The Drinking Age and Helping Youth

Paper Summary:

In this article, the writer maintains that American society must follow the example of many European countries who have integrated the consumption of alcohol into everyday life. The writer points out that the United States is one of a very few countries that has set the minimum drinking age to 21. The writer argues that the drinking age should be lowered to 18 to expose drinking responsibly to youth earlier. Further, the writer maintains that laws should be passed to help teen drinkers and society must gravitate towards change. The writer concludes that drinking must not be seen as a forbidden fruit or it becomes the object of desire.

From the Paper:

"The United States has followed the footsteps of European cultures in many of our customs, laws, and ways of government. The United States is a seed of the great flowers of Europe. Why not continue to follow that example? The drinking age should be 18 for on premise drinking. A soldier who comes home from war should be able to sit with his father at the bar and share a war story over a pint. If you are old enough to die, you are old enough to drink. But, the purchase of alcohol for off premise drinking should still be 21.
"Laws are being established in the United States to help prevent more deaths from underage drinking; the U.S. has realized it will never stop underage drinking and must try to prevent harm."

Sample of Sources Used:

• 5 May 2009. MSNBC. 13 May 2009 <http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30562363/>.
• Sociology. Austin: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 2008.
• Www.sidewell.edu. 15 Mar. 2005. Washington Post. 12 May 2009 <http://www.sidwell.edu/documents/mathews2.pdf>.
• "Policy Table:Minimum age limits worldwide." ICAP.org. International Center for aaaAlcohol Policies. aaaa<http://www.icap.org/PolicyIssues/YoungPeoplesDrinking/PolicyTableMinimumAgaaaaeLimitsWorldwide/tabid/206/Default.aspx>.
• Youth Drinking Rates and Problems. May 2005. Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. 13 May 2009 aaaaaaa<http://www.udetc.org/documents/CompareDrinkRate.pdf>.

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