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?

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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It was only about 4 years ago that I was a teenager and never really thought too much about how my driving affected others. With technology on the rise and touch phones such as the iPhone becoming increasingly popular, teens are spending more time paying attention to anything BUT the road.

Don’t get me wrong, I am not trying to single out the teenage population as many other generations have fallen prey to distractions while driving as well (smoking, eating, multi-tasking, texting, etc.). But in my opinion, it is best to target a population before the bad habits continue even further.

The statistics for teen driving are extremely scary and there has to be a way for parents and others to correct the path of destruction before it gets any worse. According to AAA, car accidents involving 15-17 year old drivers cost society more than $34 billion dollars! These expenses include medical and property damages as well as other related costs for 2006 alone!

So, how can you keep your children and others safe?

Here are a few tips:

SET AN EXAMPLE – Don’t show your kids what it is like to drive by e-mailing on your Blackberry or always being on the phone. Teens will learn quickly from what they have seen their parents or other family members and friends do.

SEATBELTS – I know that when I was younger I hated my seatbelt and didn’t really truly understand what it was there for. Explain to your children when they are young the importance of seatbelts and how they can be life-saving. Hopefully it will become a routine they don’t even have to think about. I automatically put on my seatbelt regardless of how long the trip.

INSURANCE - Car insurance is expensive no matter what. Put a teen behind the wheel and the price can skyrocket your rathes…sometimes by 50% - 100%! You don’t want to have to pay higher rates just because your teen is not being safe or smart behind the wheel. Make a deal with your teenager. Make sure they are following all your rules before you hand them those keys to your car! Give them the information they need to keep their insurance rates low. Some of these things include having a safer car, keeping your driving record clean (no tickets or accidents), or even doing well in school! Depending on your policy, your child could be awarded just for being a good student.

DRIVERS TRAINING CLASSES – There are tons of extra classes outside of the basic drivers education that offer teens a greater variety of learning such as driving in the rain, sleet, and snow. Skills such as what to do if you are broken down on the side of the road are also often taught. These classes can range anywhere from $60-$200 but may be extremely beneficial.

CURFEWS – In some towns there is a mandatory curfew and teens are not allowed to be out driving around past 10:00pm. However, even if your town does not have a curfew, often times it would be best if your teen had to be home at a certain hour so you knew where they were. I suggest letting them know that they can bring their friends home too (if it is feasible for you). This way they aren’t all driving around doing nothing. I know when I was in high school if we couldn’t find anything to do we would just drive around with our friends. Now that I look back on it?…How dumb and a huge waste of gas!! Make sure your teens have a trip with an actual purpose in mind.

TALK – Don’t just hand your teen the key to the car as soon as they get their license. Lay down the ground rules and make sure they understand. Tell them not to become another statistic. Maybe read them some of these…

• In a survey conducted for AAA, it was found that 15-17 year olds were involved in about 974,000 crashes that injured 406,427 people and killed 2,541 in one year alone (SCARY)!

Reader’s Digest reported some more surprising statistics:

• 87% of teen deaths involve distracted drivers (this includes radios, eating, texting, talking on your cell, etc.).
• Adding 1 passenger increases the fatal crash risk by 48%. A second passenger increases the fatality risk by 158%.
• Speeding is a factor in 35% of crash deaths involving young drivers.

All of these statistics are really scary and get you thinking about what you might be able to do to prevent this from happening. Obviously you aren’t going to have complete control over what happens…but at least you can take a step towards making things safer on the roads.

Photo: Wally Irwin

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Are you planning a party in the near future? Perhaps it will be for a graduation or a wedding. I for one, have offered to a friend of mine, to throw her a baby shower!

First off, I was so happy that she told me she was expecting. I was so excited, right off the bat I said to her, “You should let me throw your baby shower!” But when I sat down to think about the cost of it all, I almost wish I hadn’t. After all, the cost of everything is going up. However, it is not my style to back down from something I have already committed to do. So my question comes to this:

How much is too much?

I want this shower to be spectacular! I would love to be able to go all out, and get her everything she could ever imagine. But to keep things in perspective, I will have to come up with a lot of money for that, and that’s just not likely to happen. So, I have to work with what I’ve got. And that means making a plan, and sticking to a budget.

Here are some things to keep in mind when throwing a party of any kind:

1. Where will it be located? Depending on the size of the party, you might not be able to have it in your living room. So the cost of renting a building or even just a room of a building is an important factor to consider.

2. How big should the guest list be? This goes hand in hand with the first item. If you have a larger guest list, then you will need to have a larger area to entertain. However, having a small intimate party could be lots of fun, and you could quite possibly spend more money on decorations and things.

3. What kind of party will this be? More specifically, are you planning on feeding a meal, or will this be a “floating party”, one with finger foods and snacks? This is where things can get expensive. If you are not careful, you can easily use up the majority of your funds. Keep in mind your guest list here too, as you will want to make sure you have enough food to feed everyone, but not too much that it goes to waste.

See how easy it is for things to add up? Make a budget, write out a plan, and stick to it. Set a goal to put aside a certain amount each month so the cost won’t surprise you! And if you do happen to over spend (don’t feel too bad, we all do at some point), clear your conscience and confess here!

(Photo Courtesy: Earl53 / Morguefile.com)

“…every single human being will have to employ business principles on a regular basis.”

You can’t fault us for being curious about millionaires. How do you become a millionaire, anyway? We were delighted to speak to a young, self-made millionaire and author named Alan Corey.

Now meet Robyn Collins. She had a simple yet brilliant concept. Ready? Why not just ASK millionaires exactly how they did it? This is the foundation of her magazine “Millionaire Blueprints - Teen”. As the name implies the magazine is aimed at teenagers. Like it’s parent publication “Millionaire Blueprints”, it maps out the precise steps others have taken to reach millionaire status.

Robyn, you have a mission to make as many young millionaires as possible — how did this begin?

We realized that teens were not being taught business or financial principles in schools (for the most part). Thousands of dollars and hours are invested in sports and other extracurriculars by individual families, most of which will not be carried into adulthood; while every single human being will have to employ business principles on a regular basis. It seemed tragic to us that the future leaders of our country were not being prepared for success. It was something we could not keep from doing. We want to be sharing their blueprints next.

What advantages do teens and young adults have over others when it comes to building a million-dollar empire?

They have the distinct advantage of having little or no overheard or personal expenses, they haven’t accrued a lifetime’s worth of debt from financial mistakes and maybe most importantly, they have massive built-in social networks. Through schools, clubs and associations, not to mention the endless availability of social networking options, their reach is the widest it may ever be, if they learn how to work it to their advantage.

You produce the magazine “Millionaire Blueprints: Teen”. How does this magazine align with the goals of the parent magazine, “Millionaire Blueprints”?

Both magazines are written as step-by-step instruction guides, following the path of an already successful millionaires. The difference is that those profiled in the teen magazine made their first million in their teens. In both magazines we stay true to our goal of equipping people for their own millionaire status with the inclusion of resources. If you read a story about a guy with a t-shirt company that made millions, you’re also going to have the contact info of his suppliers, his distribution choices, his lawyers, his accountants… everything you need to get started in whatever business we just profiled.

Tell us a little about your book, “Prepare to be a Teenage Millionaire”, hitting stores now?

It’s a collection of the success blueprints of 7 different millionaires. The magazine typically will profile 2, or 3 at the most, these are called “Blueprints”, the step-by-step methods they used. In the book, you get 7 of these blueprints, and it is also infused with helpful articles, like how to trademark something, 15 steps to attaining venture capital, you get the drift… things that will actually help people be successful.

What was the most surprising thing you learned from the young millionaires you profiled?

The most surprising thing was how willing to share their knowledge each young millionaire was. They truly, honestly wanted to teach people how to do what they’ve done. And maybe that Ben Cathers [featured teen millionaire] loves the Smashing Pumpkins so freaking much!

Where can we get your book or magazine?

You can get Millionaire Blueprints at Barnes and Noble, and most grocery stores across the nation.
You can subscribe to Millionaire Blueprints Teen at www.mbteen.com.You can purchase both books: Prepare to Be a Millionaire and Prepare to Be a Teen Millionaire at Barnes and Noble, amazon.com, Border’s and at www.preparetobeamillionaire.com and www.preparetobeateenmillionaire.com

Wow, great resources, Robyn! Thanks for taking the time to speak with us.

For the parents out there: I bet the cost of the subscription or Robyn’s book is a small investment in Junior’s ability to take care of you in later life, haha! And for the rest of us… it’s never too late to be a teen millionaire…even if you’re on the other side of 30. It’s all attitude and diligently pursuing goals.

Find young-at-heart millionaires-in-training in the Geezeo Goals section.