Pick an age. If 18 is mature enough to vote, it's mature enough to drink, it's mature enough to buy a rifle and ammo. Why is an 18 year old considered a minor in some cases and not others? One age. After THIS age, you're an adult. You get all of these rights.
-----------For starters you cannot compare the operation of a firearm to a substance that alters the way you think. As long as an 18 year old understands the safety precautions and the overall function of the weapon...he or she is just as safe as a 20 year old. However, I can also point out that the older you get..or more experienced you are with a weapon..the safer you will be. Therefore, that is a bad comparison and only seems to reinforce your opinon. --------------
Lowering the drinking age would not increase incidents of alcohol abuse. Possessing alcohol is illegal. People who don't drink because it is illegal might consider drinking, but these people are typically responsible enough to not abuse alcohol. This also adds to the pool of designated drivers who might otherwise not be willing to give someone a ride home from a party because they're afraid they might get pulled over, or otherwise in trouble with the law for being in proximity to a) party or b) intoxicated minors.
------------------You are absolutely right. People that choose not to drink because it is illegal...are considered responcible. However, seeing as the legality is what keeps them from drinking...your statement does not reinforce your point of view. The basis on witch they decide if they should drink or not..has no effect on how they will react once intoxicated. We can assume that a person's level of maturity when sober...will have some bearing on their level of responcibility while intoxicated. However, this is flawed logis as alcohol is proven to disable a person's ability to process all of the factors around him or her..that would normally keep that person safe. For example...people who get behind the wheel when drunk..are probably doing so because they are impaired and cannot make rational decisions because of that inability to process the entirety of a situation. ---------
Speaking from a college standpoint, the advent of pregaming is a common practice which involves getting drunk, then going out. An important aspect of pregaming is to ensure that you don't sober up while you're out dancing, which can lead to overdrinking and associated incidents in public. The status quo: get REAL drunk, then go out to a club. Post lower drinking age: go out to a club, then get drunk. I don't forsee much changing.
----------Well..in my experience..pre-gaming is done to prevent me from spending 100 bucks at the bar...but we do things for diffirent reasons. So you are saying that being drunk earlier would not cause you to overdrink? I don't think it is logical to assume that a person will drink less as long as he or she gets a buzz before they reach the club or bar. That sounds like something you are making up to prove your point. However, I don't know anybody that pre-games for that reason.-------
Obviously, if we make the drinking age 18 instead of 21, more people between the age of 18 and 21 would drink. It's like if we were to lower the voting age to sixteen, more people in between the ages of 16-18 would vote. It's typically what happens when you legalize something.
I don't think that going to a bar is 18 year old's idea of fun.
---------- It's not their idea of fun because it is illegal and they rarely get in..unless they have some sort of connection. However, bars run the risk of getting their liquior liscense revoked...and that my friend..is big money.
-----------------It is not about what 18 year olds already do. It is about how mature an 18 year old is in general. Your maturity level..and ability to make safe decisions is impacted when youd rink. Therefore, and 18 year old that is not full matured anyways...might have larger issues when you further impair their ability to make rational decisions.
Another thing to think about is your tolerance level at 18, and the fact that you have no idea what your limits are unless you have been drinking. Their are so many factors that influence this type of scenario. I just do not think 18 year olds need to be getting wasted at the bar. You will have plenty of time to get drunk legally after you turn 21.