Lowering of the Drink Age - Essay Example

Drink age Lowering of the Drink Age Introduction Drinking age is a hot debated topic all over the world especially in America. In most of the European countries the official drinking age is 18 while in US it is still 21. In big democratic countries like India, the voting rights are given to those who have completed 18 years of age. A person of 18 years of age considered to be a matured person capable of taking independent decisions for the sake of his own well being, the society and his country. 18 years of age is considered to be enough for joining the military in America, but it is not enough for getting a drinking permit from the authorities of America. A study conducted in Massachusetts and New York over a large sample of young people between the ages of 16 and 19 after Massachusetts raised its drinking age revealed that the average, self-reported daily alcohol consumption in Massachusetts did not decline in comparison with New York (Hanson, 1997) “A United States Citizen is allowed to vote when they are 18 years of age. 18 year old males are forced to join the Selective Service, for possible drafting. This means that 18-year old males can go to war. At age 18, a citizen is also inclined to jury duty. So, an 18-year old is given the responsibilities of voting, being selected for jury duty, and possibly being drafted for war. If an 18-year old citizen is to be given these responsibilities, why is the legal drinking age 21? (Lisa, 1999) Drink age 2 The drink age John McCardell, former president of Middlebury College in Vermont, has said that the only way to measure the success of that law is to ask ourselves whether, 23 years later, those under 21 are not drinking. (Lowering Drinking Age to 18 Gets Consideration, 2007) It is clear that even after the law prohibiting the drinking of youths under 21, came into exist the drinking habits has not been changed. The ban imposed on underage drinking has resulted only in increased illegal consumption of alcohol. As per John McCardell, the former president of Middlebury College in Vermont, because of the ban, instead of drinking in bars or restaurants where there is supervision, its happening in dorms and dark corners (PARKER, 2007) Raising of drinking age is a useless exercise as those who interested in taking a drink can have it from many other illegal sources. Though it is difficult for the juniors (those who below 18 years) to get the drinks from legal outlets because of the ban, they can easily purchase it from many other illegal sources. More than 100 of the nations best-known Universities are calling on lawmakers to consider lowering the drinking age from 21 to 18 (Bolduc, 2008) Most of the college presidents (about 100 of the nations best-known universities) including Duke, Dartmouth and Ohio State, are calling on lawmakers to consider lowering the drinking age from 21 to 18, saying current laws actually encourage dangerous binge drinking on campus. (College Presidents Seek Lower Drinking Age, 2008) The legal drinking age Drink age 3 should be lowered to about 18 or 19 and young adults allowed to drink in controlled environments such as restaurants, taverns, pubs and official school and university functions. In these situations responsible drinking could be taught through role modeling and educational programs. (Engs, 1998) Most of the available data shown that by the time the students go to college they have already experienced alcohol and hence the law is useless (James, 2008) Most of the children in America taste the drinks even at an early age of below 12 years. So those who attracted by the pleasure of drinking will start drinking even at the school days. It is easy to get the drinks for the children. Most of their parents may have drinking habits and they may keep liquor filled bottles at their home also. So children can taste it from their home also. Over 80% of adults believe that it is easy for people under the age of 18 to access alcohol in pubs and off-licenses, (Ed Morrissey, 2009) Licensing for the drinking is a foolish act. In the modern world of advanced technologies, the intellectual levels of the children are much higher than ancient periods. It is easy for them to access the sources of the liquor in many ways. They can utilize some of their elder friends to purchase the liquor legally and can consume it easily. The only benefit of ban on underage drinking is that it can encourage mal practices among the children to access sources of liquor. Drink age 4 “At 20 years old, an American can drive a car, buy cigarettes and pornography, vote for the next leader of the free world, and even die for his or her country by enlisting in the military. But that same person cannot order a beer with friends while watching the game at a sports bar. Because of the National Minimum Drinking Age Act of 1984, some Americans can put themselves in front of terrorists with machine guns, but not a Heineken” (Blanche, 2008). A person capable of handling the terrorist must be matured enough to handle a little bit alcohol also. Lowering the drinking age would help to decrease the number of binge drinkers in a way that alcohol education has not. By removing the stigma of underage drinking, especially for college students, drinking may become less of a sport and, consequently, much less dangerous (Blanche, 2008) Conclusion Most of the students have tasted alcohol before entering the college and hence the ban failed brings positive results. Increase in drinking age will have negative impacts rather than positive ones on underage drinking. Illegal alcohol sale may be increased because of the ban. A person matured enough to protect his country, will definitely good enough to control his drinking habits. A person capable of driving a car or selecting the future leadership of the country will definitely have control over his drinking habits. American legal authorities must consider a revision of legal drinking age, from 21 to either 18 or 19. Drink age 5 Works Cited 1. Blanche Aubrey (2008), Lower the drinking age — we’re gonna drink anyways Retrieved on February 26, 2009 from http://www.northbynorthwestern.com/2008/09/11183/lower-the-drinking-age-were-gonna-drink-anyways/ 2. Bolduc Kaitlyn, (2008), Lowering the Drinking Age to 18. Discuss. Retrieved on February 26, 2009 from http://localcut.wweek.com/2008/08/21/lowering-the-drinking-age-to-18-discuss/ 3. College Presidents Seek Lower Drinking Age, (2008) Retrieved on February 26, 2009 from http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,405766,00.html 4. Ed Morrissey (2009), Should Minnesota lower the drinking age to 18? Retrieved on February 26, 2009 from http://hotair.com/archives/2009/02/21/should-minnesota-lower-the-drinking-age-to-18/ 5. Engs Ruth C., (1998) Professor, Applied Health Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington, Why the drinking age should be lowered: An opinion based upon research, Retrieved on February 26, 2009 from http://www.indiana.edu/~engs/articles/cqoped.html Drink age 6 6. Hanson David J., Ph. D. (1997) The Legal Drinking Age: Science vs. Ideology, Retrieved on February 26, 2009 from http://www2.potsdam.edu/hansondj/YouthIssues/1046348726.html 7. James Susan Donaldson (2008) Answer to Underage Drinking: Make It Legal, Retrieved on February 26, 2009 from http://abcnews.go.com/US/Story?id=5616070&page=2 8. Lisa Andrew Mark, (1999), Lower the U.S. Legal Drinking Age to 18, Retrieved on February 26, 2009 from http://www.petitiononline.com/AD793/petition.html 9. Lowering Drinking Age to 18 Gets Consideration ( 2007), Retrieved on February 26, 2009 from http://www.jointogether.org/news/headlines/inthenews/2007/lowering-drinking-age-to.html 10. PARKER JENNIFER, (2007) Group Stirs Debate on Legal Drinking Age, Retrieved on February 26, 2009 from http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=3708133&page=1 Read More