’s a problem with local venues.

     posted by Alex S on 7-9-2010 at 12:43 pm

131. I lived in Germany for a year as a teenager, where teens were allowed to drink beer and wine starting at 16 legally (although really you could buy yourself a beer earlier if you just looked like you might be near 16), and hard alcohol at 18.

     Interestingly, the legal age at which a German youth is allowed to get their driver’s license is 18. The test is lengthy, difficult, and expensive to take. Cars, gas, and insurance are also extremely expensive. Public transportation, on the other hand, is ubiquitous, constantly running, and very inexpensive.

     The German teens I hung out with began drinking early, but they didn’t binge like American teens. And they learned to take public transportation and be responsible when drunk long before they ever got their license and a car.

     The fact that American teens start driving at 15 1/2 and can’t legally begin drinking until 5 1/2 years later trains us to drive everywhere long before we get to start drinking — a lethal combination. Until we have better, affordable public transportation system here, we need to stop bemoaning all these drunk teenagers getting into cars. What other choice do they have?

     posted by Amanda on 7-9-2010 at 1:52 pm

132. Bri, your story, while interesting, is simply false. Like most folk etymology. We live in the age of the search engine; it’s not that hard to type etymonline.com and check your story before you tell it. http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=drunk&searchmode=none

     posted by Bad Etymology on 7-28-2010 at 4:12 am

133. I grew up in the states but moved to Italy when I was 18. I got drunk in high school a few times but after moving here it definitely lost its appeal because it was allowed. Most Italian do drink a lot, but it’s spread out over an entire evening with friends and food. There’s no drinking age, but I have seen a lot of bars that served american high school kids early in the night and once the bar started filling up with older patrons they had to leave. There have been more accidents related to drunk driving in the past few years, but they also started taking away your license if you’ve been caught.

     As for lowering the drinking age and raising the driving age, I completely agree.

     posted by Diana on 8-1-2010 at 4:26 pm

134. The drinking age shouldn’t be 21 if people don’t have a problem with 18-year-olds being sent off to war and being responsible in every other conceivable way. The inconsistency is what’s revolting.

     posted by Arielle on 8-22-2010 at 12:37 am

135. m question is, why isn’t America as responsible as Europe? in Europe they have low drinking ages and they seem to be doing fine. i think that teenagers “binge drink” because they associate the illegal act with being a rebellious teenager. and, there are people who are 24 and 25 who also partake in the same activities. I think the drinking age should be 18, and I’m an 18 year old who’s never been drunk. I feel like the irreponsibility lies within the fact that they teen thinks that they are rebellious. if they have nothing to rebel against, why bother?

     posted by Bill on 8-26-2010 at 4:39 pm

136. We put such high regard in turning 21 that it becomes almost a right of passage to get blind drunk on that night. Young people think they look grown-up if they drink sooner. I have taken all the wind out of my children’s sails in their teens. We talk about drinking, etc. And the fact that I don’t view drinking as an “evil” they have to be 21 to enjoy. I am more European in my thinking. Neither of my children want to drink–they are teetotalers like me but know they can “illegally” have a drink in my house if they want. Now they just watch their goofy friends act stupid at parties.

     posted by Casey on 9-6-2010 at 8:46 am

137. A.) in germany the legal drinking age is 16 (14 with parents) however the dui policy is higher (lower?) in america .08 is illegal, germany .05…
     America needs to lower the drinking age, but be stricter on drunk driving… i know for a fact 12-13 year olds can easily get alcohol and drugs.. the american legal system encourages binge drinking for minors, im 16 and this month i passed out drunk in a park with a BAC of .23… parents reading… now that your kids can easily get alcohol, and teach them more about safe drinking as opposed to avoiding the subject

     posted by BBP on 9-8-2010 at 12:24 am

138. People really do drink a lot in Europe. The legal age is 18 but you can start drinking a lot earlier. There are virtually NO parties in highschool that don’t involve serious drinking.

     And that’s a good thing.

     Most people reach 18 and they get a car and they FULLY know what being drunk means. They probably barfed a couple of times and had huge hangovers.

     Very few people drink while driving and those that are caught can remain without a licence for LIFE.

     Drinking is not a problem by itself. Drinking and driving is, and that should be dealt with by letting you people DRINK, not by attempting to stop you.

     There are only 3 countries in the world with 21-year legal drinking age. It’s plain stupid.

     posted by Daniel on 9-13-2010 at 7:46 pm

139. Well I don’t have children and really don’t give one flying dam about society in general. Let’s just make all drugs legal for any age and I can just sit back and watch the fun that ensues.

     posted by Robert on 10-5-2010 at 3:26 pm

140. I think other countries have fewer problems with drinking not because of the minimum drinking age, but because kids are raised differently there. American kids on avaerage are more spoiled and immature than their European counterparts.

     By the way, you do not have to be 18 to be tried as an adult in the U.S. If the crime is serious enough, a younger child can be tried as an adult. This permits the use of the death penalty as punishment, which can’t be used in juvenile court.

     posted by A Nerd on 12-30-2010 at 2:13 pm

141. I am English and came upon this site looking for information on why the drinking age on the USA is 21. In England it is 18, and many people do like to drink heavily in clubs, but also social drinking is very popular, going to a bar and drinking a few beers. I find it very strange that it is 21 yet in countries such as Holland the legal drinking age is 16. All I can say is, thank god I don’t live in a 21 state, my 18th Birthday is in two weeks, and I am tired of waiting to be able to go into a shop and buy a case of beer.

     posted by Tom on 1-17-2011 at 3:51 pm

142. See here, I live in the USA and I’m a 20 year old Male…My dad has bought me alcohol MANY times before because I’m a responsible adult male. I rely on public transportation. I don’t want a car, I ONLY DRINK INSIDE THE COMFORT OF OUR OWN HOME. I’m responsible, I graduated High School and am currently trying to get grants for College. I personally want to keep to myself and my dad and yet…I can’t buy a smooth glass bottle a’ Brown? I find this repulsive. This government is so screwed up it’s pathetic. I could go on and on about this bullshit but I wont. I end my rant here. Goodnight guys. And BTW. I know my damn limits when consuming alcoholic beverages. I know when to say “Yeah, I’m done.” I like a little buzz, I don’t like being shitfaced puking. That’s also repulsive. I drink to relax. If I had the money to go to Europe. I would. Y’all sound much better.

     posted by Matthew on 5-8-2011 at 2:58 am

143. To be honest, as a 20 year old, I am offended. I have been on my own since I was 17. Being on my own has included: paying rent, electric, utilities, college, a car (nice car), a cell phone, taxes, clothing and feeding myself. I do everything that say a 35 year old does (and compared to many idiot “adults” that I know varying in age of 21 to 60, I am much more responsible). So, I have always heard the expression, “act your age”, and I think that I do that alot better than older adults. So, I also get all the responsibilites of an adult beginning at the age of 18- if I kill someone, if I dont pay my taxes, or my car, my parents are not responsible for me, I am responsible for MYSELF starting at this age. But at the end of the day from working literally 3 jobs, and maintaining a 3.6 college gpa, I am too irresponsible for myself to have a cold one like every other adult? It is just very offensive to me to be slapped in the face and be called a child when I do everything that “adults” do, that’s all I have to say..

     posted by froark on 6-4-2011 at 4:29 pm

144. What a dumb-ass country.

     posted by Harpo on 6-26-2011 at 2:37 pm

145. 21 was an adult according to “English common law”? Please. At best that’s a cop-out.
     The age that someone became a knight was considered to be usually between 18-21; there are few hard rules about that. If they were even thinking about English common law voting ages when they created the 1984 act, it would have been probably set to a minimum of 18. The countries that defined “English common law” (England and Wales) dropped their voting age to 18 in the 1970s.

     It was just a notion of the prevailing conservative government in 1984 that 21 was “appropriate” – and any supporting evidence was purely cherry-picked on that basis.

     posted by Glenn on 8-4-2011 at 9:25 am

146. The American drinking age is just bizarre. With states age of consent laws ranging from 16 to 18, I can’t understand how alcohol is a more risky endeavor than sex. The possibility of being infected with AIDS or creating a new life seems much more concerning than a bottle of beer.

     As though it’s just 18 years olds who abuse alcohol. It’s prohibition on legal adults. Americans won’t do it to the voting majority, but they will do it to young adults.

     posted by Emily on 8-17-2011 at 10:46 am

147. I’m 21 now, but started drinking at 18 when I first got to college. I have to saw that drinking isn’t quite as appealing as it used to be. I think a large part in the act of drinking to excess is that it is illegal and the act of “rebelling” is fun/thrilling. Take that away and people may drink less, as it is out in the open and acceptable.

     Also the part about DWI’s being a problem was never an issue for me, as I was on a college campus. It’s high-schoolers that people need to be worried about, not college-aged kids.

     posted by Z on 9-8-2011 at 9:47 pm

148. I have long stated my opinion on the drinking age limit. The 26th amendment was passed to lower the voting age from 21 to 18. One of the prime arguments for this was that if someone was old enough to go to war, they should be old enough to vote for the people that would send them there. The idea that you are old enough to go to war at 18, but can’t buy a beer for another 3 years is the most nonsense our government has come up with (and that is saying something). The problem with binge drinking, underage drinking and associated problems is our overall American attitude toward alcohol. In other countries children and young adults are gradually introduced to mild alcohol and the stigma is removed. I was in France once staying in a B&B and there was a pitcher of wine with dinner. Kids from about 8 up got very watered wine, maybe a tenth wine, the rest was water. A teenager (about 15ish) had about half and half. Eliminating the forbidden aspect of alcohol will help to eliminate a lot of the associated problems. Making it forbidden with a stupid age limit just makes things worse.

     posted by brschro on 9-29-2011 at 9:05 am

149. I agree with the last poster. Alcohol in this country has been given a bad name, and has been abused becaused people in America don’t know how to drink. Here, it is an obnoxious way to get drunk, and behave badly. In most of the European world, it is a way to enjoy a meal, and get a buzz on to enjoy the evening. Binge drinking is a big problem in America because there is a culture that encourages it. That is not the case in Europe. People there are indoctrinated to the idea that alcohol is part of the FOOD culture instead of the getting drunk ideal. Alcohol is not the enemy. It is the cultural forces behind it that create problems.

     posted by Hally on 10-6-2011 at 1:47 am

150. In America, it is illegal and highly punishable for a store clerk to sell alcohol to someone under 21, but not a crime at all for that same clerk to sell alcohol to a man (over 21) who swerved around in the parking lot for 10 minutes (because he’s so drunk) then passes out on the counter in the store while attempting to buy more alcohol. It is completely legal to sell this man alcohol and have him be on his way, to drive home. Yes, this is what MADD supports. They are not an anti-drunk driving group, they are an anti-human group.

     posted by Justin on 11-11-2011 at 10:46 pm

151. Sometimes I think I’m the only person in this country who never drank while in college.

     posted by Christine on 11-16-2011 at 1:48 pm

152. We think the drinking age should be lowered…to ELEVEN. jk jk.

     Thank You For Reading :D

     posted by Chubby Bunny & Chimmychonga on 11-29-2011 at 1:43 pm

153. @Justin
     It is very illegal to sell or serve anyone who appears intoxicated. In fact, youre more likely to lose your license on a first offense for that than a first offense for someone underage. The fine is the same too

     posted by Franklin on 12-8-2011 at 6:38 am

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