Jimmy Morris
Prof. Sieben
Freshman Seminar: Leadership
November 15, 2008
18,
the Evolution of the Youth of
Letting
Congratulations, you’ve just turned
18! You are officially an adult in the
eyes of The United States Government.
With the title “adult” you take on great responsibility; such as the
right to vote, gamble in some states, and register for the military. But there is one thing that you cannot have
the pleasure of experiencing until another three birthdays: the right to
purchase and/or possess an alcoholic beverage.
You’ve waited all this time to finally distinguish yourself as an
independent, smart, and responsible adult and yet you still cannot participate
in one of the most popular recreation activities in
The drinking age should be lowered because of the solemn fact that an eighteen year old American citizen is considered an adult. A legal adult is given the right to vote and register for the military, yet still cannot go to a bar and order a drink legally. Being a part of the United States Military is a huge symbol of personal sacrifice for their country, and if that person decides to make that sacrifice they should be able to drink. As a member of the military, you have great responsibility no matter what your job is. Whether you are in charge of running a tank, plane, or holding a gun; you hold the lives of the rest of your men in the palm of your hand. And because you are eighteen you are considered completely able to handle that responsibility by the government. So the question is if you are considered able to handle such great responsibility in the military, what makes the government think that someone the same age can’t handle having a drink in a responsible matter? It is obvious that if you can handle leading your comrades through battlefields or operate a multi-million dollar vehicle like a tank or plane, then you can handle a drink.
Binge drinking is a huge epidemic in
Although the legal age is twenty one, it is obvious that teens under that age drink. It has been going on for so long that the police no longer concentrate on eliminating under age drinking; they just try to control it so that nobody gets hurt. If we lower the age to this law, schools and other organizations can address the situation head on. Because of the law, schools and other organizations have trouble trying to address the situation of underage drinking because they can’t assume that kids are breaking the law. If the age is lowered, then you can openly address and practice responsible drinking situations. You can’t do that now because of the fact that a person under twenty one can’t drink alcohol and you can’t promote something illegal.
With almost every argument there is
a legitimate counter-argument, and this one is no exception. Lowering the drinking age is a very touchy
subject mainly because of the drinking and driving problems in
Lowering the drinking age is an extremely serious law that should be considered being put into effect. A big part of drinking is responsibility because if you can’t make the right decisions while you’re spending a night of drinking, it’s most likely going to end up leaving someone hurt, in jail, or maybe even dead. If the government trusts an eighteen year old with an even bigger responsibility such as being a part of the military, why do they think that they aren’t able to handle a drink? If we lower the drinking age we can decrease binge drinking, promote responsible drinking to teens, and reduce the amount of drinking-related incidents amongst teens. In the end, lowering the drinking would be the right choice.
Work
Cited
Engs,
Ruth C. Why the drinking age should be lowered: An opinion based upon
research. n.d.
SCHUMER:
DRUNK DRIVING IN
Marcy, Cristin . Effects of binge drinking greater than realized. n.d. 15 Nov. 2008 <http://media.www.theloquitur.com/media/storage/paper226/news/2004/04/29/News/Effects.Of.Binge.Drinking.Greater.Than.Realized-673717.shtml>.