Underage drinking

[psalms 91]

Neither did the drinking at 18 I could wqalk in any bar in uniform and be served, of course then it wasnt as big a deal either.

 

[dogs4thewin]

Neither did the drinking at 18 I could wqalk in any bar in uniform and be served, of course then it wasnt as big a deal either.

Which is funny since back then there was the draft, so the standards ( behavior wise at least to get in were MUCH lower.

 

[keith99]

Or maybe 18-year-olds who are currently considered mature enough to vote, own guns and serve in the military should be trusted to have a beer?

At times I rather like the idea of saying beer and wine at 18 and distilled spirits at 21. It is really really hard to die from alcohol poisoning from drinking beer.

 

[Lamb]

I kind of think that if people can die from drinking too much water in a short period that they can die from drinking too much beer as well, don't you?

 

[tango]

At times I rather like the idea of saying beer and wine at 18 and distilled spirits at 21. It is really really hard to die from alcohol poisoning from drinking beer.

Should crossing the road be age-restricted too? It's really hard to get run over if you're not allowed to cross the road.

It is ridiculous that someone can be considered mature enough to get married, sign up for the military, own firearms in their own right, steer two tons of metal at 70mph, but not have a shot of whisky. If you want different ages for different products I'd say 16 for beer and 18 for spirits.

If you really want to go there you'll have tremendous amounts of fun objectively and exhaustively defining alcohol contents to differentiate beer from wine and wine from spirits, and even then it will ultimately fall flat because you still have a situation where someone can't legally drink a single shot of 35-year-old single malt whisky but can legally drink so much wine they can't stand up.

 

[psalms 91]

Should crossing the road be age-restricted too? It's really hard to get run over if you're not allowed to cross the road.

It is ridiculous that someone can be considered mature enough to get married, sign up for the military, own firearms in their own right, steer two tons of metal at 70mph, but not have a shot of whisky. If you want different ages for different products I'd say 16 for beer and 18 for spirits.

If you really want to go there you'll have tremendous amounts of fun objectively and exhaustively defining alcohol contents to differentiate beer from wine and wine from spirits, and even then it will ultimately fall flat because you still have a situation where someone can't legally drink a single shot of 35-year-old single malt whisky but can legally drink so much wine they can't stand up.

Actually some states do just that. I remember in the service I was allowed 3.2 beer but nothing stronger in the one one state.

 

[dogs4thewin]

Actually some states do just that. I remember in the service I was allowed 3.2 beer but nothing stronger in the one one state.

that was prior to 1984, though? Correct?

 

[dogs4thewin]

I kind of think that if people can die from drinking too much water in a short period that they can die from drinking too much beer as well, don't you?

Yes, but that takes a LOT of water. Since there is the same amount of alcohol in a 12oz can of beer as there is in an average shot of liquor ( since it depends on the proof of the liquor). It would therefore stand to reason that one can drink more UNITS of beer than liquor to get the same effect.

 

[MS140ukn]

minors should not be encouraged to have a sip of liquor at dinnertime because it could be a precursor towards alcoholism. i tried my first taste of wine when i was 14 and tasted good. but for me, i didnt become a drunkard by any means. sometimes during holidays, ill allow self to have a beer or small cognac.

 

[dogs4thewin]

minors should not be encouraged to have a sip of liquor at dinnertime because it could be a precursor towards alcoholism. i tried my first taste of wine when i was 14 and tasted good. but for me, i didnt become a drunkard by any means. sometimes during holidays, ill allow self to have a beer or small cognac.

The flip side of that is that kids could learn how to use alcohol in such a way that it would be LESS likely to become a problem; whether than keeping it from them for years and then they turn 21 and get COMPLETELY wasted.

 

[tango]

minors should not be encouraged to have a sip of liquor at dinnertime because it could be a precursor towards alcoholism. i tried my first taste of wine when i was 14 and tasted good. but for me, i didnt become a drunkard by any means. sometimes during holidays, ill allow self to have a beer or small cognac.

If anything it's more likely to encourage them to respect alcohol rather than being constantly denied and then unleashed with full freedom to drink as much as they want at an age when they are likely to explore it with a bunch of friends egging each other on, rather than with parents encouraging them not to overdo it.

In countries with more relaxed laws relating to alcohol they seem to have fewer problems with drunken behavior.

If a sip of liquor is a precursor towards alcoholism why is a sip of liquor at age 18, or 21, or 50, any different? As a rule most people who drink don't become alcoholics. In the UK the drinking age is 18. I think I had my first beer in a pub at age 14 (which wasn't legal but I was tall enough to get away with it), had a few forays into heavy drinking at university (at parties it was pretty much expected), then graduated and got used to drinking the cheapest lager you could imagine because it was what I could afford (to give you a bit of perspective a 4-pack of Budweiser cost more than a 24-can case of the stuff I tolerated), and now I no longer need to tolerate cheap rubbish I find I take it or leave it. Sometimes I'll have maybe 10-12 beers over the course of a week, sometimes I'll have none at all.

The people who are prone to addiction will end up addicted to something regardless of how tightly the state controls it. I'd have thought Al Capone proved that very well but it sometimes seems few if any lessons were learned from the Prohibition.

 

[Forgiven1]

In my state it is legal to serve alcohol to your own minor children in your own home. We did allow wine at special dinners, then eventually, if they wanted to enjoy a beer with their father they would. We also taught by example when it comes to drinking instead of hiding it form them. They would see us have a beer or glass of wine and we never got drunk. If we went out for dinner, only one of us would have a drink if we wanted. Once the kids were old enough to drive and were with us, then maybe both of us would have a drink. By the time each of my kids turned 21, they had learned about responsible drinking and have never been ones to go out with the idea of getting drunk. My oldest probably went out with friends, he was in college away from home at the time. My middle one had already studied in Europe and did not like the US culture surrounding turning 21 and having that drink. She was on her way to study in another country when she turned 21 so avoided the US culture. My youngest had his first legal drink at his cousin's graduation party after being 21 for a month. He was on R&R from Iraq at the time, so after he returned to Iraq, it was not until returning from deployment for the next times.

What I am trying to say, is we do need to teach them at home the way to drink responsibility as well as the pros and cons of certain behaviors. Then when they do go out in the world, they will probably have a healthier attitude about drinking.

 

[tango]

In my state it is legal to serve alcohol to your own minor children in your own home. We did allow wine at special dinners, then eventually, if they wanted to enjoy a beer with their father they would. We also taught by example when it comes to drinking instead of hiding it form them. They would see us have a beer or glass of wine and we never got drunk. If we went out for dinner, only one of us would have a drink if we wanted. Once the kids were old enough to drive and were with us, then maybe both of us would have a drink. By the time each of my kids turned 21, they had learned about responsible drinking and have never been ones to go out with the idea of getting drunk. My oldest probably went out with friends, he was in college away from home at the time. My middle one had already studied in Europe and did not like the US culture surrounding turning 21 and having that drink. She was on her way to study in another country when she turned 21 so avoided the US culture. My youngest had his first legal drink at his cousin's graduation party after being 21 for a month. He was on R&R from Iraq at the time, so after he returned to Iraq, it was not until returning from deployment for the next times.

What I am trying to say, is we do need to teach them at home the way to drink responsibility as well as the pros and cons of certain behaviors. Then when they do go out in the world, they will probably have a healthier attitude about drinking.

That really is the way to do it. If alcohol is the kind of subject kids learn about from friends behind the bike sheds it's inevitable they will learn all sorts of bad stuff about it. If alcohol is the kind of topic that's off limits for discussion, it's inevitable that it will generate an unhealthy attitude to it.

On the other hand, if alcohol is something that parents drink in moderation, the kids can see it, it's not hidden in any way and talked about freely, they learn that it's actually nothing particularly special. It's not a secret, it's not a forbidden fruit, it's not some mystical thing that only adults are even allowed to behold.

It's just a question of striking a balance so that the aura of mystique is pierced but not to the point that familiarity breeds contempt.