Teen drinking is no joke

Government-imposed age limits have, from time to time, seemed arbitrary. Politically active teenagers succeeded in lowering the voting age to 18 many years ago because it seemed wrong for them to be conscripted into the armed services when they could not yet vote on the people who would send them there.

But there is nothing arbitrary or inconsistent about the government-imposed age limit of 21 to consume alcoholic beverages. Even if you can vote and fight for your country at age 18, you should not yet have the right to legally drink. Science is making that wisdom increasingly clear.

Much of this will be discussed today at town hall meetings across Utah and the nation. The largest one locally will be at the University of Utah Fine Arts Auditorium, beginning at 7 p.m. and lasting until 8:30. Utah first lady Mary Kaye Huntsman and other officials are scheduled to speak. The meeting is open to everyone, and anyone who can ought to attend.

New scientific evidence shows that anyone under 20, and many people well into their 20s, suffer far greater damage from alcohol consumption than do older adults. Specifically, they suffer irreparable harm to parts of the brain that are developing the ability to make sound judgments, decide important matters or control destructive impulses. It can harm a young person's ability to learn and remember.

In addition, 40 percent of people who begin drinking before age 15 become alcoholics, compared with only 5 percent who begin after age 21. Perhaps most important of all, from a public-safety perspective, people who began drinking as teenagers make up 95 percent of all those who are arrested for drunken driving.

This evidence, originally presented by the state Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission and various private organizations, led state lawmakers this year to approve money for a media campaign aimed at educating people about these dangers. Drinkers traditionally joke about "killing brain cells." But the damage is no laughing matter. Nor should parents ever downplay underage drinking as harmless behavior.

Attend a town hall meeting today to learn and discuss what can be done with this information.