Drinking age still debated

JS Online ^ | July 17, 2005 | RAQUEL RUTLEDGE

[zbigreddogz]

That solution would be completely and utterly worthless, and it ignores reality.

The reality is, that kids do drink, and while it causes some trouble on it's own, it causes even more because it's illegal.

Kids that are kicking ass at school arn't going to be the ones with the problems, and the other ones will drink anyway.

[BikerNYC]

Boycott Chevron-Texaco, buy Exxon-Mobil !

Why?

[bummerdude]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1365615/posts

[BikerNYC]

I see. I boycott all companies with hyphenated names. Pick one name and be done with it.

[Family Guy]

I saw Abbie Hoffman (Steal This Book) speak at my college years ago and even though he was a liberal, he spoke an awful lot of sense on some topics. He said that if people from 18 to 21 didn't become informed and start voting, they were going to lose the right. He said that it was obvious that they didn't vote because if they did, they'd be able to drink.

Just as an aside, he also said that you should always try to get your news from multiple sources so that you get the true story.

[HolgerDansk]

The 21 drinking age mandate killed a number of Good Ideas at the state level. Several midwestern states had lower legal ages for beer and wine versus spirits, or lower ages for their own residents (to address the blood border problem).

Having differential ages made sense, but ran up against expanding federalism. I recall that Wisconsin had a different drinking age for its own residents for a few months, until some FIB of an Illinoisian challenged it in the courts under the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment.

Reagan was from California, which has always had a very puritanical cultural attitude about alcohol.

[Porterville]

Feds have no rights in anyones business unless I need my boots polished and my butt wiped.

[dakine]

12th-graders who reported consuming alcohol in the last 30 days dropped to 48% in 2004 from 66% in 1985

Slackers.....

[rochester_veteran]

Reagan was from California, which has always had a very puritanical cultural attitude about alcohol.

I was stationed both in Illinois and in California back in the mid-70's. In Illinois, one could buy beer and wine at 19 years old. You had to be 21 in California to drink anything. I agree with you that about states back then who had different drinking ages for beer and wine versus spirits, it made good sense.

rochester_veteran

[TKDietz]

"In many states, Texas included, a parent or legal guardian can legally supply alcohol to their own minor child, including at restaurants. (I believe this also works for spouses.)"

In other states that is considered child abuse and endangering the welfare of a minor.

[MeanWestTexan]

No suprise Hoffman had some good ideas.

Classic Liberals are what we call "conservatives" today.

[Last Dakotan]

I agree with you that about states back then who had different drinking ages for beer and wine versus spirits, it made good sense.

That was one of the ideas of federalism. Different states coud try different things.

[Family Guy]

Classic Liberals are what we call "conservatives" today.

That makes sense. It reminds me of something Zel Miller said (paraphrasing), "I didn't leave the Democratic party. They left me."