Drinking age debate Essays

Drinking age debate Essays Drinking age debate Paper Drinking age debate Paper How Old is Old Enough? Drinking Age 11/11/2011 How old is old enough to have an alcoholic beverage? Iris Cummings The legal drinking age is a topic that has come up for, and will continue to come up for, many years. The main question that needs to be answered is what is it that determines when a person is able to drink. Should we continue to base the drinking level on age or should we look at other characteristics. Those enrolled in the military have special benefits when it comes to drinking. In the year of 2011, the legal drinking age in the United States for all non-military people is 21 years of age. There is research for both sides of the spectrum. Some believe that the age should be lowered from 21, while others believe 21 is the perfect age. Then there are the people who say that the drinking age should be taken even higher than 21 . Some want the drinking age to be as high as 25. Will lowering the drinking age stop teens from binge drinking? If we take the drinking age higher, will it simply cause rebellion in the teen world? Many feel as though the law of 21 before drinking saves 1,000 deaths per year. The numbers of teens killed in alcohol related accidents have ropped somewhere from 11-16 percent since the 21 law have been implemented. Taking on higher drinking ages allows for a low intoxication level. For instance, in Georgia, where 21 is the legal drinking age, the blood alcohol level to be considered intoxicated is sitting at 0. 08 percent. In places such as New Hampshire, where Arizona is the legal drinking age, blood alcohol content level is listed as high as 0. 15 (Carter). These levels start to become dangerous when one realizes that one drink can cause a persons blood alcohol content to be 0. 2. If teen blows even 0. 1 into a breathalyzer, it is a crime of underage drinking. The punishment of underage drinking includes a large fine and even Jail time (Ash). It is taken very seriously in order to encourage teens to not even take that one sip betore they are ot age. It we were to lower the drinking age below 21, there is research that shows binge drinking in teens will rise to an alarmingly high rate within a single year. It would also lead to a negative impact on the cognitive development among our countrys youth. The brain is not fully developed during a persons teen years. Drinking too early could cause a permanent slowness in the rate of brain development and would be reflected in the education realm. Underage consumption of alcohol could cause handicaps that affect the consumer for years to come. A host of research formulated in a news paper by Andy Lewis, the ERLCs research editor, shows that lowering age restrictions for alcohol consumption would not reverse negative trends but enhance them, a fallout for youth and society that would only snowball. Among his findings, Lewis found that a lowered legal drinking age Would result in drinking at ven younger ages, increased cases of drunken driving, more vehicular accidents, and higher levels binge drinking, especially among teenagers. (Bond) Many cases of binge drinking come from college students between the ages of 18 and 20 years old. Lewis thinks that lowering the drinking age would encourage even younger age groups to incur binge drinking. He believes that teens as young as 13 years old will be involved in the peer pressure to drink. This could cause more alcohol related accidents because it involves drinking large amounts of alcohol very quickly. A 13- ear-old does not have a fully developed frontal lobe and even without alcohol will make some decisions that are not in ones best interest. The influence of alcohol working against an underdeveloped mind and underdeveloped motor skills it leads to disaster. There will always be an age implemented in the law for drinking, but some feel as though the law does not apply to them. How is it that 18-year-olds get alcohol when they are not even old enough to walk into a liquor store? Those who use their ID to obtain alcohol for younger individuals are breaking the law. The adopted slogan is Its your ID, you use it. There are cases where parents allow their children and other peoples children to drink at their expense. They argue that what goes on in the walls of their own house is their business and that it stays within the walls. They feel like the children are not in harms way because they are in the house and are being watched. What these parents apparently fail to realize is that Just because it goes on in the walls of their house does not all of a sudden make the law disappear. It is still illegal and is a serious charge against them if taken to court. Ash, P. , and Levy, D. T. The Minimum Legal Drinking Age and Traffic Fatalities. Rockville, MD: NIAAA, 1986. Print. Bond, J. , and Jones, B. Raising the Legal Drinking Age. Columbia, SC: SC Commission on Alcohol and Drug Abuse, 1983. Print. Carter, R. A. Legal Drinking Age. Albany, NY: Legislative and Governmental Services: 1983. Print. Bibliography Legal Drinking Age. Albany, NY Legislative and ernmental Services: 1 Powers, Rod. U. S. Military: Military Drinking Age. (http://usmilitary. about. com/library/ polls/blmildrinkingage. htm)web. Oct. 14 2011