The document discusses arguments for lowering the legal drinking age in the United States from 21 to 18. It notes that underage drinking is still prevalent despite the age being 21, and that other developed countries with lower drinking ages do not see the same levels of binge drinking and dangerous behavior among youth. Supporters of lowering the age argue it could help establish safer drinking habits among young people and ensure safer environments for alcohol consumption versus unsupervised underage drinking. However, others believe the brain is not fully developed until age 21 and that maintaining the higher age saves lives based on statistics from Mothers Against Drunk Driving.
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Drinking Age Essay
1. Drinking Age Essay
The United States has one of the highest legal drinking ages among the developed world, and the entire world overall (McCardell). Yet underage
drinking is still prevalent in American drinking culture, and typically indicates an instance of binge drinking and often results in dangerous activity
(Hingson, Zha, and Weitzman). Supporters of the current federal policy on the drinking age would suggest that drinking under 21 results in these
instances of irresponsible drinking by default. Other developed countries in Europe have lower drinking ages and trends that would suggest otherwise
(Rooney). The legal drinking age in the United States should be lowered to at least 18 years old to ensure a safer drinking environment for young
people and to guarantee...show more content...
Before the National Minimum Age Drinking Act was passed by Congress in 1984, individual states had the right to set their own drinking age. The law
made it so that any state who did not raise their drinking age to 21 would lose 10% of their highway funding, leading to all states eventually changing
their drinking age to 21 (McCardell). The change in drinking age and the general attitude many Americans have about drinking today can be attributed
to the Prohibition Era, a time when consumption and sale of alcohol was prohibited. The Prohibition Amendment was the only amendment in United
States history to be repealed, but Prohibitionist attitudes still remain in American drinking culture. American drinking culture is considered to be a 'dry
culture', where drinking is not an everyday practice and alcoholic beverages are less accessible. 'Wet cultures', particularly common in Southern
European and Mediterranean countries, tend to have drinking as a daily ritual, like having wine with dinner. In these countries there tends to be a lower
drinking age and alcoholic beverages are far more accessible (Bloomfield et al.). People start drinking younger in these countries, and do report drinking
more on average than American youth. The difference between American youth and youth from different countries lies in their drinking habits; in
European countries where the drinking age is lower than 18, teens have more instances of drinking per month but less instances of binge drinking per
month compared to their American counterparts
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2. Essay On Drinking Age
The legal drinking age in the United States is twenty one years old, the age is three years higher than the legal drinking age in many developed
countries around the world. At eighteen years of age most legal rights are given, an individual may chose to enlist in the military, sign a contract
without parental consent, and is responsible for all actions however is prohibited from drinking alcohol. At age 18 most individuals in the United
States are able to graduate High School, some chose to enter the workforce while others move on to college. Once in college many experiance living
alone for the first time. Drinking is widespread on college campuses 4 out of every 5 kids drink alcohol in college according to the National Institute
on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Freshman and sophomores are mostly under the age of 21 and are not legally allowed to purchase...show more
content...
According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.22.7% of individuals aged 1220 have reported have reported having a drink in
the past month. The higher drinking age has resulted in drinking at private venues with a lack of supervision where teens are more susceptible to
drive a motor vehicle while under the influence or engage in other dangerous behaviors because of the lack of supervision. If the drinking age was
18, they would be able to drink in a safer environment such as a restaurant or bar where they are more likely to be controlled. While many
advocate the need for a lower drinking age, some are strongly opposed to lowering the drinking age since the brain does not fully develop at 18 and a
21 year old has a much more mature brain which can handle alcohol and its deadly effects better. According to MADD(Mothers Against Drunk
Driving) 25,000 lives have been saved because of the drinking age set at 21 years old. Its also helps reduce crashes by 16% annually by keeping
alcohol away from underage
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3. Lower the Drinking Age Essay examples
When people turn eighteen they are finally considered an adult. They can join the army, vote, buy cigarettes or tobacco products, get a tattoo and
even die for our country. Although everyone considers that person to be an adult, they are still not old enough to buy or consume alcohol. A person
can be responsible enough to live on their own, make their own money, pay their own bills, and yet they are still not considered old enough to
purchase or consume any type of alcohol. Lowering the drinking age to 18 would help prevent the crime and personal injuries that are caused by
alcohol abuse. Although many states are trying to get the drinking age lowered, there are many groups and national statistics that are keeping the
drinking set at 21....show more content...
But the penalties that these states face in order to lower the drinking age, has stopped them from pursuing these laws. These are just a few of the
many issues that are keeping most states from lowering their drinking age to 18. It has been a rising issue within the past century to have the
drinking age set at 21, but many people are more in favor of having the age set at 18. For instance, "'Raising the drinking age to 21 was passed with
the very best of intentions, but it's had the very worst of outcomes,' stated by David J. Hanson, an alcohol policy expert" (Johnson). Many people
believe that having the drinking age set at 21 was a smart idea, but it has caused many more deaths and injuries over the years. Most of these
fatalities are cause from people who are underage and choose to consume alcohol. Again, "Libertarian groups and some conservative economic
foundations, seeing the age limits as having been extorted by Washington, have long championed lowering the drinking age" (Johnson). These groups
see that keeping the drinking age set at 21 is dangerous as it causes more problems to the Untied States. If the drinking age was lowered, or set at 18,
there would not be such unforgiving outcomes, like deaths and lifelong injuries, which are usually caused from people who are under the age of 21
drinking alcohol. Although there are numerous groups that are fighting to keep the age
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4. Drinking Age Drinking
There has been an ongoing discussion in the United States on whether the drinking age should be lowered to eighteen like most of the world or if it
should stay at twentyone. Underage drinking has been a major questionable issue for years, yet why is it not under control? Teenagers are continuing
to buy alcohol with fake identification cards, getting into bars and drinking illegally. As a recent teen, I have proof that these things are going on not
only in college but in high school as well. There are a lot of factors that come together to why the drinking age should be lowered to eighteen. The
most obvious reason is too many people are drinking before they are twentyone. Liquor stores, bars, and clubs all want to make money and if they
...show more content...
However, these states were later essentially bribed by Congress which used fiscal blackmail and threatened to retract funding for highway construction
to pass the National Minimum Drinking Age Act, which forced all states to change their legal drinking age to 21. In the Equal Protection Clause of the
14th Amendment to the Constitution, it is stated that no state shall "deprive any person of life, liberty, or property." If the Constitution clearly declares
that the States cannot discriminate in any way that will deny a person his civil rights, why is the government allowing states to create another
secondclass citizen in the millions of people aged 18 to 21 unable to drink like the rest of the adults in the country? After all, the government is
ready and willing to allow its citizens to die fighting for their country, but suddenly, a beer puts these citizens too much at risk. Lowering the legal
drinking age to 18 would make alcohol less of a forbidden fruit, taking away the thrill that many young people get from breaking the law, make
alcohol less of a taboo for adult's newly entering college and the workforce, and make alcohol consumption a more normalized activity done in
moderation. A drinking age of 21 only forces alcohol consumption behind closed doors. Always unsupervised, done in secret and too often excessive,
this style of drinking among minors has no doubt been responsible for the alarming rise in rates of dangerous binge drinking at colleges. In 2006,
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5. Underage Drinking Essay example
Underage Drinking
In the article Why the Drinking Age should be Lowered, Ruth Engs believes that the drinking age should be lowered to about 18 or 19. Engs is a
Professor at Indiana University in the Health and Sciences department. In this article Engs makes a valid point in that "responsible drinking could be
taught through role modeling and educational programs." Engs also states facts about the different drinking ages in other countries, and that the United
States has the highest legal purchasing age for alcoholic beverages in the world.
According to Engs's research all of the irresponsible behaviors involving drinking such as: fighting, drinking and driving, students missing class because
of hangovers, or vomiting after...show more content...
In these cultures young people learn from their parents about drinking and the responsibility that comes with it. Engs suggests that we need to change
the current prohibition law and teach "responsible drinking techniques" for people that choose to consume alcohol. Engs states facts, suggests
alternative solutions, and relates the past from the present; this is why her article is believable.
Engs does have many valid points in this article; however the drinking age probably won't change any time soon. The problem with drinking and
driving would greatly increase, if the prohibition were to change the law of purchasing or consuming alcohol. Society would break out in madness and
there would probably be many riots, and reports of violent behavior would increase. I believe that Engs has a fantastic argument; however the
government probably won't change their drinking laws in the near future.
Engs obviously has a great experience with this topic because she is a professor at Indiana University in the Health and Science department.
However, I am not sure why she is trying to argue for the drinking age to be lowered because she is obviously over the age of 21. She has many
strong points and can tell she has done a serious amount of research on this topic. Engs does give many examples about how college students drink
responsibly.
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