Deseret News | Lowering legal drinking age an absurd idea

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Jay Evensen: Lowering legal drinking age an absurd idea

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Honesty | 4:49 p.m. Aug. 24, 2008

I am tired of sam old arguments, especially about the military and voting, etc.

So let raise the age for everything to 21 then there can no more arguments.

21 to enteer the military,
21 to vote ,
21 to smoke or drink or wahtever,

21 for everything, no more arguments period.

Kiah | 4:54 p.m. Aug. 24, 2008

Actually, the age needs to be lowered to something like 14-15. I'm an American studying in Spain and many young people drink here. The difference is that they have had alcohol for so long that it isn't such a big deal. The only people I see acting like morons are the other Americans who are basically 20 year old babies because they are never allowed to drink socially. The only connection American youth have developed by age 21 is to get as drunk as possible and party. Anyways, I really hope that the college presidents can have some sway with this issue.

Anonymous | 5:03 p.m. Aug. 24, 2008

I have read several comments that must be from kids, they are saying drinking should be legal before we drive because it will teach us responsability when we do drink but they need to realize more adults are the cause of drunk driving incidents, and adults still can be irresponsible when they drink no matter how long they have been drinking or how responsible they may be when sober... stop looking at statistics people look at a better comparison to your life! have you ever drank and done something you regret? when you are younger you are going to do more things you regret and may harm you or someone you care for a lot more than the affect it may have on that person if it was 10 years down the road... teens stop blogging you are just proving how immature some of us teens really are.. you don't know what is best for you.. you probably don't even know how to do your own wash after you throw up on yourself..

Comments continue below

byudog | 5:11 p.m. Aug. 24, 2008

I know in Europe the drinking age is lower than in most places.

I did some missionary work in Germany and I think the legal drinking age there is like 16 years old. The question is- does Europe or countries like Germany have more alcohol-related problems than the U.S.?

If not, then due to the lower allowed age-it becomes less of a deal to them. Why binge drink if you have access to something all the time?

I'm not here to turn a blind eye to the real problems of alcohol, which are many, but it is a part of life and it's not going to go away.

People start drinking in high school or earlier if they want to try it. They drink in college through fraternities or sororities if they want.

The argument that people should be allowed to drink, if they are old enough to die in the military is quite fair and a strong argument.

dcc | 6:28 p.m. Aug. 24, 2008

If you are worried about your kids drinking then be a parent. The rest of the world is not responsible for your kids.

BTW I came of age at 18 and never drank until I was 22.

No big deal | 6:29 p.m. Aug. 24, 2008

Isn't the real reason they want to lower the age is to pad their crime stats on campus? Make it legal and the underage drinking crime stats go away.

In Arizona, back in the 70's, the legal age for drinking was 18. It was seen as no big deal.
The same kids that would drink, drank and there still was plenty of underage drinking in high school.

Free Beer | 6:50 p.m. Aug. 24, 2008

Tell ya what.......all you college people who want to drink .....go put on the uniform of this country and I will buy you a beer.
When you serve your country perhaps then the "old enough to fight, old enough to drink" argument is valid, until then it's just talk.

Re:TJ | 6:55 p.m. Aug. 24, 2008

Actually, Utah is way ahead of the rest of the world on this issue. Consuming alcohol is a dumb thing to do at any age. We all know the huge price societies and individuals pay for consuming alcohol. Why would anyone with a brain drink alcohol? Drinking yourself into a stupor and calling it fun or a "right" or a "privilege" is a very backward thing to do! Hitting yourself in the head with a hammer is legal, but why do it? The world would be better off in no one drank alcohol and that is a fact!

Educated responses.... | 7:10 p.m. Aug. 24, 2008

It would be nice to have some educated responses based on facts rather than emotions.

Fact: Alcohol is very damaging to society...as are other drugs.

Fact: There are huge drug and alcohol problems in our society.

Fact/opinion: There are a lot of people out there who like to drink (and do drugs) and they don't seem to give a hoot whom it hurts (probably because they don't always see or forsee the damges caused, but more likely becasue they were conned into becoming addicted by advertising or peer pressure). It's hard to respect your opinons when they are so wrong!

Fact: I work with a population of individuals whom belives that there is anything wrong with drinking and drugs...but their lives are wrecked...and they are incarcerated for heinous crimes often related to something they did while on a binge.

Some of you made some nice points like "prohibition doesn't work" etc. The article also made a nice point by saying that by simply making it illegal for tobbaco companies to advertise on TV, smoking has decreased significantly and become unpopular. We need to FIND things that do work to reduce this plauge, and put them to use.

Observer | 7:20 p.m. Aug. 24, 2008

Yeah, Let's do everything Europe does they are such wonderful role models.

And if Europe decides to jump off a cliff then I say we should too.

We should do everything Europe does, they are never wrong. They always right.

Their thinking is way ahead of the US, on just about everything.

America is terrible hateful evil place, why anyone should want to come here is beyond any of us.

Now if someone will just tell mexico, cuba, haiti, etc etc etc

I am Barack Obama and I support this message.

Anonymous | 8:17 p.m. Aug. 24, 2008

Perhaps we'd get better results with substance responsibility if we just legalized everything under the sun and then taxed the living daylights out of the stuff.

former drinker | 8:26 p.m. Aug. 24, 2008

If anyone wants to see how foolish drinking alcohol makes a person, go to a football game at RES and watch how some of the students at the game behave. It will cure you from drinking ever again!

Beer Here | 9:13 p.m. Aug. 24, 2008

Do some time in Iraq..........I'll buy you a beer.

Iowa | 9:30 p.m. Aug. 24, 2008

Unfortunately from these posts, people think there is only a problem in Utah with alcohol consumption and that to ban it or make it harder to consume is backwards century old thinking. The intelligent, open minded national community, is looking at the problem head on. It is disgusted and sickened at watching young lives thrown away before they graduate from college. You are supposed to be educated when you graduate, not addicted. Our nation is becoming the town drunk. Maybe Utah isn't behind the curve, but way out in front.

Anonymous | 11:24 p.m. Aug. 24, 2008

I was wondering about this myth of healthy Europe drinking habits, so I googled alcoholism in Europe. It seems that Europe is not the healthy drinkers many would have you believe. A young drinking age in Germany has given German youth the infamous title of heaviest drinkers in Europe, second only to British youth. If I understand correctly British and German youth out drink any other group in Europe. Much of this is binge drinking. A major study is being put together to manage alcohol consumption in Europe. By what I read, if German youth are to be used as an example learning responsibility young, they failed miserably.

Joey | 11:42 p.m. Aug. 24, 2008

As long as we are signing petitions to talk about laws that don't work..here are few more.

1. Speed Limit's..most people don't follow them lets raise them.

2. Littering...The freeways are proof this law does not work.

3. Prohibiting Illegal aliens to work here. Millions already work here...lets just make it legal.

David | 4:44 a.m. Aug. 25, 2008

Clearly Gerbils should be banned until 21 since driving with a gerbil causes accidents per the recent DN article in which one victim required her leg be surgically removed. But how many of you talk or even text on your cell phones? Here in Atlanta, people even read, yes read, while driving. At most, if caught, they are cited.
We need to increase the penalty for DUI and other irresponsible driving withdrawing a license for first time offenses, as occurs in Europe. We could also charge a couple thousand dollars for a license as occurs in Europe since driving is a privilege and not a right. That would certainly handle things.

Canadiandy | 8:05 p.m. Aug. 25, 2008

Our drinking age here in Canada is 19. You can't buy alcohol at any convenience store, only government stores, and nobody complains except the distilleries. Neither my kids nor I would be able to tell you the name of 2 popular wines. All this in a clearly liberal and open semi-european society. It is not progress that leads to these stringent standards, it is wisdom, education, and our desire to put kids before big business.

Letting kids drink is tantamount to the party holder who lets his guests drive home drunk. That is irresponsible drinking.

Now some Americans are trying to promote the redneck image by letting 12-year-olds suck back a case o' Bud? Do you realize what a joke you are outside of your redneck bar?

Sober up before yo post please.

Name | 7:33 a.m. Aug. 26, 2008

Why are so many posters so bad at spelling? It's been a decidedly one-sided discussion so far, and more than half of the posts contain obvious grammatical and spelling errors.

why do you all care? | 4:48 p.m. Aug. 26, 2008

none of you mormons drink - not sure why this is even an issue for you.

shd | 5:13 p.m. Aug. 26, 2008

According to "that guy" drinking is the only thing for which a teen is not considered an adult! Have any of you people ever sat in a juvenilve court of law? If anyone is under age 18 they are considered a Minor, and here in Utah, they are handled with kid gloves. Kids are given chance after chance after chance to redeem themselves and turn their life around. Do they? Nine times out of ten, the answer is NO!
Who is going to deliver the message to heart-broken parents that their child was in a deadly crash, and THEY were responsible. Their football hero of a son, or sweet teenage daughter was driving while impaired.
I do agree with everyone who put most of the blame on advertizers. Nearly every commercial break of the Olympics had a Budweiser commercial. What is it going to take for TV stations and broadcasters to refuse to air life- threatening commercials? They make it all look so fun! They should also run a clip of someone in a mental hospital, put there because of their alcohol abuse.

Elmo Sayz...... | 7:03 a.m. Aug. 27, 2008

I say we lower the age to be able to buy and consume alcohol to age 18 but at the same time increase the penalty for DUI and other alcohol related crimes..........30 days minimum in jail for a first time DUI and a $10,000 fine? And advertise it at every grocery store, gas station and liquor store in the state for everyone to see.
I like this because in my opinion it's not the age that matters as much as it is the awareness.
18 year olds are going to get their booze one way or another at that age legal or not......we should just highten awareness and make the penalties more strict

JMHO | 11:38 p.m. Aug. 27, 2008

Seems to me the whole you send me to war at 18 why can't I legally purchase alcohol seems a bit disingenuous . At 18 you are certainly able to choose not to go into the service to fight kill or die for your country . If at that age you aren't mature enough to recognize the possible consequences of YOUR choice to serve , maybe you aren't mature enough to be given the opportunity to legally purchase and consume alcohol , given the real possibillity you could drink , go out and kill , maim ,or die because of your choice to drink .

Jpjazz | 12:45 p.m. Aug. 28, 2008

I was born and raised in New York State during a period when the drinking age was 18. I can personally attest that there is NO correlation between the drinking age and binge drinking.

In fact I can assure you that we drank MORE since beer and liquor was legally delivered to the dorms for weekend parties and such. Also drinking and driving was standard practice for most, I consider myself very fortunate that I wasn't personally involved in a drunk driving tragedy that so many late teens experience as they celebrated their 18th birthday at the bars only 2 years after receiving their drivers license.

President Bassis is totally off "base" with his stance on this issue, perhaps he wishes to distinguish his College from the other universities in the state. But this is not the issue to promote Westminster independence from the local culture.

Drinking harms too | 8:00 p.m. Aug. 28, 2008

It's funny to say that smoking in any amount is harmful, inferring that drinking is not. Despite some inconclusive studies about wine, alcohol also causes harm in any amount. After all, it is a drug and unless it is used for medicinal purposes it will harm in any amount. The brain cell advertisements that are everywhere support this point. If drinking harms 16-year-old brains, it also harms 18-year-old brains and 21-year-old brains. When are we going to see sense on the alcohol issue?

Anonymous | 8:56 p.m. Sept. 8, 2008

hey, im 18 i and i would like to say that the age of 21 to drink is ridiculous.
Let me take you through a normal friday night for me and my friends. WE get out of school then go to sports then home then we all meet up at someones house. after that we have to call one of our friends that is 21 and ask him to go to the store for us, he goes and we tip him a few extra bucks. the thing is that drinking is such a forbidin fruit that what we do get from the store we cant bring home and put in the fridge for fear of getting in trouble so we feel that we have to consume all of it before the nights end, so we don't have to bring any home.WE ALWAYS DESIGNATE A DRIVER. If the age was 18 we would be able to bring the leftovers home causing us to drink less. AND TO TELL YOU THE TRUTH, IF I WAS ABLE TO JUST WALK INTO A STORE AND BUY IT, I PROBABLY WOUDN'T DRINK AS MUCH.

Ryan | 8:08 a.m. Sept. 12, 2008

In my opinion, the age limits for smoking and drinking should be lowerd...
im 17 and ive never had a problem getting ciggaretts or beer, or pot even. but the thing that bugs me is every one asumes that were uncapable of making right choises until the magic day of our 18th or 21st birthday. Anyone is gonna smoke or drink if they want to, and can get it whether its legal or not.

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