Lowering the drinking age is one of the most debated and controversial topics today. Everyone has different opinions, but what is really the right answer for this type of debate?
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Proponents of lowering the drinking age claim that if you can be drafted, serve your country, and vote at the age of 18…then you should also be able to go to a bar and grab a drink with your friends.
Opponents on the other hand look at underage drinking and realize the impact that binge drinking has on teens and claim that they are not yet ready to be able to drink legally at such a young age.
After graduating from high school and even more recently college, I can tell you now that the drinking age of 21 does not work to stop those that are underage from drinking completely. Teens will always find a way to get in possession of alcohol if they want to. Whether it is from a sibling, stealing from their parents, or just finding someone that will buy for them…if teens want to drink that badly, they will find a way. This has become a major concern for many that say the drinking age of 21 just puts drinking underground where adults cannot supervise it.
Another thing is that those underage will also find a way to get fake ID’s if they want to go to the bars. I know places like Boston are extremely strict on checking ID’s at bars and will scan your ID often to make sure it is actually real. But other cities are more relaxed. Some bars in NYC you can walk right into and never get your ID looked at ever. If the law in the United States is going to be that you cannot drink under the age of 21, then checking ID’s should be consistent throughout.
However, there is evidence that having an older drinking age has saved many lives. According to Mothers Against Drunk Driving and other activist groups, it has been found that 22,798 lives between 1975 and 2003 were saved because the drinking age was 21 and not 18. Although I do believe these statistics, I know a decent amount of people that have gotten DUI’s while they were underage and gotten their licenses taken away. However, that being said, DUI’s are still common among those that are well over 21 years of age and should know better.
I think a lot of how a teen acts and how responsible they decide to be depends on educating them and how they are brought up by their parents. My parents made it clear that they would never tolerate drinking and driving and would rather pick me up than risk me driving (no matter where I was). But I often feel as though many parents are too relaxed with the topic and if their children do get a DUI no punishment is ever given. The only punishment comes from the fact that the police make the teen do community service, sometimes alcohol classes, and suspend their license. But is that punishment enough to stop them from doing it again?
As you can see, both sides of the debate make sense (at least in my mind). When you are under 21 it can be extremely frustrating sometimes that you cannot go to a bar with some older friends and grab a drink, but once you turn 21 it doesn’t seem like such a big deal anymore.
Photo: Kristian Rasmussen
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