Cons of Underage Drinking - Research Paper Example

Section/# Underage Drinking A great deal of discussion currently surrounds the issue of underage drinking within our society. This is due to the fact that many young people engage in the activity prior to reaching the age proscribed by the law. It will be the purpose of this analysis to measure and consider many of the current issues surrounding underage drinking while at the same time offering a simple rubric and solution to an issue that is costing the legal system hundreds of millions of dollars in expense and countless hours of needless and wasted man hours to enforce. Furthermore, this essay will attempt to analyze the manner in which these laws that have been enacted actually serve to deter the practice of underage drinking or merely serve to drive it underground where it cannot hope to be regulated. By arguing for a model that is more deeply rooted in personal responsibility as well as advocating an approach that would finally bring drinking laws in correspondence with other major federal and state laws that grant young people autonomy and powers of self determination with respect to the age of majority, the age to legally purchase and use tobacco products, the age to vote, and the age in which an individual can sign up for the military and serve their country. In this way, it is the intent of this brief research paper to argue that the drinking age should be reduced to 18 while personal responsibility should be greatly encouraged just as it is in many European countries. With respect to the first issue, it is without question that the enforcement of underage drinking is perhaps one of the most colossal wastes of time that any police department or sheriff’s office deals with. Although the safety and health of the youth in a society is of paramount importance, it is also of paramount importance that the law enforcement entities within a society be focused on serious crimes that are likely to negatively impact the society at large. As such, placing an inordinately high level of emphasis, resources, and time on such an issue is both wasteful and shortsighted. Furthermore, one cannot fully understand the waste of resources that this involves until they understand the level of juvenile court cases and adult court cases that are oftentimes concentric around an individual being accused of providing alcohol to an individual who is not of legal age. As such, the position of this researcher is not to advocate that drinking laws be abolished or that law enforcement entirely ignores such an issue, it is to say that the laws regarding its treatment should be seriously reworked and rethought as a function of the greater good for society at large (Reboussin et al 891). Due to the overall loss and manpower of the authorities that are wasted on what can otherwise be considered a nominal crime, it is the recommendation of this author that the United States pursue drinking laws that more effectively mirror the successful and widely implemented drinking laws that Europe enjoys. With respect to the actual age of being able to buy and imbibe alcoholic beverages, this too should be a function of similar laws which define when an individual can vote, can engage in sexual relations, and can join the military in service of their country. Having an outdated law which requires young people to be 3 years older than his necessary to volunteer to fight and die for one’s own country as well as to vote is the epitome of a short-sighted and irresponsible law that should be changed to reflect a more thoughtful and reasonable society. Furthermore, as a way to ensure that individuals will take the responsibility they have been granted with a degree of seriousness, some of the money that will doubtless be saved as a result of the fact that law enforcement entities no longer need to police such actions for individuals over the age of 18, programs should be instituted within health classes nationwide to educate students as to the power of responsibility with relation to the choices they will be tasked with making as adults. In this way, responsibility can be a key theme that is championed as a function of the fact that the society has granted additional rights that should be respected and cherished by those that have received them. Moreover, by criminalizing such an activity a type of prohibition has been affected among adult members of society. As one is uniquely aware from history, prohibition of alcohol during the early part of the past century was an abysmal failure. Similarly, the drinking laws which are currently in place within the judicial system do little if anything to actually deter the practice. Instead, it could be argued that they merely provide a means by which individuals circumvent the law in a manner that drives the activity underground where the requisite authorities cannot hope to regulate it in any way shape or form. Although the purpose of this brief essay is not to claim that a number of laws should be disregarded merely due to the fact that by placing legal constraints on individuals they will find alternate means to the activity in question; rather, due to the fact that underage drinking is an infraction that takes place both inside and outside of the law, it is of little moral worth to criminalize it to such an extent and bog the legal system down with frivolous cases that are oftentimes victimless crimes. In closing, merely changing the law is not enough to effect real and lasting change with relation to the issue. However, changing the law while at the same time educating individuals as to their new rights and the corresponding responsibilities that come with them while at the same time having the prospect to save the criminal justice system tens of thousands of man hours ever year is highly desirable in terms of cost which will be saved while affecting little change in the drinking habits of those individuals affected. Additionally, it is noteworthy to point out that the prescriptions that have been denoted within this brief essay point strongly and convincingly towards the model of moral responsibility that should be adopted by the individual as opposed to being forced on society in the form of a plethora of laws governing such behavior. Work Cited Reboussin, Beth A, Eun-Young Song, and Mark Wolfson. "Social Influences On The Clustering Of Underage Risky Drinking And Its Consequences In Communities." Journal Of Studies On Alcohol And Drugs 73.6 (2012): 890-898. MEDLINE. Web. 31 Oct. 2012. 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