Recently a group of college presidents aligned and formed a group called the Amethyst Group. In discussions with each other about college binge drinking they concluded that lowering the drinking age might reduce binge drinking which has led to many deaths over the years at their universities. The group noted that they only wanted to start an open dialogue on the subject, and were not trying to change any laws at this time. There are currently 7 states considering legislation to change and or lower the drinking age, (Tennessee is not one of them) however there may be issue with highway funds from the Federal Government if these considerations pass. Highway funds are very important to a state and can effect decisions on laws, such as the Tennessee drinking age. http://nashvilleduiinfo.com
The question is should the Tennessee drinking age be 18, and will it saves lives? Without getting into a right or wrong discussion with MADD, I will try to look at it from possibly saving lives down the road by introducing alcohol to young adults while they are possibly still at home and under adult supervision. As we know, once they move out or go to college they are for the most part unsupervised. The Tennessee drinking age could change the time that a young adult comes into contact with alcohol, and where they are at in their lives when it happens.
From my experiences in college I have seen binge drinking from persons who did not drink an alcoholic beverage at all while they were 18, and living at home while in high school, and I have also had friends who grew up around parents who drank a beer or wine in front of them and at age 18 drank some themselves. Of the two types of people, those who never drank before college and those who did, I always thought, and still think the people who drank at age 18 before college where not so excited about drinking, I mean to say it was not so new to them. They had at some point been intoxicated before they got to college, and knew how to handle themselves better while drinking. The individuals who had never been intoxicated posed a great danger to others and themselves, they had no idea of their tolerance level of alcohol, and at this point they had no parental supervision. It seem like it would be better to understand the effects of alcohol on your body while still under your parents eye, and not alone either in the real world or college. If the Tennessee drinking age were lowered we might avoid this issue.
By lowering the drinking age in Tennessee it might allow a young adult to experience alcohol with some supervision, and not discover it on their own at college with no parental supervision. Lowering the drinking age in Tennessee would help demystify alcohol to young people, and let them realize in moderation it is ok. The fact is, kids in college are going to drink.
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6 comments:
I can't believe that things will be better if we lower the drinking age. With this thought why not legalize everything so they are use to everything. I want the age to remain 21.
If you can go to war, marry, and borrow money and use credit cards, why cant you drink a beer? There will always be people who are not responsible no matter what you do, that is just way things are.
With everything else that is out there I dont think it would be a good idea to add alcohol to an 18 year olds choices, bad idea I think.
You attorneys dont live in the real world, when a drunk runs over you then come and talk to me about lowring the drinking age.
Sticking our head in the sand an pretending that 18 year olds at college are not going to drink is just like saying dont teach high school students safe sex, because they are never going to have sex. It just doesnt really work that way in the real world, great if it did, but it does not.
When i was in college i saw many people who were trying alcohol for the first time, they just went crazy with it. My friends had been drinking alcohol since we were seniors in high school and did not think drinking was a big deal anymore. I am glad I tried it while at home with parents and not at college for the first time. Tennessee should lower the drinking age to 18.
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