Poll: Should The US Drinking Age Be Lowered?

[Shapsters]

Nah, we Canadians behaved ourselves so mom let us drink at 18, but you Americans are really bad and stupid, so you have to wait longer.

This. Us Canadians are responsible adults. I don't see what difference it makes, as if kids my age don't drink anyways, might as well make them feel special and rebellious.

 

[khain13]

Are you saying that the people of America are that incapable of rational thought and basic responsibility that they can't handle something that is accepted in every other developed nation on earth?

And I don't know about sex education, but we started in grade 6 at my primary school, and did like 4 classes in a year, then another 4 in grade 7, then similar numbers in grades 8, 9 and 10 at high school.

1) yes, and I am an American. The problem isn't that most people won't respond well to education and act responsible, it's that everything here has to be broken down to the lowest common denominator. Our lawmakers are of the opinion that if it won't work for everyone then it won't work at all. See also: no child left behind. We have to dumb everything down so the dumb people are not left out.

2) The same applies to sex ed. We had a 2 week class in 5th and 6th grade and a chapter in "Health" class went over sex ed in 9th grade. That was about it. Not only that, it pushed abstinence and barely touched on safe sex practices. Come to think of it that's pretty much how the DARE program works too. "Kids, don't do drugs, mmmmkay?"

I look forward to living in a China-led world in the next 15 years then.

That is a distinct possibility. Not that alcohol use will be the deciding factor or even ignorance of sex education. If anything the economic crisis will be the leading factor in China's coming dominance. That and the out of touch "leaders" we have here in the US. Can anyone really stand behind a government that doesn't know the first thing about how the majority of it's citizens live? Should we? Why debate about the drinking age when unemployment is skyrocketing and taxes will continue to rise as personal freedoms are stripped away? How long before drinking is no more due to taxes being so high only the rich can afford alcohol? The United States has gotten out of hand with it's so-called "Sin" taxes.

 

[MelodyMan]

its 18 in austarilia, or you know could just drink it without being 21

 

[Lexodus]

No. Teens are already getting drunk and causing accidents, so why make it legal and easier to do so?

"Give me liberty or give me death"

So, how quickly do you want to die?

 

[-Orgasmatron-]

I suppose I deserve that, no question. Although I've been on the wagon for a fucked-up liver for about 10 months now, so don't talk about my tender 19 years or talk to me about life experience. You have no fucking idea.

You can have a dead liver by age 19? How much did you drink and when did you start? *worried face*

 

[chstens]

It's everything from 16 to 18 in Europe, but nothing as high as in the US. Because of this, I have decided to delay my road trip.

 

[WaffleTron]

I vote no mostly because... i'm already over 21, suck it college kids! XP

 

[EMFCRACKSHOT]

Most definately. I want to be able to have a nice pint when i go to America but right now i cant because i'm only 18. I also think the same of gambling. want to do it when i go there but i cant.
Anyway, i've been drinking and gambling since i was 14 and it never did me any harm

 

[arc101]

NO, becasue us British want to be able to laugh at Americans for something other than the typical American stereotype which is fast getting old.

 

[NezumiiroKitsune]

It isn't so much your age that dictates if you'll be a responsible drinker but your individual personality and common sense. I drink below the age limit (I'm 17, legal limit is 18, UK), but I drink responsibly. I never drink in excess, and always retain a level of sobreity that allows me to make logical decisions. It may be the years of hypochondria but I'm programmed to be anal about my health. I think the best, but most impractical way, to assess if a person should be allowed to drink alcohol, would be taking the person into account, there history and definatly school report. If it was up to me, some of the dimwitted sluts and utterly witless trolls that drink themselves into liver cancer at 14 shouldn't ever be allowed to drink, end of.

 

[-Orgasmatron-]

I don't see how any of this of any of your concern, or business, but: I started at age 13, heavy drinking that is (Binge drinking, or whatever the term is), and I went out at least thrice a month, at the max 8 times(Every friday and saturday).
I kept this trend until I was 17 I think.

I drank somewhere between 10 and 20 units in a night at age 13 and 14, I think, moving up to somewhere between 50 and 60 in a weekend at age 15 and 16.

I never blacked out, never passed out, never woke up with insomnia and black holes.

I stopped such hardcore drinking when older, not because it wasn't fun, but because it got way too expensive, also I kinda lost the feeling for partying all the time. Also later I had to drive: I've never driven while drunk.
A routine check at the doctors, involving a blood sample, last year gave me the heads up, some numbers about my liver were about 4 times what they should be. I don't know the details.

Please understand that this is not to brag or anything, not at all, you just asked, and I answered. Although I am quite proud of myself, for being able to drink anyone under the table.

Don't worry about me, though, apart from a red nose there is nothing to wrong with me. And the red nose is slowly fading away as well

Edit: Oh, and about your wording: My liver isn't/wasn't dead, it was just getting there.

Oh, that's heavy. I just wanted to know because I've been drinking since I was 14, large amounts of whiskey on a weekly to bi-weekly basis, calmed down now though and an average week will be 8 cans of lager. I always thought "Fuck it, if I get cirosis of the liver when I'm 60, who cares?", so it was worrying to know that it can happen while you're still in your teen years. Thanks for sharing mate.

 

[KaiusCormere]

There's this thought that raising age limits helps somehow...honestly, People are Stupid. They are always gonna be stupid, they're dumb at 18, at 21, and at 40. Just set the age limit at 12.

 

[xXGeckoXx]

Should the US Drinking Age Be Lowered?

I say yes, I find it so fucked up that a 18 year old deemed responsible and smart enough to be able to go to war and fight for his/her country, but drinking alcohol is apparently abover there heads. So I say that the drinking age should at least be lowered to 18.

I live in Britain and the drinking age is 18. I think that 21 is unreasonable and promotes underage drinking.

 

[Gerazzi]

I don't think that is enough of a cause to warrant the lowering of the age. Plus the 18 --> go to war argument is iffy because if you're a student you're excused. It then becomes your choice to go and fight, its not like a draft or that they are forcing you to go.

this.
Also, what were you planning to do that's more important than going to war for your country...
you know, besides not dying?

 

[dnnydllr]

My thoughts on drinking: It's stupid. All I ever hear about while attending my high school is how everyone got so smashed this weekend, and I'll tell you it's fucking annoying. Their stories almost always involve someone who was intoxicated being behind the wheel, and then those who had been drinking committing other acts of deviance. Now personally, I think that if the immature little shits want to ruin their lives by becoming borderline alcoholics before they even graduate high school, well then that's fine with me. But I think it's stupid that people would want to lower the age to a level where someone with little to know amount of maturity could have unlimited access to alcohol. Even though they should, many 18 year olds don't yet understand the consequences of their actions, thus is the society we live in. Lowering it would almost certainly lead to more vehicular deaths/homicides, and take another chunk out of what used to be a great society. Now for those of you who say that they will continue to drink whether it's legal or not, this is true. Until the government decides to enforce their own laws, this will continue. However, that is not a reason for lowering the age.

 

[cyrad]

I don't see why people give a crap about drinking earlier in their lives. It's just a beverage that kills brain cells and makes you act retarded. Big deal. It's not like it's something that's necessary for you to function well in society, like driving.
In the grand scheme of things, 3 years really isn't that long to wait. If you're really hellbent on drinking as soon as you can in your life or think your happiness is determined by your ability to consume alcohol, then I personally wouldn't trust you drink responsbly.

The American people are stupid enough while sober, especially teenagers. We don't need alcohol to make them dumber.