The Drinking Age
Is it fair that the legal drinking age in the U.S. is 21 when it is lower in other counties? There is much debate surrounding the legal drinking age in the United States. Some argue that it is unfair that the drinking age is 21 when it is lower in other countries. Others maintain that the drinking age should remain at 21 in order to protect the safety of young adults. There are a number of valid arguments on both sides of the issue. Proponents of a lower drinking age often point to European countries where young adults are legally allowed to drink at a younger age (Toomey). They argue that this allows young adults to learn how to drink responsibly in a controlled environment. However, opponents of a lower drinking age argue that alcohol consumption can interfere with brain development in young adults. They also point to higher rates of underage drinking and binge drinking on campuses as a concern that lower the drinking age would further exacerbate and already dangerous trend among young people to engage in heavy drinking (Saylor). Ultimately, there is no easy answer when it comes to the legal drinking age. Both sides of the issue have valid points, and it is up to each individual country to decide what is best for its citizens. However, if society is going to teach personal accountability and moderation, there should be no drinking age limit in the US and instead society should adopt the European approach to alcoholwhich is to teach through social acceptance that consumption in moderation is the best practice.
Alcohol consumption has always been a controversial topic. Some people believe that it should be banned entirely, while others believe that it should be regulated more strictly. However, there is a growing movement in favor of eliminating the drinking age limit in the United States. Proponents of this change argue that culture needs to raise children who are responsible and accountable. The best way to do that is to give...
…made people into binge drinkersjust how college age kids are today: they cannot get it under ordinary circumstances, so they binge it when they can (Saylor). To teach moderation there has to be more acceptance and tolerance in society. Yet in America there are far too many red lines and things forbidden. To teach young people to drink responsibly, they have to be given room to actually be able to drink responsiblywhich means legallynot in hiding or at binge parties.In conclusion, the legal drinking age is currently set at 21. However, it should be lowered. One reason for this is that the current drinking age is ineffective, and that it leads to more risky behavior among young adults. One can point to in Europe, where the drinking age is 18, and show that these countries have fewer problems with underage drinking than the US does. To teach young people how to drink responsibly, society has to allow them the opportunity to be able to do soand this means giving them…
Works Cited
Saylor, Drew K. "Heavy drinking on college campuses: No reason to change minimumlegal drinking age of 21." Journal of American college health 59.4 (2011): 330-333.
Toomey, Traci L., Carolyn Rosenfeld, and Alexander C. Wagenaar. "The minimum legaldrinking age: History, effectiveness, and ongoing debate." Alcohol Health and Research World 20.4 (1996): 213.
The question isn't whether there should be controls, but which controls work best. What has proven around the world to work best is a combination of reasonable laws backed by strong social sanctions. But in the U.S. we treat our emerging adults as infants and get infantile behavior as a result…if adults would learn to temper their patronizing attitudes toward young men and women, more maturity, self-restraint, and social
Accordingly, "the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that raising the drink age to 21 has reduced traffic fatalities involving 18- to 20-year-old drivers by 13% and has saved an estimated 19,121 lives since 1975." (T, 1) Conclusion: More than anything though, these statistics seem to confirm the fears of both university leaders and law enforcement agencies, who argue that age-based prohibition has made it more difficult to connect with, cooperate
Against Lowering the Drinking Age In the United States, underage drinking has been cited as creating immense problems. It has contributed to numerous unnecessary youth deaths and has been the predecessor to various crimes. However, some argue that it is the illegality attached to alcohol consumption that has led to these occurrences. The latter support lowering the legal age of alcohol consumption, while opponents argue that the health risks involved are
Adults between the age of 19 and 29 have many things to concentrate on. If one is in college one has to handle studies, finals and graduation. If one is entering the workforce one has to concentrate on job searches, interviews and maintaining employment. Statistically college aged individuals are more inclined to take part in binge drinking which has been shown to lead to accidents, deaths, rapes and other negative
While many think that if someone is old enough to go to war, one is old enough to drink, they miss the fact that going to war is a voluntary act. No one forces an individual to join any armed force. The decision is one that the individual makes for himself and there is no standing behind him or her forcing him or her to do so. The drinking age
Drinking Age There has been a lot of debate whether the legal drinking age should be lowered or not. The Federal Uniform Drinking Age Act was passed in 1984. This law was passed to increase the legal drinking age from 18 to 21. There has been a mixed reaction over this act. There are some people who support it while there are others who oppose it. Opponents of this law believe
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