Well, personally I think the lack of a responsible attitude is to blame for all the alcohol-related problems. Some teenagers get plastered in a lousy attempt to look mature, while older people sometimes forget they’re not exactly drinking soda. Some people just don’t understand there’s nothing so great in getting plastered.
Also, as it has already been mentioned here, some people can have massive behavior abnormalities when under the effects of alcohol. Some just get dumber, while others start making a mess. To make things worse, alcohol affects the nervous system in many other ways, and some people just don’t have the common sense not to drive in that condition.
I’m gonna have to agree with Manus on this one.
I’m with TD, and for the record I do drink, don’t smoke and have done drugs and I also live in holland… but prostitutes… yuk
in my region (Zeeuws Vlaanderen) we have a totally different attitude towards drinking… some do it because they think it’s cool, some do it because they’re loving it(like me) but we all drink… well there are some exceptions… oh and btw the legal drinking age is 16 (and 18 for the hard stuff) wich is the same age you have to be to be able to go to a disco,
I started going out when I was 14 and started drinking when I was 14… (back in the days everything was possible)
I’ll never forget my first night out… we were with four boys, and we all got so stupidly drunk two of us already puked in that place, I puked in the car, and the other puked at home… That was a good lesson learned, I felt so bad the day after…
I really miss the days when I was able to get drunk with $12
nowadays I spend like $80 a night or so…
Originally posted by d Galloway
Imagine what would happen if the legal age limit was eighteen? College kids could get their hands on even more alcohol, throw wilder parties, and cause more deaths and mayhem.
“Even more”? I’m currently 18 and in res, and there’s enough people around willing to pick up stuff that I could have more than I’d ever need in a few minutes. Hell, our house had a boat trip where they were selling cases at half price to everyone, no matter if they were 19 or not. Lowering the age limit wouldn’t affect anything other than people would be asking others for a run to the store instead of asking them to pick up stuff.
I was a strict absolutist… before I turned 18. (I had sort of a vow made not to drink before 18) So far, my experiences have been rather… positive (No hangovers… my speech problems are gone…)
As for Finland… Alcohol is what you might call a national disease over here… You never drink to get in the ‘mood’… you drink to get your ass handed to you. Legal drinking age is 18, driving 18, cigs 18… For stronger than 22%, you need the age of 21.
That is all.
I think we should get everything at the same age, as it seems to be in most countries.
I mean, I figure if 18 is old enough to vote, old enough to smoke, and old enough to get drafted, then it should be old enough to drink. Hell, we let people drive at 16, which seems to me to require a lot more maturity and sense to do well than any of that other stuff. Yet that comes first/youngest.
I’d support everything having at age 18 (vote, smoke, drive, drink, draft). Though I don’t the current American set up is grossly unfair. Just a little inconsistent.
To quote my friend, if you are old enough to die for your country at age seventeen, you should be old enough to drink. :\
Minor correction, Kaiser. There is no draft right now. Sure, all boys must register with that social thingy when they turn 18 in case the draft gets reinstated, but the draft itself doesn’t exist right now. I guess enlist would be a better term.
I actually disagree with the legal drinking ago in this country, which is 18. I know that, where I live, younger teenagers are going to drink anyway, no matter what the law says, some even start in primary school. If the legal drinking age is lower then they can be introduced to alcohol responsibly (hopefully) by their parents, instead of by their friend who got someone else to buy drink for them and has no idea how to consume alcohol in moderation. The number of kids we have standing outside our local shop saying “Can you buy me a bottle of vodka,” is ridiculous. At least if it was legal, they wouldn’t have to be drinking in secret and their parents might know about it. I’m the only person from my group of friends whose first experience of alcohol was with their parents. I think that’s helped me because I can have the occasional glass of wine whenever I want really, instead of going out every Friday night and getting so drunk that you don’t know what you’ve being doing (like a lot of my friends do). In fact, I barely even drink anymore.
And besides, here, we’re allowed to have kids, move out of the house and smoke at 16, and we can drive and join the army etc at 17. Surely the occasional drink is less harmful than some of those.
Originally posted by Mabatsekker
I was a strict absolutist…
I’m gonna have to agree with 984. (And TD, for that matter)
Originally posted by Cybercompost
I don’t like alcohol. It makes me act like a fucking moron. Both Sin and Sorcerer can attest to that. I don’t drink or do any drugs or smoke anymore. I try to stay away from things that affect my brain.
Crazy straight edgers.
Bla. Absolut. Bla. Get it away from me.
A legal drinking age is a stupid concept coz there’s always people that look older than they are and don’t get IDed. I’ve been getting served in pubs for the last year and a half that i’ve been at college and i’m not 18 till july! And even before the i could get alcohol when ever i wanted, here in england it’s pretty easy to get hold of, whatever age you are. People usually say a load off bull about people not being responable till they’re 18, balls! most people in the northwest regress as they get older. The majority of people who live in my area are thugs, townies or skallys that are high. Under age people will drink no matter what legislation governments bring in. It’s like drugs, they’ll never be able to compleatly stop it.
In the US I think we’re a lot more repressive about a lot of “vices” than in other places, and I think that taboo contributes to the “irresponsible” behavior of younger people in regards to vices which therefore gets the whole accessibility/legal ages thing going. (I hate using the quotation marks, but you know…) I think it has to do with the puritanical influences on our early history.
I think 18 is a decent age, since pretty much any age chosen after legal adulthood is arbitrary. I’m glad that 984 mentioned the federal government’s use of road money as blackmail, lol.
Originally posted by Megaman984
Minor correction, Kaiser. There is no draft right now. Sure, all boys must register with that social thingy when they turn 18 in case the draft gets reinstated, but the draft itself doesn’t exist right now. I guess enlist would be a better term.
I meant to say that they would be old enough to be drafted were one going on. Which is why registration is required at 18; so that in case there is a draft again, they’ll have people to draft.
Because a whole lot of people don’t realize they aren’t immortal until they are at least twenty.
Well then, Kaiser. Don’t mind my bothersome little mind.
I’m in the “I don’t see the point of drinking, alchohol doesn’t even taste good” category.
Originally posted by KaiserVonAlmasy
I meant to say that they would be old enough to be drafted were one going on. Which is why registration is required at 18; so that in case there is a draft again, they’ll have people to draft.
There isn’t a draft and there won’t be one for many reasons. Worrying about the draft is like worryign about the Russians dropping bombs on us now. It’s not going to happen so we don’t need to make any special preparations or do things differently. Besides, tehre is no penalty now for not registering. Not only that, but when I registered they didn’t even give a card liek they say they will. How about saying “Old enough to fight/die for their country” or “Old enough to serve their country.” However, saying be drafted is stupid.
Part of the reason for the minimum age though is partly to protect development. Alcohol can hurt thigns a bit and age 21 also sort of makes sure that the person is physically done developing for the most part. Also, to say that the law encourages underage drinking is sort of stupid. Otherwise, people would also probably get in more fights since they are angry and could break the law; it’d have a thrill.
Teens are also already pretty immature. Alcohol just ads to their daring selves. Besides, many are not mature enough or smart enough to get a ride. There are quite a lot of DUIs, DWIs, drunk accidents. etc. So obviously many are not smart enough. teens just aren’t as mature and are more likely to drive under the influence.
The drinking excessively is more of a generation thing though.
As for the:
“I don’t see the point of drinking, alchohol doesn’t even taste good” category
People do it to relax and make more fun of things.