Lowering the Drinking Age to 18

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Ashley Brown
Professor Mariano
English 1A
12/12/13
Lowering the drinking age to 18
To lower the drinking age or to not lower the drinking age, that is the question. This has been a debate for many years. In the United Stated at age 18 a person is legally allowed to vote, apply for a credit card, get married or divorced, buy tobacco, work in a bar, enlist in the military, and serve on jury, among other privileges. However in most states if a person is 18 years old they cannot legally drink, even if they want to have a glass of wine at their own wedding or have a beer with some of their own military buddies. 18 years old has been considered the age of adulthood in the United States for many years now, and adults should be able to have the right to make their own decisions, such as the consuming of alcohol. When someone turns 18 to the world they become a part of the adult world, receiving the rights and responsibilities that come along with it. Being an adult also involves making ones own decisions and taking in the consequences of ones own actions, whether they are good or bad. It should not be up to the government to say what they consider a legal adult, and if they should and should not put something in their bodies, especially when it comes to alcohol itself, which is not extremely harmful unless it is consumed in excessive amounts. The thing is anyone can drink excessive amounts that could be harmful whether they are 18 years old or 45 years old, so why take it out on the 18 year olds the most? Drinking underage illegally surely exists and it is not stopping anytime soon. Due to 18 years of age being illegal underage drinking has led to
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a rise in DUI’s, fatalities, and more irresponsible behaviors, such as violent or destructive.
Ever since the National Minimum Drinking Age Act came into play it has forced all states to change their legal drinking age to 21. This happened because the government did not believe that a person under the...