Keeping the Drinking Age at 21

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Recommended: Arguments for and against changing the drinking age

When it comes to the subject of drinking and teenagers, what is the first thing that comes to mind? To me it's the legal age limit of when teens should be able to drink. Having it lowered is controversial because according to prior experiences, data shows that younger age drinking is well known for its fatalities. According to Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), "on one of the most popular prom nights in 1999, as many as 62 percent of the traffic deaths were alcohol-related" (). The most important question is whether or not the drinking age anywhere in the United States should be lowered, raised or if it should stay the same. Statistics prove that the legal drinking age should remain at the age of twenty-one in the United States. Alcohol dates back to tens of thousands of years ago in history, but no one knows exactly when it was first used. Here in the States, "The seventeenth century saw the Virginia colonists continue the traditional belief that alcoholic beverages are a natural food and are good when used in moderation" (Hanson). Alcohol was known to be both helpful and harmful. In the 1920's, Prohibition laws came into effect which made alcohol illegal. After Prohibition ended, almost all of the states made into law that the age of twenty one was the minimum legal drinking age. Between 1970 and 1975, twenty-nine states lowered their legal drinking age to 18, 19, or 20. This change happened because the voting age and enlistment for war was also lowered. In the early 1980s, President Reagan founded the Presidential Commission Against Drunk Driving (PCDD). It's goal was to help reduce the number of deaths on the nation's highways that were caused by alcohol. By the mid-1980's the legal drinking age was raised again to... ... middle of paper ... ...tions/2007/edition_08-12-2007/Teen_Drinking>. Hanson, David J. "History of Alcohol and Drinking around the World." WWW2 Webserver. Web. . "Legal Age 21 - National Minimum Drinking Age - Choose Responsibility." John McCardell - Drinking Age - Choose Responsibility. Web. . "State's Drinking Age Should Remain 21." Star Tribune. Web. . "Underage Drinking & Teen Drinking Prevention Through Education." Fighting Drunk Driving & Underage Drinking | The Century Council. Web. . Werch, Chudley E. "Alcohol Use and Abuse." The Gale Group Inc. Web. 27 Mar. 2010. .

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