The Drinking Age

Paper Summary:

This paper argues for the repeal the National Minimum Drinking Age Act of 1984. It states that the law denies the pre-eminence of states' rights and is unconstitutional. The paper describes the special interest groups' influence on politicians through the example of the lobby group, Mothers Against Drunk Driving. The paper also addresses the issues of drunk driving and alcohol abuse prevention.

From the Paper:

"The United States, along with only a handful of other countries, enforces the world's highest minimum drinking age: 21. This conservative constraint occurred fairly recently: the National Minimum Drinking Age Act of 1984 effectively blackmailed all states into adopting a standard drinking age. By 1987, all fifty states established the federal standard because to not do so would entail losing highway funding. This political blackmail was necessary, for this is a states' rights issue. Until the Reagan years, the drinking age was determined on a state-by-state basis and ranged from 18 to 21. However, with pressure from special interest groups like Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), a dangerous precedent was established to usurp states' rights. The motives behind the 1984 bill were admirable: raising the drinking age was expected to lower the incident of traffic fatalities and discourage irresponsible intoxication."

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