There has been a trend of growing support for legislation in states such as Vermont, Wisconsin, and South Carolina to lower the drinking age back down to eighteen despite data that suggests that current age limits save lives.
Debate over lowering the drinking age is heating up in several states, fueled in part by legislators who contend that men and women who are old enough to fight in Iraq and Afghanistan are responsible enough to buy alcohol legally. ~ USA Today
This argument seemed eminently sensible to me as I neared my eighteenth year in the mid-80’s. I was devastated as states began raising the drinking age to 21 in response to the National Minimum Drinking Age Act of 1984. As a senior in high school already enlisted in the military; I was aghast at the thought of being old enough to fight yet considered not mature enough to drink. A few years later activated for the first Gulf War and pulled mid-semester from college many of my fellow soldiers found themselves facing overseas wartime deployment, yet denied the right to partake in even a farewell toast. At the time it seemed ridiculous.
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Obviously circumstances played a large role my opinion then, but a generation of dire experience has reversed my thoughts on the subject. My time as an alcoholic, an activist, and an advocate for those that suffer from the pain and misery of substance abuse has taught me that very few of any age are “mature” enough to drink responsibly but definitely more so with those under the age of 21. Statistics back up my anecdotal conclusion, raising the drinking age has saved lives. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration states that minimum drinking laws have reduced fatalities in eighteen to twenty year-olds by 13%.
How would I respond now to a young military man of eighteen who holds the same views on the minimum drinking age as I did at that age? I would tell him this:
Before you are allowed to fight and possibly even die for your country you are trained to very high standards by the military in a physically and mentally grueling basic course followed by extensive advanced training. During this time you are stripped of your rights and subjected to a strict code of discipline designed to keep you alive so that you may fight for your country, instead of die for your country. Turning eighteen doesn’t prepare you for the rigors of war; the military has a finely tuned program that turns boys to men and average people into disciplined soldiers. So until you are prepared to undergo the same intensity training for alcohol, I will speak out against lowering the minimum drinking.
Alcohol still kills far more young people each year here in the States than die serving overseas, even in wartime. Since it’s doubtful that a “basic training” for alcohol will ever gain popularity with young adults, I will continue to insist on age and experience as standards in this matter. It is not a perfect solution, but it beats the heck out of young people dying for the red, white, and brewed.
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That was such a great point you made about all of the training that those in the military receive.
Once again, when faced with a topic that I'm on the fence about, your point of view has won me over.
from article--"Before you are allowed to fight and possibly even die for your country you are trained to very high standards by the military in a physically and mentally grueling basic course followed by extensive advanced training. During this time you are stripped of your rights and subjected to a strict code of discipline designed to keep you alive so that you may fight for your country, instead of die for your country. Turning eighteen doesn't prepare you for the rigors of war; the military has a finely tuned program that turns boys to men and average people into disciplined soldiers. So until you are prepared to undergo the same intensity training for alcohol, I will speak out against lowering the minimum drinking
following this logic, we should provide temporary sterilization of all youth at puberty [being able to reproduce does not prepare you for the rigors of rearing a child ,barring the unforseen, it is at the very least an 18 year obligation]--no one should be allowed to become a parent without "boot camp parental training". if we did thenthe multitude of substance abuse problems that our nation faces would become obsolete. the lowering of vehicle related alcohol deaths can also be attributed to the intensive, blunt force training on the safety of seat-belt use [coupled with getting a fine if you don't use the seatbelt] and don't drink and drive advertising.
also, when the statistics were first being calculated in the 70's and 80's the vehicles drove by americans were a direct result of the gas crunch of the 70's--which meant lighter, less safe vehicles--and we were still driving like we did the muscle cars of the 60's..fast and furious knowing we were in a light armored tank that was road legal. now with improved safety, technology, and education, drivers are better prepared to get on the road. thus, the lower fatality rates and education, education, education.
though i swear, most of the idiots that cross my path do not realize that little stick thing on the left of the steering column operates more than the windshield wipers.
my problem wasn't alcohol, and i was the 18 year old generation that could drink beer legally. mine was a doctor prescribed and monitored oxycontin addiction.
we all have our demons--blaming any substance or person or situation for my problems is just an excuse---not a reason.
i was taught a long time ago EXCUSES ARE THE LIES YOU FABRICATE TO MAKE THE DUMB DECISIONS YOU CHOSE SEEM ACCEPTABLE TO YOURSELF AND IF YOU'RE LUCKY THE REST OF THE WORLD WILL BUY INTO THE RIDICULOUSNESS OF YOUR ARGUMENT that boat won't float with granny. she's knows what you're up to with your excuses.
REASONS -- WELL IF I GET HIT BY A PIECE OF BLUE ICE FALLING FROM THE SKY -- THAT'S THE ONLY LOGICAL REASON I CAN THINK OF THAT COULDN'T BE RELATED IN SOME WAY, TO A CHOICE I MADE.
unless of course i knew i was in the flight path of commercial airliners and was waiting on my unusual death to occur.
kinda of like the time [@ 39 years old] i decided to kill myself and sat by the train tracks around 2am--just my luck, all i got was a bunch of mosquito bites and a sore ass sitting on those rocks--there wasn't a damn train coming down the tracks that night. normally the sound of the whistle wakes me up--just wasn't my time to leave.
CHEEZ, i can spew forth the crap when left alone too long.
I enjoyed your post and understand your reasoning; it wasn’t very long ago that I held an opinion very similar. There are several reasons why I am for maintaining the drinking age at 21 though, and the military slant is the very least of them. I wrote this specific blog in direct response to those who are leading the charge to lower the drinking age to that of those that are military service eligible.
When it boils down to it, all age limitations are arbitrary. If we lower to eighteen, aren’t we still disenfranchising those 14 year-olds mature beyond their years from the ability to drink. Sure, but you have to draw the line somewhere, and since it is at 21 I am for keeping it there. Same goes for having kids, joining the military, and driver’s licenses- we could make rationalizations for almost any age standards. Recent polling says the vast majority of Americans are comfortable with maintaining the current drinking- I think this is mostly the personal experience of the public that creates such support. Young people and alcohol are a deadly mix, while I hate the thought of a nanny state I will bend on this issue and most Americans seem to tend to agree.
I will not argue the point about awareness campaigns and increased penalties have also helped the situation. It’s all good.
No, probably the main reason I am against the use of drugs and alcohol by anyone under the age of 21 is the exponentially higher risk those who drink and drug at an early age have of becoming addicted. Also it degrades their socialization skills, decision making, and often single events will alter the rest of their life… all for the chance to “drink until you puke”. There is also the fact that if the age dropped to 18, then once again 15 and 16 year-olds really aren't that far away from being legal... you'll soon hear, "sure, give the boy a beer- he's almost old enough."
My life experience, anecdotal observations, and work in substance abuse advocacy has changed my opinion on this matter, which actually runs counter to most of my political and societal views. I am glad the minimum age is at 21, and I hope it stays that way!
as a retired mathematics instructor (with b.s,m.s.,and all those other letters in math. and a few in psych) .....statistics can be made to say anything the producer wants them to say...all depends on how you structure the q's and a's. if we feel that 18 is too immature for beer, why do we allow these immature people:
1) to vote,
2)get married,
3) rear children,
4) eat.
without a strict course in :
1) government and civil liberties--[-high school classes on these subjects are a joke]
2) family dynamics and personal relationships [ditto on h.s. classes]
3) psychology of infants, toddlers, and teens AND the psychology of the abnormal adolescent [yeah, that one always sounded like an oxymoron to me ...what's quantifies normal when it comes to teenagers?---]
4) medical school--studying the illnesses of the human body.
when you place limits on a adult humans personal decisions---where do we stop? really,...uncle sam can tell you when you can legally drink alcohol----will the public be strong enough to tell our dear uncle when to stop when it comes to what we eat [there's now legislation in my state to stop fast food retailers from selling to obese people---i mean it's for their own good---evidently our illustrious leaders think we are too stupid to eat healthy and with obesity soaring in the US--they seem to be right---no whopper for you fatty], how we procreate, or who we vote for, or what we say on our communications?
watch our world---you're too immature to make adult decisions--let uncle sam make 'em for you.
but I make an exception when it comes to the drinking age.
Those who know my political and ideological leaning are surprised at my stance on this, but in a few instances like this (minimum drinking age) I do favor regulation.
http://billstatus.ls.state.ms.us/2008/pdf/history/HB/HB0282.xml
concerning this and the MS house of reps bill on obesity & fast food----just because it's dead now, doesn't mean they won't try again----
and you scoff at the ridiculousness of this bill----just as i remember my great-grandparents talking around the dinner table, about how silly the government was in making rules to control drinking alcohol--and here we are today. govn't tells us when, where, what, and to what degree we may drink, smoke, sex [yep,my state fundies have outlawed the sale of dildos--but it's for the moral good of the public---and it's coming to a state near you] and even talk [watch what you say--you'll be on the "no fly list" b4 you know---hey, some communities want to tell you that it is unsightly to hang clothes on the line to dry.
where will it stop? i mean, they are only doing this for our own good--john and jane q. public can't make these decisions on their own, they are much too immature and uninformed. let the government make these decisions for you and you will be much better for the intervention. . . .
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