Do you think the drinking age should be lowered from 21 to 18?

On the one hand I say yes because at eighteen you're considered an adult, you can buy a gun, you can die for your country, you can drive, vote and so many other things. On the other I say no, the brain is better capable of handling acohol at twenty-one then eighteen. It's a toss up.

I am from America, the drinking age here is 21 (like the original poster said) but instead of having it dropped to 18, they should only drop it to 19.

That way teenagers FINISH high school before being allowed to drink, that way they don't miss out on their senior year of high school because they are drunk.

I know it wont stop underage drinking, but like others said if 18 is considered "adult" then you should be able to do whatever.

But at 18, I am thinking of the Government create a class and hold it at local hospitals, a Half year course the 18 year old's go to to learn about alcohol, the pro's and con's of it, and the consequences of drinking and driving, and must take and pass a written test and pass it before their 19th birthday.

That way it will hold back people who want to drink out of stupidity, and actually teach people the correct way of handling alcohol.

I don't know if it being changed is the best thing to do.
But as a 14 year old I do think it should be.
That even sounds confusing to me.

But if there were more people that knew when they've had enough I would say it should be changed. but there aren't alot of people that do.
And alot do go overboard and that is what makes me think it should be kept the same.

I live in Sweden where you're allowed to drink alcohol, and buy in it pubs etc when you're 18, but you have to wait until you're 20 to buy it from a liquor store. To me, it's just ridiculous. If you're allowed to drink it, you should be allowed to buy it everywhere too. However this wasn't about that.

I think as an adult you're mature enough to make your own decisions. If you want to drink as an adult, you should be allowed to. Either let people drink at 18, or you shouldn't count as an adult until you're 21.

I am usually liberal on most topics, but on this I am surprisingly traditional. I think, for the most part, that teenagers (including myself) see themselves as invincible. Most of us don't take the time to fully consider the consequences of our decisions, even when we think we have thought about all possible outcomes. Teenagers are prone to take unneeded risks and drinking just adds fuel to that very dangerous fire.

I think that it would be a really good idea to lower the drinking age, not because people need to be drinking earlier than they already are, but because a big reason that alcohol is abused (by teens and younger kids anyway) is because they can't have it. it makes them feel 'bad' and all i guess... if you look at other countries with low drinking ages or even the U.S. back when anybody could drink the abuse level by younger people is way lower because they don't make it taboo.

I'd say why not. You can do everything else at eighteen.

England's Dreaming:

I did a presentation on support of lowering the drinking age last year for English.
I'm all for a lower drinking age but I think we need to teach kids to be more responsible first.

There is a legal loop hole in the law in England. If an alcoholic drink is bought for a child between the ages of five and eighteen the child is legally allowed to have that drink in beer gardens and in a restaurant.

In Ireland the legal drinking age is 18, but if you look over 18 you will get served alcohol. Like many other countries in the world.

Also there was a fairly recent survey taken in Ireland on drink driving deaths and it found that it wasn't the younger generation that was drinking and driving that it was people, mainly men, aged 35 - 45. I found that shocking. The survey also said it was people from the countryside that were more prone to drink and drive.

Joe Jonas.:

I watched a program on this about a year ago, I think, and the people who were for it had a really good argument.

- If you're old enough to enlist in the military and fight across seas for our country, when you're 18, then you should be able to sit down and have a beer if you want to.
- If 18 is considered an adult in the US, then you should be able to buy a beer.

What are your opinions?

I didn't see a thread for this but lock if duplicate.

i think if you're old enough to have done a tour in iraq, you're smart enough to realize that the line between life and death is scarce.

your brain isnt fully developed when you're 18, maybe they didn't add that one in.

they also forgot to mention that your 4 times more likely to become an alcoholic if you've drank (socially, in excess, etc) before you're twenty.

of course their arguement is good, they say that beer relaxes people, they say "they fight for us, let's allow them to pour something toxic down their throats to repay them."

what about those who won't enlist to the army? what about those who only enlist because the want to drink?

hey.there.delilah:

i think if you're old enough to have done a tour in iraq, you're smart enough to realize that the line between life and death is scarce.

your brain isnt fully developed when you're 18, maybe they didn't add that one in.

they also forgot to mention that your 4 times more likely to become an alcoholic if you've drank (socially, in excess, etc) before you're twenty.

of course their arguement is good, they say that beer relaxes people, they say "they fight for us, let's allow them to pour something toxic down their throats to repay them."

what about those who won't enlist to the army? what about those who only enlist because the want to drink?

You're still not allowed to drink unless your 21 in the army, if they find out you'll get in major trouble. I know, I have several friends in the armed forces.

So, they day that you turn 21 your brain is automatically developed?

If you want to get into technicality then the brain isn't fully developed until the age of twenty five. It's been scientifically proven.

And if we are going to go by the age of when our brains are fully developed then we shouldn't be able to buy cigarettes, be tried as adults, pay taxes, enlist in the military, or anything that comes with ages 18-24 until we're 25. Because at 25 is when we are fully developed.

So, should we change all age restrictions to 25?

See I honestly don't know that much about cigarettes, so it may sound naive if I ask if cigarettes are detrimental to your brain development?

I know for certain they are horrible to your lungs, but I supposed I would have to read more about the lasting affects of cigarettes.

I guess, growing up with a alcoholic mother, I have an extreme distaste towards liquor and those who don't handle it responsibly.

People will drink if they want to drink, and they will find ways to drink no matter what age they are.

I just have a bad suspicion that the younger you are able to drink, the more irresponsible you will be with it.

Three years may not be the enough time for someone mature, true. But what about five years? Ten years?

People mature at different rates, so I guess I can't speak of a certain faction.

Alcohol is a poison, and it's not meant to go into your body. If I had the ability to abolish it from the face of the planet (drinkable, liquor, you know what I mean) I would. I just hold strong emotional opinions about it.

I also think that "just because" you could change it, doesn't hold enough reasons for an actual change.

That's just it though. It's not a "just because" reason.

I'm not an alcoholic but I do tend to have a drink on special occasions.

If I'm old enough (I'm 20) to, like I said, enlist in the military, vote, pay taxes, be tried as an adult, buy a pack a cigarettes (I don't smoke but I could if I wanted too), I should be able to sit and have a drink.

And, like I said, the brain doesn't develop until we're 25 then we shouldn't be allowed any of those things at all until we reach that age.

It's only fair.

I understand there will be alcoholics because alcohol can be very addictive. But not everyone that has a drink will become one. There are people that drink socially and they don't become addicted. It depends on the person, not the alcohol.

I live in a college town.

...just... no. Lowering the drinking age is one of the worst ideas I've heard all week.

Young people getting wasted is such a huge problem we rearranged spring break so they're all out of town for St. Patrick's day. I can't even imagine what it would be like if the freshmen could drink, too.

We get the dangers of drinking drilled into our heads from elementry to highschool I think we can lower the drinking age to 18

Eddis:

I live in a college town.

...just... no. Lowering the drinking age is one of the worst ideas I've heard all week.

Young people getting wasted is such a huge problem we rearranged spring break so they're all out of town for St. Patrick's day. I can't even imagine what it would be like if the freshmen could drink, too.

The fact remains the regardless of the drinking age, people still drink.
There's also the "thrill factor" of drinking before it's legal. When I was 17 I was a major partier. I drank a LOT. Now I'm 20 and alcohol seems less appealing. Once I'm able to buy it when I'm 21, maybe I'll drink a beer every now and then, but I don't see myself getting wasted "just because I can".

People mature at diffrent ages too, and girls mature MUCH faster than boys. None of that is taken into account when considering the drinking age. Also the drinking age in America is the strictist in the world, and at the same time we have the most alcohol related crime, especially drunk drivers. Am I the only one who sees that connection?

Contrary to popular belief, the United States federal drinking age actually refers to the age one is able to buy alcohol. Only 19 states in America forbid minors from drinking. I'm not too clear on the laws in other countries, but the wiki on the subject is here.

As for my perception on the drinking age, I suppose I agree that it should be lowered to 18. However, I also think there is absolutely nothing wrong with minors drinking alcohol if they have their parents' permission.

Snap. In Britain, it's legal to drink from the age of five. Just not in bars.

Eddis:

I live in a college town.

...just... no. Lowering the drinking age is one of the worst ideas I've heard all week.

Young people getting wasted is such a huge problem we rearranged spring break so they're all out of town for St. Patrick's day. I can't even imagine what it would be like if the freshmen could drink, too.

I live in a university city. There are...4-5 different unis here. In a small city. It's also in Scotland, which has a bit of an issue with alcohol in general. And, of course, the drinking age is 18. I really don't think it's that bad. It's certainly not an uninhabitable place.

So I kind of wonder why it seems like such a huge problem for you. Drinking at 18 doesn't seem to mean people are automatically going to create more trouble.

Syd Barrett.:

Contrary to popular belief, the United States federal drinking age actually refers to the age one is able to buy alcohol. Only 19 states in America forbid minors from drinking. I'm not too clear on the laws in other countries, but the wiki on the subject is here.

As for my perception on the drinking age, I suppose I agree that it should be lowered to 18. However, I also think there is absolutely nothing wrong with minors drinking alcohol if they have their parents' permission.

Minors should not drink alcohol because they can't metabolise it properly. It's not just because of the law, it's because of medical reasons.

And Sing:

Minors should not drink alcohol because they can't metabolise it properly. It's not just because of the law, it's because of medical reasons.

Everybody's body metabolizes at different rates.