Gregory D.

Lee

Read Greg's bio and previous columns here

December 5, 2008

Let 18-Year-Olds Be Kids

The recent debate about lowering the drinking age to 18 should be over by now. So long as 18-year-olds are allowed to vote, marry, enter into contracts and join the military, they certainly should be mature enough to handle a beer. Or are they?

The debate has me thinking that someone who’s 18, still in high school, and barely shaves, probably shouldn’t be able to do adult things because they simply haven’t matured enough to make important decisions. Should an 18-year-old be charged as an adult for a crime and go to state prison because his brain hasn’t caught up to his rapidly maturing body?

If young people were not allowed to marry until they were 21, maybe there would be fewer divorces among people married between 18 and 21 years old. Maybe if someone had to be more mature at 21 before receiving his first credit card, he wouldn’t be hopelessly in debt because the credit card company gave him a $20,000 credit limit, despite being unemployed.

Federal law does not allow someone under 21 to purchase a handgun, but he can own a shotgun or rifle at 18. Apparently, lawmakers think young people are mature enough to handle some weapons, but not others.

Maybe if you had to be 21 before you could vote, better candidates would be elected. Ever see the Jay Leno segments where he asks people on the street to identify a photograph of the vice president or Speaker of the House, and they didn’t have a clue who they are? But they can identify Brad Pitt, Britney Spears and Paris Hilton every time. That’s enough evidence for me to not let anyone vote until they are at least 21, expect for military members, of course. If they can go into battle, they should at least have a say in who their commander-in-chief is.

If you’re old enough to carry a gun into battle, then I think you’ve earned the right to sit at the bar at the local VFW and tell war stories. My point is that if 18-year-olds cannot be trusted with alcohol, then they shouldn’t be trusted with credit, marriage or voting, nor should they be ask to give their lives while serving in the military.

Or, looking at it another way, if 18-year-olds are trusted to vote, enter into contracts and serve in the military, they should be trusted to handle alcohol. Which way is society going to go with this issue?

Obviously placing a prohibition on young people drinking before they reach 21 has been a dismal failure. Changing the drinking age back to 18 would probably be insignificant in terms of increased drunk driving arrests or death by binge drinking. But some studies suggest just the opposite.

Drinking at a young age does not have the stigma in most countries around the world that it does in the United States. Youngsters around the world don’t sneak booze because it not stigmatized like it is here. They grow up with wine at the table with dinner, and mostly learn to drink responsibly. If it’s taboo, then young people want to experience firsthand what all the fuss is about. The mystery goes away once you have your first legal drink.

Hundreds of presidents of prestigious universities around the country started this debate because they know it’s impossible to stop their students from drinking. Lowering the drinking age would probably shift some liability from the schools to the individual students who drink – but young adults shouldn’t have some of their rights restricted just because of their age.

My whole point is that if someone is old enough to do some adult things at 18, then he or she should be allowed to do all things other adults do. I personally would like to see voting, drinking, marriage and other legal contracts restricted to persons over 21 years old, except for those in the military. Young people should be allowed to join the military at 18 and immediately emancipated and considered adults upon swearing in, because they’ve earned it.  

What’s wrong with expanding juvenile status to persons until they reach the magic age of 21?  It was that way in the past, and it wasn’t such a bad thing. I think those between 18 and 21 would benefit from waiting a few more years and gain a little more maturity before they are thrust into full-fledged adulthood. Because life’s too short as it is, they should enjoy their youth while they can.

Gregory D. Lee is a nationally syndicated columnist for North Star Writers Group, and can be reached through his website: www.gregorydlee.com.

© 2008 North Star Writers Group. May not be republished without permission.

This is Column # GL054. Request permission to publish here.