Should the legal drinking age in America be 18?
- Thread starter ManiacalZManiac
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21 is fine. i live in the UK and i'm a sociable drinker, i rarely get drunk. i'd much rather have a chat and a pint with some friends in a pub than go clubbing and get ratarsed. but there are those that do go out every night and get drunk at 18, i know some that do it, and it's not a pretty sight seeing these 18 year olds roll out the pub, fall over then vomit all over the place.
(1000th post, woo!)
(1000th post, woo!)
Morality should have nothing to do with the consumption of anything. Its not immoral to drink alcohol or do drugs, its just physically damaging. The government should have no say about what you put into your own body. Its your right as a free person do have total control over your body and mind. Plus how hypocritical is it to tell an 18 year old that they are responsible enough to go die in combat but not responsible enough to consume alcohol. Damn it the government is rediculous. Its supposed to represent the people but instead all it does is treat them like little infants that need to be told what to do. Let free people have freedom of choice and leave the government out of what I do in the privacy of my own home or to my own body.
It really is a counter-productive system.
I started drinking before I came "of age" out of simple curiousity. I decided that I would find my limit one night. I got absolutely smashed, had a terrible hang over, and haven't had a drink since.
The point I'm trying to make is whether or not its illegal, people will do it. What the legality has sway over is WHY they do it. I drank because I hadn't before because of the law. Further, I don't refrain now because I am STILL underage, but because I don't really like it that much.
But then again, I think many illicit drugs should be legalized, so Hell, what do I know.
I started drinking before I came "of age" out of simple curiousity. I decided that I would find my limit one night. I got absolutely smashed, had a terrible hang over, and haven't had a drink since.
The point I'm trying to make is whether or not its illegal, people will do it. What the legality has sway over is WHY they do it. I drank because I hadn't before because of the law. Further, I don't refrain now because I am STILL underage, but because I don't really like it that much.
But then again, I think many illicit drugs should be legalized, so Hell, what do I know.
the legal drinking age actually used to be 18, but if you really want to get technical it used to be as soon as your body could handle the alcohol without severe negative effects, like ummmm...death for instance. It wouldn't change anything, kids will drink as long as there is alcohol to be drunk, and parties for it to be drunk at.
In the UK here
drinking age: 18
driving age: 17
I like the system, but the drinking age could easily be raised and I wouldn't be fussed (for the record I'm 17)
It depends on what the community in the region is like tbh.
Overall, I'd say it could easily be lowered, but wouldn't really have an effect
the people who can get alcohol anyway know how to do it
drinking age: 18
driving age: 17
I like the system, but the drinking age could easily be raised and I wouldn't be fussed (for the record I'm 17)
It depends on what the community in the region is like tbh.
Overall, I'd say it could easily be lowered, but wouldn't really have an effect
the people who can get alcohol anyway know how to do it
I agree with this philosophy 100 percent.Xiado said:
But apparently the government doesn't feel the same way, even if you're over 21. Hence the DEA.
I'm not trying to start an argument, but to make a point. Someone's morals will always prevail in government. That's a problem. Government shouldn't really serve as an opinion-fueled moral dictator, but it always will to some extent.
It definitely should be. It is here in Manitoba, works just fine.
Think about it, kids 18 and younger are drinking anyways, just make it legal, it won't change anything.
Think about it, kids 18 and younger are drinking anyways, just make it legal, it won't change anything.
im a big fan of common sense. if a person is old enough to HAVE to get a job and support themselves, and they are also old enough to sigh up for millitary service than they are old enough to decide if they want a drink or not.
society/the government cant simply decide that people 18 years old are adults in SOME ways but denigh them adult choices in others.
well tahts not true i guess, not only CAN they but they HAVE here in the states anyhow. i would say flat out that im much more worried about this lack of simple fairness and common sense from my government than ill ever be about someone whos 18 taking a drink.
in the interest of being honist let me say i grew up in a small town where everone knew everyone else and all of us 'kids' had many 'familys' watching over us. i also grew up at a time when my oldest friends could STILL drink at 18. i missed the cutoff by 2 years so needless to say that i grew up in a situation where drinking was ....... well not common exactly, but it wasnt the OMG YOU LET YOUR BABYS DRINK !!!11! shit its become since. i say this because ive had experiance with 18 year old drinkers first hand. ive also worked in bars/pubs off and on for most of my life so i get a first hand look at drinking in general and i can say from my own experiance there is very little hard fact to back up this random age limit.
truth is drinking makes people stupid and removes ANY reason, logic, or common sense from a drunk persons choices of action no matter WHAT their age. a drunk 18 year old is no more 'stupid' than a drunk 50 year old is. drunks are drunks and the very nature of BEING drunk removes any possable clame to older people having more 'experiance' and are thus somehow wiser when they are drunk than a younger person.
and to anyone who would say that mature people are more capable of using wisdom overall in the question of drinking and dont get involved in things like keg partys or 'spring break' and are viewed as someones dad having a cocktail or two before dinner after a hard day at the office i again call bull shit. most people my age or older (im 37 and work in a factory) i know work 8 - 16 hrs a day. leave work and head for the nearest 'watering hole' and proceede to power drink untill they pass out, then get tossed into the back of a co-workers pickup, (even in the dead of winter ive seen this) driven home, dumped on their bed and do it all over again the next day. we ALL do it. i work in an area with 6 factorys that employ about 5,000 people between them, and the local bars are packed almost every night of the week.
18 year old drunks arent any more stupid, dangerious, or reckless than 40 year old drunks are. the very nature of drinking itselfs ensures this. and ANYONE who has worked in or around pubs will tell you the same thing.
society/the government cant simply decide that people 18 years old are adults in SOME ways but denigh them adult choices in others.
well tahts not true i guess, not only CAN they but they HAVE here in the states anyhow. i would say flat out that im much more worried about this lack of simple fairness and common sense from my government than ill ever be about someone whos 18 taking a drink.
in the interest of being honist let me say i grew up in a small town where everone knew everyone else and all of us 'kids' had many 'familys' watching over us. i also grew up at a time when my oldest friends could STILL drink at 18. i missed the cutoff by 2 years so needless to say that i grew up in a situation where drinking was ....... well not common exactly, but it wasnt the OMG YOU LET YOUR BABYS DRINK !!!11! shit its become since. i say this because ive had experiance with 18 year old drinkers first hand. ive also worked in bars/pubs off and on for most of my life so i get a first hand look at drinking in general and i can say from my own experiance there is very little hard fact to back up this random age limit.
truth is drinking makes people stupid and removes ANY reason, logic, or common sense from a drunk persons choices of action no matter WHAT their age. a drunk 18 year old is no more 'stupid' than a drunk 50 year old is. drunks are drunks and the very nature of BEING drunk removes any possable clame to older people having more 'experiance' and are thus somehow wiser when they are drunk than a younger person.
and to anyone who would say that mature people are more capable of using wisdom overall in the question of drinking and dont get involved in things like keg partys or 'spring break' and are viewed as someones dad having a cocktail or two before dinner after a hard day at the office i again call bull shit. most people my age or older (im 37 and work in a factory) i know work 8 - 16 hrs a day. leave work and head for the nearest 'watering hole' and proceede to power drink untill they pass out, then get tossed into the back of a co-workers pickup, (even in the dead of winter ive seen this) driven home, dumped on their bed and do it all over again the next day. we ALL do it. i work in an area with 6 factorys that employ about 5,000 people between them, and the local bars are packed almost every night of the week.
18 year old drunks arent any more stupid, dangerious, or reckless than 40 year old drunks are. the very nature of drinking itselfs ensures this. and ANYONE who has worked in or around pubs will tell you the same thing.
No. Because most American kids aren't responsible enough to handle alcohol when they are 21 or 35 for that matter.
I haven't read through this thread, I really can't be bothered, so I'll just say three things about this and bugger off.
1. I work in retail on a checkout. The store where I work attracts a large number of people from all races, ages, creeds, sexual orientations and whatever else you can think of. Serving such a diverse range of people has taught me one thing: no one group of people has a monopoly on arseholes. I have great customers from all age and racial groups and bad customers from all groups. To say that all 18 year olds are irresponsible and stupid is painting with a very wide brush; many people from that age do suck but many are great, just as it is for every other age group.
To deny people from 18 to 21, or in some cases 16 to 21, the right to drink and make choices for themselves is punishing the good ones because of the bad ones.
2. At 18 you're legally responsible for your actions, yet you're not responsible enough to drink? If you're officially responsible enough for all of your actions, shouldn't you therefore have the rights to go with that responsibility?
3. Sheltering people from the world doesn't help them. Let people learn things for themselves, even if it's the hard way. Yes, they're going to make mistakes, but that's their prerogative and is necessary for their development. In fact, I would argue it's better to learn these things first hand rather than just be told in classroom where everyone is half asleep or looking down the teacher's blouse anyway.
1. I work in retail on a checkout. The store where I work attracts a large number of people from all races, ages, creeds, sexual orientations and whatever else you can think of. Serving such a diverse range of people has taught me one thing: no one group of people has a monopoly on arseholes. I have great customers from all age and racial groups and bad customers from all groups. To say that all 18 year olds are irresponsible and stupid is painting with a very wide brush; many people from that age do suck but many are great, just as it is for every other age group.
To deny people from 18 to 21, or in some cases 16 to 21, the right to drink and make choices for themselves is punishing the good ones because of the bad ones.
2. At 18 you're legally responsible for your actions, yet you're not responsible enough to drink? If you're officially responsible enough for all of your actions, shouldn't you therefore have the rights to go with that responsibility?
3. Sheltering people from the world doesn't help them. Let people learn things for themselves, even if it's the hard way. Yes, they're going to make mistakes, but that's their prerogative and is necessary for their development. In fact, I would argue it's better to learn these things first hand rather than just be told in classroom where everyone is half asleep or looking down the teacher's blouse anyway.
all i know is that americans are super softcore and lightweights, as i live in england where the legal age is 18
im not yet old enough to drink but if, by my age, you havent been drunk at leaast once yet then you're seen as socially dead - so yes binge drinking is very much affected since you can drink legally before youve left school (though personally i find there are bettter things than being drunk)
however, in france the age is like 13 and they have no drinking problems - pubs dont even exist
so i think the age really needs to be lowered to around there
at 21, it's ridiculous, you end up with a bunch of lightweights and a shitty university experience
18 seems open to too much abuse
13/14 seems right since there's no act of rebellion involved in doing so
but meh, that's just how i see it
im not yet old enough to drink but if, by my age, you havent been drunk at leaast once yet then you're seen as socially dead - so yes binge drinking is very much affected since you can drink legally before youve left school (though personally i find there are bettter things than being drunk)
however, in france the age is like 13 and they have no drinking problems - pubs dont even exist
so i think the age really needs to be lowered to around there
at 21, it's ridiculous, you end up with a bunch of lightweights and a shitty university experience
18 seems open to too much abuse
13/14 seems right since there's no act of rebellion involved in doing so
but meh, that's just how i see it