Legal Age

[Neverender]

Do you think they should Change the legal age to drink/buy alcohol to 18 in Canada(19) and the U.S.(21)? they are legally an adult at that age, able to vote and whatnot. but unable to buy beer? or should they just leave it as is?

[Requin]

Hmmm, well in the Uk it's 18.
I think it helps, but it won't stop people who are underage from drinking will it?
And what if they look over 18 but are younger?
It's a hard thing to enforce.

[Θάνατος]

I think you should be able to buy beer at 18. I mean if you can be drafted and killed in a war for your country then you should be at least able to buy and drink beer. Beer is a lot better for you than cigarettes and you can buy them at 18.

[Whisper]

it is 18 in alberta and quebec

but the problem is
theres allot of fucking idiots
and then you get them drunk
they've JUST gotten there drivers
and
ya

[MoveAlong]

They should leave it as it is. Even at 21 people are still immature, and you can see that by how many accidents for people that are even over 21 get into. Why lower it?

[Atonement]

Well my opinion is in the United states, you are an adult in everyway but buying and consuming alcohol at 18. You can die for your country, vote for your country's future, buy tobacco, and do ANYTHING except... buying and consuming alcohol. So, if they want to change the age, either make being an adult age 18 or 21. Or 19. Dont care. Just be equal

[Whisper]

I agree with that

you can join the military at 16 in canada
yet you can't vote until 18
and in some areas can't drink until 19

standardize it

[Techno Monster]

I don't think the drinking age should be changed, kids are drinking to much already.

[Zephyr]

I think you should be able to buy beer at 18. I mean if you can be drafted and killed in a war for your country then you should be at least able to buy and drink beer. Beer is a lot better for you than cigarettes and you can buy them at 18.

Exactly.

I mean, I can understand that spreading out the risky things that you can do is good so that you don't go out and do them all at once, but it just groups people that are 18-20 in with minors still. So it's like: "Congrats! You are an adult. You are now legally responsible for yourself, but we arn't going to trust you with the consumption of alcohol.".

It's kind of sad because I know that when I drink, I'm more responsible about it than some adults that I know.

I think, for now, the best idea would be to move it to 19 that way there isn't too huge of a fuss over it from either point of view.

[CaptainObvious]

Absolutely yes. In a legal and moral sense, adults should be able to make decisions about their own personal consumption, period. If people think 18-20 year olds shouldn't drink, then they shouldn't be legal adults. End of discussion.

[theOperaGhost]

Yes and no. I think you should be an adult at 19, since you are more than likely out of high school by then. I don't think we need to legalize high school kids drinking. Although most high school kids have a supplier over 21 anyway. I'm a bit unsure, but I voted yes because I think it should all be standardized.

[Callwaiting]

Definately not!

Think about it, at 19/21 it's acceptable for 16/19 year olds to drink, by lowering the legal age, you're lowering the socially acceptable age about 2-3 years.
Here in Australia it's 18 which I'm happy with :)

[serial-thrilla]

18 should be the legal age everywhere. Thats when your an adult. You can go to war and kill a man, but you can't drink a beer?

[0=]

It should be lowered. Being exposed to something from an earlier age tends to make people more relaxed, casual, and responsible about it.

[CookieMonster]

I'm kind of torn between the two.

I actually think there should be some kind of test, kind of like a driving test, that you have to take, at the age of 18, before you are legally allowed to drink. Many kids are responsible at the age of 18 and can handle drinking, while other kids that age aren't. And for that matter, many 30-year-olds aren't responsible enough to drink. When you pass that test you get a license to drink that you have to show along with some kind of ID to buy alcohol. And that license applies to people of all ages. Some adults do horrible things when they are drunk. It would be better if those people aren't allowed to buy alcohol.
Now obviously, many people will drink anyway, as they do now. BUT, it would help some. There are people out there that follow the law.

[tbboltz92]

I tihnk if your old enough to vote for a leader, and to decide to join the us army you should be able buy a beer

[JoshDude]

Everything should be at the same age.

Car licence, drinking/buying alcohol, cigarettes, voting, etc. Makes it a hell of a lot easier.

[tbboltz92]

Thats a good idea. however I feel it would be taking away from a mile stone in a teens life. All teens cant wait to be 16 and drive. Everything but driving should be same age. eithier 18 or 21 pick one

[BlackenedSilver]

Yea in the Uk its 18, but I still see groups of 14 year old walking past my house with alcohol. So.. I think they should lower it to 16 then there will be less sneaking around.. and I can drink XD

[Dolphus Raymond]

Mixed feelings

Philosophically, I think it can be lower. Practically, when New Jersey tried this, I think drunken driving soared.

Bleh.

[CaptainObvious]

Mixed feelings

Philosophically, I think it can be lower. Practically, when New Jersey tried this, I think drunken driving soared.

Bleh.

Mind sourcing that claim? I wasn't aware that any states had changed their drinking age back under 21 since the feds tied highway funding to having a 21 drinking age.

[Antares]

I voted no. Only because the kids will go crazy and buy beer and drink theirselves up a storm. Then we will have an increase in depression, addiction, and death. I would rather avoid that crap. Sure, that will end in a few generations but still why do it?
I just think, "leave it!". Who needs it anyways? Its not that great.

[tbboltz92]

wll no matter what kids will go crazy and buy beer. Fake ids my friend, so might as well make it legal peole do it asnyways. So why waste time and money preventing something thats gonna happen anyway? Just my opion

[jrob11]

Yeah, its so stupid how we have to wait for 21. I mean they (they being young adults) are just goin to find some way to get alcohol. and the way they get it is usually illegal.

[Neverender]

oh, and another point i forgot to mention, in newfoundland, YOU CAN BUY ANY ALCOHOLIC DRINK AT GAS STATIONS or, the new law, IN GROCERY STORES.

so kids are buying the beer anyways, why not lower it. the cops would have a lot easier time, and up in labrador, there hasn't been 1 innu to graduate MUN(memorial university in st. john's) in 10 years. they are all addicted to huffing gas and drinking beer. they need to establish drinking laws up there, but you couldn't raise the drinking age up there if you wanted to(and let alone illegalizing it). they are hours away from any police or highways (Davis Inlet, Nain, Nunaviasut, etc.). exept for Sheshatshiu(Sheh-Sheh-Shee) which is 45 minutes from Goose Bay. The cops are all driving over that gravel highway nonstop. but Churchill falls, Wabush, Goose bay, Cartwright, Labrador city and Sheshatshiu are the only possible place to enforce high age drinking laws.

for example about how bad it is up there, you got the highschool, when the bell rings for recess or whatever, they don't go out and have a smoke, they start huffing gas in a group of about 20 13-year-olds. its really bad.

[redcar]

oh, and another point i forgot to mention, in newfoundland, YOU CAN BUY ANY ALCOHOLIC DRINK AT GAS STATIONS or, the new law, IN GROCERY STORES.
You can do that here as well, but doesn't mean I am going to crack open a bottle of wine on my way home from getting some petrol. Same logic with condoms, I can buy them in a chemist but does that mean I am going to use them there?

The debate whether to change the legal age is something that will always be tossed back and forth but unless society can change with it, there will never be any changes. If you reduced the age in USA to 18, without changing peoples attitudes towards alcohol there will be a serious problem. A lot of European countries have lower age limits and that is complemented by their attitude to drinking, a lot of these countries will drink but won't drink to get pissed.

For example Ireland could never reduce its age to buy alcohol below 18 (interesting enough it is legal to drink at any age in Ireland but you can't buy it till your 18) because we have a terrible attitude to drinking. Most Irish, the youth anyway, do not go out to have a few drinks, they go out with the aim of getting pissed off their faces.

I believe there can never be a change in legal age without society changing and that is much harder to do.

[Gavin]

No...otherwise i'd have to wait another 3 more years to drink legally :P

[Whisper]

That's exactly why America is 21
The gov knows there going to get there hands on alcohol well before that
But because of the law there usually more wary and don't get completely shit faced
And there more careful about driving under the influence

as soon as they raised the age teen related car fatality's plummeted

Alberta is considering raising it to 21
We have ALLOT of problems with hot headed Albertan's and Newfies getting absolutely SHITFACED and causing allot of property damage, getting into allot of fights, allot of drunken stabbings, and allot of drunk driving
Personally I think it's a good idea for two very important reasons

1) If it worked in America then chances are it'll work in Alberta
2) I'm 21 so it won't affect me

[Neverender]

That's exactly why America is 21
The gov knows there going to get there hands on alcohol well before that
But because of the law there usually more wary and don't get completely shit faced
And there more careful about driving under the influence

as soon as they raised the age teen related car fatality's plummeted

Alberta is considering raising it to 21
We have ALLOT of problems with hot headed Albertan's and Newfies getting absolutely SHITFACED and causing allot of property damage, getting into allot of fights, allot of drunken stabbings, and allot of drunk driving
Personally I think it's a good idea for two very important reasons

1) If it worked in America then chances are it'll work in Alberta
2) I'm 21 so it won't affect me

clearly you've been to fort Macmurray, and alot of the newfies drink because:

A. They can't get to the george street festival in St. John's
B. The beer is the only thing made it worth staying in alberta, because they misses home.
C. They're damn ornery newfies

[The Batman]

Giving an 18 year old the legal right to drink this day and age is like letting loose a kid in a candy shop. They'll get to much and drink them selves sick or dead.

[Hyper]

Well I think the age should be 21.. But it wont really matter.

However it should never ever go under 18.

[Mannequin]

No, by lowering the age to 18 high school students can purchase alcohol and the average drinking age would likely lower tremendously. Please tell me you all don't believe high school students can handle alcohol appropriately. I realize many high school students already drink, but why add to the problem? This ONLY can do bad things--more DUI's, deaths, high school drop outs, drug usage also to likely to become more common in younger teens.