Devin Stanford Mrs. Zupan Law Period 5 April 13, 2016 Drinking Age For years people have debated on whether or not lowering the drinking age is a good idea. It is a very sensitive topic to discuss because everyone has their own opinion on it. Alcohol is the drug of choice for most teenagers regardless of the rules that are in place. On April 14, 1982, President Reagan established the Presidential Commission Against Drunk Driving (PCDD). These were 39 recommendations on how to stop the drunk driving epidemic at the time. One of the recommendations was raising the drinking age to 21 which they did and it was very effective for its time, but is it time to update the law? Each side has good and bad reasons for lowering the drinking …show more content…
It has always been a part of cultures everywhere around the world and there is nothing different in today’s world. One major argument against raising the drinking age is that lowering the age does not reduce the fatalities attributed to drunk driving, on the contrary the amount of deaths increase as the drinking age is lowered. The article states that people who are younger still have a developing mind and they are still careless in the activities they do. According to the article the 21 age limit for alcohol has saved over 23,000 people since the drinking age was raised in 1975. Another major argument is that kids or teenagers will do what they want regardless of the rules that are in place. I’m sure we all can relate to a house party one of our friends had that had alcohol at it. As said in the article all the 21 drinking age does is make it more desirable to younger and younger kids with the forbidden fruit concept. At a lot of these parties the parents are the ones who supply the alcohol because they think that since they drank as kids they will turn out okay and that is not entirely right. On average 11 kids die every day from alcohol, whether it’s in an accident or has something to do with their heart. In the united states when an individual turns 18 they are considered an adult in the governments eyes. They are able to join the military, vote during elections, and many other things because they are an "Adult". So the main argument for lowering the drinking age is that if you are considered an adult you should be able to go out and have a drink or two without having to hide it and drink irresponsibly. The main argument against this is that at 18 the individuals brain is still developing and alcohol could have a chance to disrupt that.Some of the problems that come along with drinking while your brain is still developing is depression, greater chance of addiction, violence, suicide,
Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) advocated that in all 50 states the legal drinking age must be raised to 21 years of age, or suffer the loss of 10% of highway funds (Daniloff). Former President Ronald Reagan signed off on the National Minimum Drinking Age Act in 1984, and in turn the rest
“There’s No Benefit to Lowering the Drinking Age” explains, on average about eleven teens die daily as a result of drunk driving (Voas 464). When teens throw a party, alcohol is usually involved. Then once the party is over the kids have to get home somehow and they often drive themselves. When an alcoholic drink is placed in an eighteen-year-old hand decisions are made that harm them and others
The changing of the legal drinking age from 18 to 21 resulted from the false politicization of the very serious and prevalent issue of teenage drunk driving by activist groups such as M.A.D.D.-Mothers Against Drunk Driving. Instead of trying to legislate morality, which is a lost cause, the focus should be put on attempting to create a society which breeds responsible drinking habits. Since there is no significant change developmentally from the age 18 to 21, those three years are, in essence, a state of unfounded prohibition. The drinking age should be changed to 18. One reasoning behind the upping of the age, was the fact that the brain is not yet fully developed at the age of 18, and this can result in not only lapses of judgement (i.e., binge drinking, drunk driving, etc.) but also in alcohol related health issues.
The only reason the drinking age was raised in the first place was because the Mothers Against Drinking. “I'm going to lower the drinking age to eighteen. If you're old enough to die in Iraq, you're old enough to drink.” ― Kinky Friedman .If
Over the years, there have been debates about lowering the drinking age in the United States to eighteen. People argue that if a person can fight in the military or vote in elections, then he or she should be allowed the right to drink alcohol. Others feel that it is not wise to lower the legal drinking age because the results would be dangerous. Although there are arguments for lowering the drinking age, there is also an abundance of research that proves lowering the drinking age would be destructive. The legal drinking age should not be lowered to eighteen because it will give high school and even middle school students greater access to alcohol, interfere with brain development, adult rights begin at twenty-one, and increase traffic accidents among the youth.
Do you know drinking is fatal to only to 19 or a younger age? Should the drinking age be lowered from 19 to a younger age? CONS. We should not drink when you are under the drinking age law. Drinking can be all over the world to many countries.
all dropped to the age 18 or 19 . Thus, alcohol should stay away from young adults. In summary, the drinking age needs to be changed. First of all, health organizations are more involved with raising the drinking age, second of all drunk driving happens more frequently nowadays, and finally young adults and teens should not be drinking under the ages of 21.
Since 1984 there has been a federal act that strongly advises states not to allow citizens under the age of 21 from drinking alcoholic beverages. To this day there are still people arguing about this law, both for and against it. Having a minimum drinking age set at 21 is a popular ongoing debate that has many supporters and disputers. To begin, alcohol was a key topic in debates
Lowering the drinking age: risky or safe? When teenagers turn 18, they are told that they are adults and are sent into the world. They go to college, get a job, marry or join the military. They do grown-up things like vote, pay taxes and become parents, but they can 't go to the bar for a beer.
It has instead pushed underage binge drinking into private and less controlled environments, leading to more health and life-endangering behaviors by teens. If the legal drinking age was lowered, those teens would be able to drink in a more controlled and much more safe environment where they can be monitored and supervised. Then they will be less likely to harm themselves or others. The second argument that is used is that there are fewer drunk driving accidents in countries with lower drinking ages. In quite a few countries around the world, the legal drinking age is already 18.
Frat parties, for example, serve booze, often, if not always, without the supervision of a responsible adult (aka an adult over the age of 21). Lowering the drinking age to 18 can be beneficial in that responsible drinking can be taught before the student turns 21. My favorite analogy, by Huffington Post writer, Elizabeth Glass Geltman, says, “We don’t have students teach each other how to drive, why is alcohol different?” In her article on Huffington Post, she talks about her college experience in the 70s and early 80s, where the legal drinking age in the US was 18. She talks about how drinking was legal for most students in her senior year of high school and in college, and that beer was commonly served at dances, proms, graduation events, etc.
The drinking age should be lowered, because brains are not fully developed yet, colleges should be able to regulate drinking, and this can solve problems with kids underage drinking. Despite the controversy, the drinking age should decrease for many logical reasons. The drinking age has been a debate between the ages 18 to the age of 21 for a while now. Over the years, studies have showed favors toward the age of 21.
So my conclusion is that the legal drinking age should stay 21 because it always changes, under aged kids always find a way to obtain alcohol, and parents will often buy their children drinks. Under aged kids themselves have said that their parents, older friends, strangers and family members would buy them alcohol. Raising the alcohol age limit would barely change anything, it affects the older group of drinkers more than the younger. As far as I know the age limit is still at 21, but it may change soon, there is currently debates on whether to raise or lower the alcohol age
Society places laws to protect individuals. The rise of alcohol abuse raises the question if the minimum legal drinking age of 21 secures protection of the people. With proper enforcement of drinking laws in addition to education about alcohol, the minimum legal drinking age of 18 provides a safer drinking culture. President Ronald Reagan signed the National Minimum Drinking Age Act in 1984. All states in the time
Why drinking age should be lowered? If one is considered an adult at age eighteen in most of the country, are they not allowed to purchase and legally consume alcohol? The minimum legal drinking age needs to be lowered, and not just for that reason. The amount of teenagers with drinking problems and alcoholism is far greater than in Europe, where drinking ages are far lower. Also, studies show that the current minimum age drinking laws have been ineffective to a high degree.