“Families who raise their kids to drink with a respect for the substance, come out ahead...”
I completely agree. This is not to say that I would allow my children to drink at an earlier age. This is the way in which we’ve raised our kids. Two are in college and both have no desire to drink. We’ve invited them to taste wine was well as beer in our presence. Both disliked it.
The overarching problem lies in the fact that parents are not raising responsible teens. Also, teenagers are being encouraged to live irresponsibly. Adding an earlier drinking age to this only escalates the problems rather than alleviates it.
That’s what I think.
In our house, they let the aunts in, who were very instructive. They told us stories, family history, and warned us of all kids of real danger, both in stories and straight talk. they started their visit with a greeting, food and the, “let’s go see your school”. Honestly, they would do a ride along on a sunday, with their fur coats tou our school. They’d have the driver (dad) circle the empty parking lot. In a full sized Lincoln with the double doors.
They were in charge. If the principal had arrived, it’d be no contest.
They earned the right to tell us the dangers out there, and re alcohol. That is just not age specific. They were all raised with a non drinking age, in the days just after prohibition., I guess. But women did not drink heavily, ever. They certainly didn’t.
So there’s one difference, but kids glom on to that stuff. A lot of them do want to do what’s right, they just need a quick role model.
And you can believe they were steely blue eyed Irish, whose brothers could be caught dead at the Parade but never themselves.