It's 18 here, 16 in a couple areas... we have no problems.
Having to wait until 21 is ridiculous. It's a holdover from puritanical, temperance times... I'm sure the US would have a moral panic and huge debate over such a small issue though.
People assume just because you're 18 you're an adult (and no I don't agree with 18 y.o.s drafting enlisting into the military. My sister's boyfriend just joined the Marines and he's an immature idiot). No, 18-21 is a big transition where you finally hit the real world and experience things. That's where you gain responsibility. I, for one, don't think a person is necessarily an adult when they turn 18. That comes by experience, experience that most people at that age aren't exposed to.
There's a reason why eighteen year olds that run off and get credit cards at that age often end up ****ing their credit up and why there are strict regulations against 18 year olds getting credit now. There's a reason why students who wait to go to college as opposed to going as soon as they graduate high school tend to do better. You may think 2-3 years isn't enough to change a person, but it is. If you're 21+ and look at the world the same as when you were 18, then you living.
Not with the amount of deaths due to drunk drivers. And at some of you saying it should be lowered to 16. You do realize 16 is the age most teenagers are just getting their license? I like my life too much to put it in danger like that.
I'm 16 and I wanna drink some Vodka (and the flavored ones) and Wine (I've tried white and red and white is by farrrr better). I mean obviously not a lot but I wanna drink it to drink it because i'm authentically interested in it.
Lowering it wouldn't have any effect on how things are, people still find ways to get alcohol and pretty much once you're in college the opportunities to drink are endless.
I would support the drinking age to be lowered because then 18-20 year olds drinking at college wouldn't have the fear that they would get in trouble with the law if they were in need of help or if a friend was needing help.
And go ahead and refute that with "well you shouldn't have been drinking anyway" but you know people do drink when underage and they could be doing it a lot safer if they weren't in fear of being arrested.
Puerto Rico is a US protectorate and the legal age for drinking and buying alcohol/cigarettes here is 18.
States in the US actually aren't required to have their drinking ages be put at 21; states were more or less forced by the federal government to raise it . If they did not they would lose federal funds for state highways.
Since Puerto Rico is not a US State they were not required to abide by this.
I feel as though I am responsible enough to handle alcohol at 18. Not that I am fond of drinking anyway. I am an adult. I can do everything an adult can, except drink. Seems a bit skewed to me.
But, lbr here. The age restriction isn't stopping anyone from drinking. It's ridiculous how easy it is to drink underage.
I came back to the thread to actually read some other replies out of curiosity and found this:
ahahaha
Seriously? Because alcohol prohibition worked out so well for the US when they tried that.
Of course there have to be regulations to some degree purely out of concern not for the individual person who might consume substances with potentially harmful side effects, but for other people that this person may put to harm under the influence of certain things. However governments should be careful and moderate with these regulations. In a modern society, personal freedom- that includes the access to goods- should remain largely untouched.
As soon as you're an adult in the eyes of the law, the decision what you consume should be entirely yours, and if you somehow harm others in the process (which is the only situation in which the law should ever intervene at all if you ask me), then of course as an adult you will also face the consequences. By which I don't mean consequences for consuming whatever it is you consumed (unless it's decided by professionals in the field that you need rehab), but simply for the damage that you caused.
Treating citizens like children that need to be kept away from the kitchen cupboard is absolutely counterproductive. All it does is make people who otherwise may be completely harmless and responsible into ciminals, and actually encourage them to become criminals.
Almost everyone who isn't 21 will say yes, and everyone over 20 will Mist likely say no...
I am 21 now, but I drank all the time before. The drinking age should be kept the same because people are too immature and can't handle themselves. Just find a friend that's 21 or get a fake like I did if you really want to drink.
at some of you saying it should be lowered to 16. You do realize 16 is the age most teenagers are just getting their license? I like my life too much to put it in danger like that.
