[truenospinzone]

How else explain the logic that at 18 one is a legal adult and may own property, enter the workforce without the gubmint's permission, and "die for one's country", but may not buy beer on a Friday night? I'm not exactly saying that the "fear of happiness" argument is absolutely correct, but what other argument is there? How does the three year gap between adulthood and legal drinking make sense?

[Texaggie79]

How does the three year gap between adulthood and legal drinking make sense?

Same reason you can buy a shotgun at 18 but must wait till 21 to buy a hand gun. Some states just believe that they are not equipped to safely and responsibly handle it. Fun, has nothing to do with it. Why do you have to be 25 to rent a car? I know it's not a law, but it is a standard.

[mamelukesabre]

How else explain the logic that at 18 one is a legal adult and may own property, enter the workforce without the gubmint's permission, and "die for one's country", but may not buy beer on a Friday night? I'm not exactly saying that the "fear of happiness" argument is absolutely correct, but what other argument is there? How does the three year gap between adulthood and legal drinking make sense?

~~~~~~~~~

It doesn't make any sense. That's why so many teens drink beer and so many adults buy it for them. The law should be changed. When I was 18, you could stand at the entrance to a grocery store and ask people at random to buy beer for you. I never had to ask more than 3 people. To me that means approx one in three adults was willing to break the law and buy beer for a minor they don't even know.

I think that says alot about the drinking law, don't you?

[1L]

How does the three year gap between adulthood and legal drinking make sense?

The same question can be asked of the two year gap between getting a drivers license and voting; between being able to select which parent you want to live with if they are divorced (12 in some states) and being able to get married with parental permission (isn't it 14 in some states; if not, 16). Different circumstances affect different decisions and there isn't a huge push to bring the drinking age down from 21.

[JoeGar]

How else explain the logic that at 18 one is a legal adult and may own property, enter the workforce without the gubmint's permission, and "die for one's country", but may not buy beer on a Friday night?

It boggles my mind that we trust an 18-year-old with a multi-million dollar tank loaded with a wide array of explosive ordnance, but we cannot trust him with a beer -- even on a military base!

Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) has led Congress down this stupid path. A pox on MADD!