Minimum Legal Drinking Age

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The Minimum Legal Drinking Age Alcohol has been apart of our country’s culture since the United States came to be. Drinking plays a huge part in social events and holidays. The minimum age at which a person should be able to legally drink has been disputed and argued many times and I believe always will. Along with that, underage drinking in our country is becoming very problematic. I believe that we should not lower the minimum legal drinking age to 18 because it would increase the problems that already occur with underage drinking. The history of the MLDA (minimum legal drinking age) is one of the biggest evidence we have that lowering the drinking age does not work. This can be traced back to the end of prohibition in 1933. Prohibition …show more content…

These long term effects can include fatalities or serious injuries from drunk driving, drinking until harmfully intoxicated, and alcohol addiction. Teens may not know that they get drunk twice as fast as adults. Therefore they have trouble knowing when to stop drinking and end up getting drunk, making them more vulnerable to actions they would not normally do if they were sober. When teens get behind a wheel while they are drunk is even more dangerous, not just to themselves but to people around them also. Before the minimum legal drinking age of 21 was implemented by all states, underage drunk drivers were involved in over twice as many fatal crashes as today (Madd). Another serious matter with drinking in young adults is alcoholism or becoming addicted to alcohol. Alcohol addiction can occur within six to eighteen months in a young adult or teenage while in adults, it can take up to 5 years or more. Every year that we delay the use of alcohol in young adults, the likelihood of alcoholism for that person will substantially decrease. Keeping the minimum legal drinking age at 21 is a way to prevent young adults from having any of these long term effects, and decreasing the age will just make these problems greater. Some people argue that they have a right as a legal adult at 18 to be able to drink. They believe that if they are able to fight for the country, pay taxes, buy a car, have a family, go to college, vote, smoke, they should be able to drink (Verbeckmoes). The problem is that drinking is different than any of those other responsibilities. Drinking has side effects and consequences that can affect other people than just the person who decided to drink. Since studies show that 18-year-olds are not mature enough to consume alcohol and make responsible decisions concerning alcohol, then it is not safe for others and themselves to make it

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