There was a time in the United States when drinking alcohol was illegal. The question is, “Why did people still drink and import alcohol to the country if it was outlawed?” The truth is that people are going to get what they want despite the consequences. Today, drinking is legal if you are 21 or older. It seems like we are repeating the history and making the same mistakes that occurred in the past. Prohibition did not work then, and prohibition for young people under 21 is not working now.
The drinking age should be lowered to 18 giving young adults the permission to drink in controlled environments such as restaurants, bars and official school and university functions. Mature and sensibly drinking behavior could then be taught and educated. Why will lowering the drinking age to 18 make any difference?
According to a study made by Professor Ruth C. Engs from Indiana University, young adults under 21 are most likely to become heavy drinkers. The reason for that is because of the way young people think. In most cases, the fact that you need to be 21 to drink, makes teenagers under 21 feel like they need to drink because it is part being an adult. They know it is illegal, and it makes them more impatient to drink. If the drinking age was lowered to 18, these thoughts would not the same; young people wouldn’t look at it the same since it would be available to them legally. This would change their opinion of drinking and they would begin to expect mature drinking. They would also feel less of a need for alcohol since it is accessible to them at anytime legally.
Personally, I can verify the difference that could possibly occur if the drinking age was lowered. I lived in Denmark for 11 years, where the drinking age is 15. The drinking and driving rate is very low and any alcohol related crime isn’t something that occurs a lot. The truth is that in Denmark, people don’t have to physically bring themselves to a place where they can drink unlike in the U.S. where most teenagers attend parties to drink. In Denmark, people drink maturely and responsibly. When I just arrived to the U.S., I noticed that basically everybody drove to parties, and had no choice than to drive back home after drinking. If you can’t buy alcohol, the only way you can drink is by attending places where people will provide it to you. And this is why a lot of accidents occur; because people travel back and forth just to drink.
In conclusion, the drinking age should be lowered to 18, not just because it could decrease the amount of heavy drinkers, or because it could decrease drinking and driving related accidents, but because it hasn’t worked to prohibit drinking in the past, so why have the “no drinking until 21” law? Some people might disagree with some of my thoughts and opinions of this law, but everyone sees things in a different perspective. I have lived in several countries, and so I have a broad view of how people treat the laws of drinking. Maybe one day the U.S. will fix the problem.
