Drinking Age

[Franzl]

I  like the European model: 16 for beer and wine; 18 for harder alcohol like liquor/spirits.  

It's reasonable, although I'm pretty sure that's only in a few countries (Germany being one of them.).

[Cassius]

Ideally, I would prohibit the sale of alcohol altogether. However, for the moment, I feel that the age of 18 is a suitable bar for alcohol consumption. I am opposed to getting rid of said bar, as I feel that, even if its difficult to actually stop people drinking alcohol under that age, the government should still take a stand and define what is and isn't acceptable by criminalising use under that age.

[Frodo]

Ideally, I would prohibit the sale of alcohol altogether. However, for the moment, I feel that the age of 18 is a suitable bar for alcohol consumption. I am opposed to getting rid of said bar, as I feel that, even if its difficult to actually stop people drinking alcohol under that age, the government should still take a stand and define what is and isn't acceptable by criminalising use under that age.

With views like that, you would definitely be right at home in the American South, where we still have quite a number of 'dry counties', leftovers from the Prohibition era:

  

Blue: wet counties
Yellow: semi-dry counties
Red: dry counties
Grey: no data

[Vosem]

Having a 'drinking age' is absurd, but it would be reasonable to prohibit the sale of alcohol to those below a set 'universal adult age' -- 16 seeming to make the most sense, or maybe 14. Voted 16.

[Boris]

Lower to 18 for now, and then do the 16/18 European thing in the 2030s/40s when self-driving cars are ubiquitous.

[IceSpear]

I don't get how anyone can justify the drinking age not being 18. Legally an adult in every other way, can die for your country...but lol no alcohol 4 u.

[DC Al Fine]

Ideally, I would prohibit the sale of alcohol altogether. However, for the moment, I feel that the age of 18 is a suitable bar for alcohol consumption. I am opposed to getting rid of said bar, as I feel that, even if its difficult to actually stop people drinking alcohol under that age, the government should still take a stand and define what is and isn't acceptable by criminalising use under that age.

Aren't you Catholic?

[FEMA Camp Administrator]

Ideally, I would prohibit the sale of alcohol altogether. However, for the moment, I feel that the age of 18 is a suitable bar for alcohol consumption. I am opposed to getting rid of said bar, as I feel that, even if its difficult to actually stop people drinking alcohol under that age, the government should still take a stand and define what is and isn't acceptable by criminalising use under that age.

If you have time, I'd advise that you watch "How Beer Saved the World" on Netflix.

[morgieb]

Voted 18, though of course you can't really ban consumption for minors as long as the premises aren't licenced.

[ElectionsGuy]

Ideally, I would prohibit the sale of alcohol altogether. However, for the moment, I feel that the age of 18 is a suitable bar for alcohol consumption. I am opposed to getting rid of said bar, as I feel that, even if its difficult to actually stop people drinking alcohol under that age, the government should still take a stand and define what is and isn't acceptable by criminalising use under that age.

You would probably fit in well with the Prohibition Party.

[Franzl]

Voted 18, though of course you can't really ban consumption for minors as long as the premises aren't licenced.

Oh you certainly can. 20 year olds are regularly arrested in the US for underage drinking. (Of course, you have to be pretty stupid to get caught, but that's beside the point.)

[Antonio the Sixth]

18 for drinking without parental authorization/oversight.

[RogueBeaver]

18 for drinking without parental authorization/oversight.

[Cassius]

Ideally, I would prohibit the sale of alcohol altogether. However, for the moment, I feel that the age of 18 is a suitable bar for alcohol consumption. I am opposed to getting rid of said bar, as I feel that, even if its difficult to actually stop people drinking alcohol under that age, the government should still take a stand and define what is and isn't acceptable by criminalising use under that age.

Aren't you Catholic?

That I am. However, the important thing in my case is that I am an English Catholic.

Ideally, I would prohibit the sale of alcohol altogether. However, for the moment, I feel that the age of 18 is a suitable bar for alcohol consumption. I am opposed to getting rid of said bar, as I feel that, even if its difficult to actually stop people drinking alcohol under that age, the government should still take a stand and define what is and isn't acceptable by criminalising use under that age.

If you have time, I'd advise that you watch "How Beer Saved the World" on Netflix.

It's true that for centuries alcoholic beverages were by and large the only safe alternative to water, which obviously was pretty dirty prior to the 20th century in the west. However, with the advent of both drinkable water and alternative non-alcoholic beverages, I cannot see any real purpose for alcohol anymore.

[H. Ross Peron]

Ideally, I would prohibit the sale of alcohol altogether. However, for the moment, I feel that the age of 18 is a suitable bar for alcohol consumption. I am opposed to getting rid of said bar, as I feel that, even if its difficult to actually stop people drinking alcohol under that age, the government should still take a stand and define what is and isn't acceptable by criminalising use under that age.

Aren't you Catholic?

That I am. However, the important thing in my case is that I am an English Catholic.

Ideally, I would prohibit the sale of alcohol altogether. However, for the moment, I feel that the age of 18 is a suitable bar for alcohol consumption. I am opposed to getting rid of said bar, as I feel that, even if its difficult to actually stop people drinking alcohol under that age, the government should still take a stand and define what is and isn't acceptable by criminalising use under that age.

If you have time, I'd advise that you watch "How Beer Saved the World" on Netflix.

It's true that for centuries alcoholic beverages were by and large the only safe alternative to water, which obviously was pretty dirty prior to the 20th century in the west. However, with the advent of both drinkable water and alternative non-alcoholic beverages, I cannot see any real purpose for alcohol anymore.

Its a shame you don't say the shame thing about the aristocracy...

[dead0man]

It's actually legal in most states for underage people to drink, as long as they do it with their parents.

[Ban my account ffs!]

16 to purchase beer and wine and other malt beverages.

19 to purchase hard liquor (anything over, say 30 proof).  Give the kids 3 years to acclimate themselves to beer and wine.  Promote a healthier beer/wine drinking culture, and make hard liquor available only to those who have already had drinking experience.

Alcohol consumption under 16 should be in the presence of parents, but not illegal.  If the cops find a 15 year old drunk... they should notify the parents, the kid should get a ticket akin to a littering or j-walking ticket if the parents attest they weren't aware of his drinking.  You know.. let the cops be the law through the parents rather than trying to ruin the life of the kid as cops are often wont to do.

[Del Tachi]

No age on consumption.
18 for entry to liquor store/bar.
21 for purchase.

"Zero tolerance" laws for drivers under the age of 21 should be repelled because  they effectively criminalize the consumption of alcohol for under-21 year olds. 

[muon2]

I went to HS when the purchase age was 18, I even spent a summer managing a liquor store before I was 21. The biggest problem with the 18-year-old purchase limit was that there are a significant number of HS students who are 18 and would bring alcoholic beverages to school and share with their underage classmates. Intoxication of minor was and is an offense, and in this case it would be without parental permission. This created a policing problem for the school staff since we didn't have cops in the building, and to do so would have been very unusual for a suburban school in the 70's.

As a result the state (MN) raised the legal age to 19 which greatly reduced the HS drinking issue. It was only in the 80's that the Feds tied road money to a 21-year-old legal limit and the age was raised. That was all about reducing drunk driving, not about teen access to alcohol.

[DemPGH]

For consumption, no minimum, but for purchase: beer and wine 19, liquor 25.

Twenty-five?

No minimum age for consumption, but I think something like 16-18 is prudent for a purchasing age.

Agreed.

[Simfan34]

Can someone explain to me why the drinking age, in this day and age, is still 21? I mean this is a law with virtually 0% compliance- I've never met a person who chooses not to drink because it's illegal. You'd think the liquor lobby would have gotten something done. On top of that you're having millions funneled into fake-ID making operations going into God knows what. What sort of valid reason is there for me to not have a nice Chardonnay with my dinner or a gin and tonic on a summer day without breaking the law?

[Hamster]

Can someone explain to me why the drinking age, in this day and age, is still 21? I mean this is a law with virtually 0% compliance- I've never met a person who chooses not to drink because it's illegal. You'd think the liquor lobby would have gotten something done. On top of that you're having millions funneled into fake-ID making operations going into God knows what. What sort of valid reason is there for me to not have a nice Chardonnay with my dinner or a gin and tonic on a summer day without breaking the law?

The people who want to lower the drinking age, that is, people under 21, are not as powerful of a political force as concerned mothers and that type. Since it's a "low importance issue," politicians have no reason to take a position, and thus let an opponent write an attack ad. So the system remains inert.

[Simfan34]

Well that's to be expected. I'm sure my interest in seeing the drinking age lowered will drop to pretty much zero when I turn 21. But one feels the liquor lobby might have something to gain from it, restaurant associations, and the like.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Well that's to be expected. I'm sure my interest in seeing the drinking age lowered will drop to pretty much zero when I turn 21. But one feels the liquor lobby might have something to gain from it, restaurant associations, and the like.

Restaurant associations likely wouldn't.  Those restauranteurs who worry about liability for serving alcohol to someone later causes death or damage in a DUI are probably happy to have a reason to not serve alcohol to someone under 21.  Even without alcohol, teenagers get in more than their fair share of accidents.  And while the beer and wine industry might like a lower drinking age, it is doubtful the liquor industry would.  Back when the drinking age could be lower than 21, it still was more common than not to have it be 18 for beer and wine but 21 for liquor, thus causing people to develop a taste for beer and wine first and possibly never going on to liquor..

[Simfan34]

Well people drink a lot of liquor these days. As for drunk driving we are giving people licences so it's pretty much carte blanche, no? If these people cannot be trusted we shouldn't be giving them their liscenses. It's an old canard but it simply doesn't follow that we trust 18 year olds to take care of themselves, elect our leaders, join the armed forces, and so on, but believe that they lack the responsibility to drink responsibly.