ill carry fake I.D.s ask legal drinkers to buy for them or sneak drinks from their parents' liquor cabinets. This kind of devious attitude does not encourage responsible drinking. Furthermore, when the opportunity to drink arises, there is a kind of "Let's make up for lost time" attitude. The result is binge drinking. The drinking age should be lowered to 18. With the focus on education about safe drinking instead of restriction, many problems would be averted. American teenagers, unlike European teens, do not learn how to drink gradually, safely and in moderation. There alcohol abuse isn’t as big of a problem. This comes from educated and gradual drinking. Young people learn to regard moderate drinking as an enjoyable social activity rather than as something they have to sneak around to do. Without this kind of system, college is viewed as a kind of liberation. If 18 year olds do not have legal access to even a beer in a public place, they are ill equipped to deal with the responsibilities that come with drinking when they do have the right. The drinking age should be lowered because the current age has no real basis. With a lowered drinking age, fewer problems will be present. The Boulder County Alcohol Summit came up with no concrete action plan but they seemed to agree that we need to teach responsible drinking, not forbid teens from drinking. The problems, which make a drinking age limit necessary, are better solved through a lowered drinking level and more education on responsible drinking. So the next time the issue is put to a vote be sure to vote for lowering this arbitrary drinking age....
