So are you for or lowering the drinking age? If so how low should it go? Should there even be a drinking age? Some countries allow parents to introduce them to alcohol at young ages, but do so to allow them to teach their kids to drink in moderation. The kids though can not buy alcohol until a certain age.

8/19/2008 9:18:53 AM

Here's the thing, the only people who care about this issue are people under 21. I know I don't care about it anymore.


Nobody else is concerned enough to lower the drinking age, so it will probably never happen.

8/19/2008 9:20:34 AM

it would make it "less cool" i think... not to mention they could be taught moderation....

I really think it depends on the level of drinking... i think they should be able to have wine with dinner at double digits and i think at 16 they're parents should get them so drunk they puke.... then teach them the right way to drink.


^ i'm 25 and i think its messed up kids can go to war but not drink...


[Edited on August 19, 2008 at 9:21 AM. Reason : .]

8/19/2008 9:20:57 AM

http://www.cnn.com/2008/HEALTH/08/18/college.drinking.age.ap/index.html

Quote :

" (AP) -- College presidents from about 100 of the nation's 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. Men pour beer on a drunken student during Spring Break on South Padre Island, Texas. ... Mothers Against Drunk Driving says lowering the drinking age would lead to more fatal car crashes. It accuses the presidents of misrepresenting science and looking for an easy way out of an inconvenient problem. MADD officials are even urging parents to think carefully about the safety of colleges whose presidents have signed on. "It's very clear the 21-year-old drinking age will not be enforced at those campuses," said Laura Dean-Mooney, national president of MADD. Don't Miss * Gators No. 1 again as Florida takes top party school Both sides agree alcohol abuse by college students is a huge problem. ... But the statement makes clear the signers think the current law isn't working, citing a "culture of dangerous, clandestine binge-drinking," and noting that while adults under 21 can vote and enlist in the military, they "are told they are not mature enough to have a beer." Furthermore, "by choosing to use fake IDs, students make ethical compromises that erode respect for the law." ... But some other college administrators sharply disagree that lowering the drinking age would help. University of Miami President Donna Shalala, who served as secretary of health and human services under President Clinton, declined to sign. "I remember college campuses when we had 18-year-old drinking ages, and I honestly believe we've made some progress," Shalala said in a telephone interview. "To just shift it back down to the high schools makes no sense at all." McCardell claims that his experiences as a president and a parent, as well as a historian studying Prohibition, have persuaded him the drinking age isn't working. But critics say McCardell has badly misrepresented the research by suggesting that the decision to raise the drinking age from 18 to 21 may not have saved lives. In fact, MADD CEO Chuck Hurley said, nearly all peer-reviewed studies looking at the change showed raising the drinking age reduced drunk-driving deaths. A survey of research from the U.S. and other countries by the Centers for Disease Control and others reached the same conclusion. ... "I understand why colleges are doing it, because it splits their students, and they like to treat them all alike rather than having to card some of them. It's a nuisance to them," said Henry Wechsler of the Harvard School of Public Health. But, "I wish these college presidents sat around and tried to work out ways to deal with the problem on their campus rather than try to eliminate the problem by defining it out of existence," he said. Health Library Duke faced accusations of ignoring the heavy drinking that formed the backdrop of 2006 rape allegations against three lacrosse players. The rape allegations proved to be a hoax, but the alcohol-fueled party was never disputed. Duke senior Wey Ruepten said university officials should accept the reality that students are going to drink and give them the responsibility that comes with alcohol. "If you treat students like children, they're going to act like children," he said. Duke President Richard Brodhead declined an interview request. But he wrote in a statement on the Amethyst Initiative's Web site that the 21-year-old drinking age "pushes drinking into hiding, heightening its risks." It also prevents school officials "from addressing drinking with students as an issue of responsible choice." Hurley, of MADD, has a different take on the presidents. "They're waving the white flag," he said. "

8/19/2008 9:23:35 AM

The problem with madd is most of those people are just Unreasonable due to a tragic death or injury by an incredibly irresponsible person.

8/19/2008 9:26:15 AM

at least now most of the underaged drinkers KNOW they can't drive even with a drop in them. if they lower the age, that's more fucking idiots that think they're under .08 but at .16 driving around picking off innocent ppl.

8/19/2008 9:37:22 AM

MADD is just like PETA

8/19/2008 9:38:11 AM

i'm fine with the way it is now...if they moved it to 18 i'd be fine with that too...drinking isnt that big of a deal in my life

8/19/2008 9:38:52 AM

In Bosnia and Herzegovina there is no minimum drinking age inside or outside bars. There around 5% of 13 year olds drink alcohol more than once a week, which is less than half the average rate across the European Union.

8/19/2008 9:41:21 AM

just wondering but...

why is this in chit chat and not soap box?

8/19/2008 9:42:01 AM

I thought I posted it in the Soap Box, but I guess it was moved.

8/19/2008 9:42:50 AM

the drinking age being 21 is just a racket for insurance companies and lawyers.

until someone in DC can lobby harder than the insurance companies and once all politicians aren't former lawyers, this will not change.

as sad as it is, once i was of legal age, most of the appeal of getting plastered had worn off.

i think it is far better to learn your lessons in HS when academic success is not as difficult

8/19/2008 9:44:38 AM

Quote :

"There around 5% of 13 year olds drink alcohol more than once a week, which is less than half the average rate across the European Union."

An unsubstantiated statistic in a chit chat thread? Well that changes my mind on the matter!

8/19/2008 9:44:58 AM

http://www.who.int/infobase/reportviewer.aspx?rptcode=ALL&uncode=70&dm=15&surveycode=101595a1

8/19/2008 9:52:00 AM

how does MADD have any influence anyways

I saw one DUI punishment was attending MADD classes

8/19/2008 9:55:18 AM

i grew up in a family that drank wine with dinner and whose parents let their kids have small amounts of alcohol (sometimes watered wine at dinner and sometimes small amounts of drinks at family parties)...generally, we weren't allowed to have anything till we were 12 or so

i have NEVER seen either of my parents or extended family members drunk, despite the fact that they drink "often"

i've been tipsy before, but never flat-out drunk, and i attribute that to growing up with a respect for alcohol and not feeling like it was "forbidden"

i genuinely believe it should be 18...crappy parents will continue to be crappy parents whether their kids can legally drink at 18 or 21

Quote :

"as sad as it is, once i was of legal age, most of the appeal of getting plastered had worn off."

what actual appeal is there to being plastered?

[Edited on August 19, 2008 at 10:14 AM. Reason : .]

8/19/2008 10:13:42 AM

Quote :

"what actual appeal is there to being plastered?"

people love it, mang.

8/19/2008 10:19:31 AM

what is there not to like about being plastered is a better question

8/19/2008 10:20:15 AM

i love it

8/19/2008 10:20:49 AM

I don't think it should be lowered.... 18 year olds (and younger) already drink and get access to alcohol through 21+ people.... If the legal age were 18, I think kids would start way younger than they already do & it'd be a far worse problem in high schools than it already is.

Moderation is key, and good parenting - but it hasn't gone too far with a lot of people.

8/19/2008 10:21:37 AM

Quote :

" what actual appeal is there to being plastered? "

women look hotter

8/19/2008 10:21:42 AM

The draw of being plastered is...

"it takes two beers to remember and five more to forget"
-ani difranco


keep in mind she's about a 100lb woman so thats a bit of alcohol for her.

8/19/2008 10:23:50 AM

i'm surprised no one has laid out the "OMG I CAN DIE FOR MY COUNTRY AT 18" speech yet.




But yeah, I think the age should be lowered to 18. Then they're would be more young drunk bitches at parties to make moves on.

8/19/2008 10:25:00 AM

I'm absolutely for lowering the drinking age.

It's fucked up that you're considered an adult for all other things in this country except alcohol. It's cliche , but the saying that "you can die for your country, but you can't buy a beer" is still a pretty fucking astute point.

8/19/2008 10:25:04 AM

I think they should split the difference and make it 19. That would keep it away from high schools.

I mean if we all assume that laws are meant to be followed then this would mean none of us took a drink until our 21st birthday. That is unreasonable in theory, and never happens in practice so the law should be changed.

If we are a nation that is governed by laws then we need to purge laws from the books that are blatantly never followed.

8/19/2008 10:26:19 AM

Quote :

" If we are a nation that is governed by laws then we need to purge laws from the books that are blatantly never followed. "

that's terrible logic, dude.

8/19/2008 10:27:43 AM

Do you know how annoying a drunken 18-yr girl at a bar would be.

8/19/2008 10:42:50 AM

about as bad as a 21 year old girl on her birthday.



i always want to rip that paper crown off and set it on fire.

8/19/2008 10:45:11 AM

^^ good point!!

I would also prefer to not have to deal with 18yr old guys at the bars i go to either.


[Edited on August 19, 2008 at 10:48 AM. Reason : .]

8/19/2008 10:48:03 AM

No I agree about the 18yr guys too, but the girls would just be worst.

8/19/2008 10:54:36 AM

Quote :

"I think they should split the difference and make it 19. That would keep it away from high schools."

That's why anyone who is 21 can't go to Highschool anymore and must get their GED. So then once you hit 19, you have to get your GED.

8/19/2008 10:58:08 AM

I read this as...

Quote :

"The Drinking Ape Debate"

...and was like WTF, then I realized it was

Quote :

"The Drinking Age Debate"

and was quite disappointed.

8/19/2008 11:06:19 AM

I think for the first 5 or so years the lowered age may present some problems but it would work itself out afterwards. We would have to deal with the kids that are like "whoo I can drink now" and that population would obviously increase a ton. After a few years we would see young people who are more responsible with their drinking, although we will always have a few fools out there.

8/19/2008 12:26:21 PM

The drinking age is set by the states. The federal gov't offers "incentives" (highway funding) for those who set it at 21.

As for "it's messed up that 18 year old's can go to war but not vote," simple solution: if you're 18, and you go to war, we'll let you drink, otherwise, fuck you - you're debating a point that doesn't really apply to you.

How many people do you think would sign up?

8/19/2008 12:35:51 PM

The drinking age was 18 when I started buying beer--buying it legally, that is. I think it should be 18 now, too. In addition, I think 18 ought to be the age at which people are considered adults for all legal purposes.

8/19/2008 12:36:41 PM

Quote :

"MADD is just like PETA"

8/19/2008 12:40:48 PM

drinking age should be 16, and full drivers license should be 18

8/19/2008 12:42:15 PM

I was just about to come in here and say - needs to be lowered to 16 STAT

8/19/2008 1:58:35 PM

if they're going to ship you off to war, the least they can do is allow you to buy a beer beforehand

8/19/2008 1:59:25 PM

once we build that monorail we can lower it to 16 so people don't have to drive drunk anywhere.

8/19/2008 2:13:25 PM

drinking age should be the same as the age of consent in whatever state and the draft age. driving age is fine.


if i can be drafted and have my own kids then i can knock back a cold one.

I'm walls1441 and i approve of this message.

8/19/2008 2:15:29 PM

Quote :

"I think for the first 5 or so years the lowered age may present some problems but it would work itself out afterwards. We would have to deal with the kids that are like "whoo I can drink now" and that population would obviously increase a ton. After a few years we would see young people who are more responsible with their drinking, although we will always have a few fools out there."

i feel the same way about legalization of pot...it'll take some time before the novelty wears off, but eventually it'll work itself out...no matter the status of either (age limit or legalization), you're gonna have morons out there who are too stupid to control themselves and cause problems...the solution, IMO, is to have even stiffer penalties for those people who have made it clear they don't deserve the privilege

[Edited on August 19, 2008 at 2:20 PM. Reason : grammar]

8/19/2008 2:20:20 PM

set 'em up

8/19/2008 2:32:07 PM

I think it should be lowered to 18. It seems silly to be that you can buy cigarettes and join the military at 18 but you can't buy a beer.

8/20/2008 12:45:24 AM

My mom likes to bitch about how when she turned 18 she was able to buy beer for about two weeks before they changed the age to 21 where she was living

8/20/2008 12:50:36 AM

I thought you could still buy it..like you were grandfathered in, or was that only in certain states? is anybody old enough to know?

8/20/2008 1:04:53 AM

I can see them making the drinking age 19. If they made it 18, then HS seniors
would be getting a lot more booze into the hands of 15-17 year olds. 19 would be
a good compromise.

8/20/2008 1:06:18 AM

Quote :

"If the legal age were 18, I think kids would start way younger than they already do & it'd be a far worse problem in high schools than it already is."

That's the only issue I have with lowering it.

8/20/2008 1:19:12 AM

Quote :

"I think they should split the difference and make it 19. That would keep it away from high schools."

8/20/2008 1:28:38 AM

set em up

8/20/2008 1:29:36 AM