Turning eighteen is a right of passage for so many young people. It signifies you as a legal adult. At this age, you can legally buy cigarettes, scratch tickets, and most of all, you can finally exercise your right to vote. You can enlist in the armed forces and lend a helping hand to American soldiers fighting in war. Indeed it is an exciting time in any young person's life. The one thing missing is the right to buy alcohol.
It seems funny to me that young people of legal age are capable of enlisting the the armed forces, yet they cannot have an alcoholic beverage. Many countries in Europe have adopted the drinking age as eighteen. Seemingly, this gives people who are eligible to enlist in the armed forces the privilege of having a drink abroad.
There can be some benefits with lowering the drinking age. Drinking underage would not occur quite as much if the drinking age was lowered. Because much of the appeal of underage age drinking is because it's illegal, taking that out of the equation would give young people the opportunity to drink socially, not to get drunk. Learning your limits, getting used to the idea at the age of eighteen can be useful for young people.
It is important to remember that allowing eighteen year olds the privilege to drink does not come without some responsibility on many people's parts. Giving the right to younger people means these people need to take the privilege with caution and careful thought. It is a right to be able to drink, and you have a responsibility to the rest of society to be conscious of that fact. Driving drunk is not a productive way to use this right.
As for young people enlisted in the armed forces, they should be able to drink. They can die for our country but cannot consume an alcoholic beverage unless they're 21. Think about the stupidity of this.
No comments:
Post a Comment