Didn't want to take over the "Brat" thread so I created one. Thoughts/experiences on this? One thing I always go back to... If a person 18 years old can fight for our country I feel they should be able to have a drink. Granted it's different for everyone but does the maturity of a person really go up THAT much between 18-21?? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
The reason for this age is due to the frontal lobe in the brain not being fully developed. Without it being developed inducing alcohol can have lasting effects on an individual. I tell all my junior Marines there time will come.
As I understand it, the age was lowered to 18 at one time but raised back to 21 when the number of serious accidents involving young drinkers went up substantially. I think the age of majority was 21 at one time, but I could be wrong about that.
My maturity level increased at an incredible rate from 18-21. I drank like a fish after high school and really tapered off once I turned 21. At 25 I rarely drink now.
I stand by my simplistic stance that if you can be sent through a few weeks of hellacious training and shipped off to a desert halfway around the world to die for your country... you can have a beer. I understand you mature arguably the most in your life from 18-21... But lets face it, those that want to drink... drink at that age. There is no stopping it, other than penalizing it. In fact, one could argue that by forcing them to sneak around to attempt drinking it causes even MORE foolish decisions/accidents in an attempt to hide their actions. Outlaw it, or legalize it for adults IMO. My alcohol consumption peaked around 18-19 and has spiraled downward since. My 21st was anticlimactic... I'm 23 and haven't drank in 7 weeks now. lol
I drank a heck of a lot more under 21 then I did over. Being almost 30 now its very rare that I go out and drink. As a matter if fact I have a 6 pack that's been in the fridge for abouf 1.5 months with one beer missing.
I drank a ton during my high school years, and have really tapered off after turning 21. Now I'm 23, and I usually drink 10 beers a week or so, unless there's some sort of social gathering.
I did not drink any till I was 21, but yes, I do believe that 18 year olds should be able to drink, or at the very least, not be able to purchase, but consume with more "adult" supervision or something
I started to drink a lot after graduating high school, but I've actually drank less since turning 21. I guess the thrill of it has disappeared or I stopped caring if it was the cool thing to do. I see some of my friends that drink A LOT and that just makes me not want to drink. Id rather not get fat, and want to be more productive with my time.
I grew up in a house where we were allowed to drink. I started making my own beer at 12, but I was allowed a beer or two on a weekend night or a glass of wine with dinner. I can see limiting the age to purchase to 21 as there are a lot of 18 year olds in High School.
I did it. My mother did not condone it. My father used to make me mix his martinis and if they were done wrong, I had to drink them. I was getting served in bars when I was 17 because people had the attitude of "old enough to die for the country, old enough to drink." I personally was NEVER old enough to drink and quit drinking 20+ years ago. When my kids were underage, I told them if you drink, call me to come get you. I won't lecture you about what you did wrong, I'll just be glad to have you home safe. But on the other hand, both my kids knew I am an alcoholic, who is the son of an alcoholic, who is the son of an alcoholic. Both of my children were and still are careful of what they drink and how much.
