The drinking age should/shouldn't be 21? why?

Question

i need the pros of why it should be lowered & the pros of why it should stay at 21. If you have cons for either of them feel free to share your thoughts. Thank you! <3 Steph

this is for an english essay :)

Answer 1

let see.. your mature enough at 18, to vote, to serve your country, ( and possibly die) serve on a jury, drive, smoke cigarettes, but ya cant drink.. I find this really dumb, and I am WAY over 21
I think if your mature enought to go to war... your mature enought to drink... or lets make the age all the same one.

Answer 2

I believe the drinking age should be the same as the voting age.

At 18 in the states people are considered "of legal age."

Either raise them so that they're both 21 or lower so that both are at 18.

I suspect that they think 18 year olds are less responsible drinkers than 21 year olds but there are as many people over 40 that are irresponsible where drinking is concerned.

Answer 3

It should be 18. But then again, I also believe that if a parent wants to allow their teenager to have a glass of wine with dinner, they should be allowed to without breaking the law. In some ways, the laws are too strict and it makes alcohol seem like something really desirable because it's so forbidden. If parents would raise their kids to know that alcohol is ok as long as it's drank responsibly, we wouldn't have near the problems we have in this country. But, the thing is, parents don't want to parent nowadays so there has to be a set age to drink. In my opinion, you're an adult at age 18 in every other way, so why should you have to wait an extra 3 years to be able to drink?

Answer 4

When the authorities want to outlaw any particular thing all they have to do is look at the arrest report record. An abundance of crimes committed by any particular group of people who are allowed to do thus and so results in the said priviledge being associated with more damage and trouble than any conceivable 'right' is worth .

It's not about 'individual' rights, as much as the rights of All.
The legal drinking age can be thirty, for all I care. Get the louts off the streets, anyway.

Answer 5

Pros to lower: people at age 18 are considered old enough to vote and die for their country, but not old enough to have a beer after work? Is that fair?

Pros to stay at 21: young people's brains are not scientifically wired (and not yet developed enough) to see the risks involved with drinking, and thus they are not old enough to use precaution and exercise moderation when deciding to drink. Young adults are more inclined to take risks that can potentially hurt or kill others. (This information is true - from David A. Sousa's book "How the Brain Learns)

Answer 6

i think it should stay 21 because when your 18 when you drink you go way over board then drive not good when your 21 you are a little bit more aware of your trouble you can get into at 18 you really don't care still not saying there are not 18 year old people that are not responsible because there are some younger people that are very mature for there age

Answer 7

I think that it should stay at 21, there are enough kids causing driving accidents w/o making it easier for them to legally drink. By lowering it to 18 we could be encouraging younger kids to drink, whereas we should be against it, seein how we are trying to get everyone to quit smoking by banning it everywhere. I think by lowering it to 18 it shall just lead to more accidents, alcohol poisoning, etc.

But at the same time at 18 you are considered "legal" cause u can vote and gamble. If you are considered legal why shouldn't you be able to do all 3 at the same age. weather its 18 or 21

Answer 8

I believe the drinking age should be 21 as at 18, many are not quite yet mature enough. Too many binge drinkers, but still youre not going to stop underage drinking altogether!

Answer 9

In most families the drinking age is irrelevant, parents decide when to allow they children to drink anyways and even provide it for them. It's becoming more and more prevalent now. When I was a teen (1970s) few parents approved of their children drinking. Now, as I have 4 teen and up children I feel qualified to state, most parents become their 17 and older children's drinking buddies. As a person in the liquor business I was dead against this for my first, she's 20 now. The second has no desire to drink. !3 and 14 coming up. I'm honestly unsure of how I will deal with the issue for them.

Impact.
I believe drinking and driving incidences are down overall, at least where I live.
The profile of a person most likely to suffer injury or death from alcohol abuse, since the 1960s, has changed from a adult male to teenagers of both sexes.
Alcoholism starts at a younger age.

Answer 10

Pros for lowering the age:
the age does not deterr, but causes more circulation of false ID's, and also causes the kids to want more of what they can't have.
It has no positive effect on stopping the drinking.

Answer 11

The drinking age should stay at 21 because the brain is not fully matured at the younger ages.