Radley Balko Analysis

Robert Voas states teen pregnancy, sexual assaults, and crime rates have increased due to underage drinking. Alcohol consumption at a college age leads to 600,000 physical assaults and 70,000 sexual assaults yearly according to a study (464). Joyce Alcantara claims if the age were lowered back to eighteen then it would put younger teens at risk (468). People tend to have friends around their same age. So, if eighteen year olds were allowed to drink then their friends which are roughly around the age of sixteen or seventeen would likely have an alcoholic drink in their hand as well.

In the other hand Gordon, John Steele says, “In H. L. Menken’s words, that “somebody somewhere may be happy”—was to cut down on drunk driving. And that has happened in the last three decades. But this good development did not come about because of this law. Instead, it came about because of, 1) a lowering of the standard for impaired driving from a blood alcohol level of .1 percent to .08, 2) greatly increased penalties for drunk driving (in 42 states today, the first conviction for drunk driving results in a suspension of one’s driver’s license) and, 3) a lower per capita consumption of alcohol (the three-martini lunch is, today, largely ancient history)”. This author defends his point of view on the grounds that increasing the age

The Effects of Lowering the Drinking Age According to Carla T. Main in “Underage Drinking and the Drinking Age” from The Tennessee Electronic Library, the legal drinking age shouldn’t be reduced in result of all of the things that occur due to underage drinking. She talks about how institutions could help by having discussions with the college students about responsible drinking. When the drinking age was lowered between 1970 and 1976, the results were catastrophic. The highway deaths among teenagers and young adults skyrocketed.

Paragraph 1 Underage drinking can affect your brain and the way you act drastically and the way you do things from under the age of 21. People under the age of 21, their brains are not fully developed yet which

This is understandable as often this is when students have moved away from home and have the freedom to do what they want without their parents present. Some high-risk drinking events tend to be more prevalent in young adulthood. For example, homecoming, athletic events, spring break, pregame partying, and graduations have all been associated with excessive drinking among college students. This goes to show how the younger generation is very willing to drink. In 2002 the National Institute on Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse issed a Call to Action to adress drinking on college campuses, based on findings of an expert panel.

Many states required that the legal drinking age be 21 although some required that a person be 18. By 1984 all US states required that the legal drinking age be 21. In conclusion, although the intention of the Prohibition Act and the age of prohibition was to improve the lives of citizens by reducing health risks, violence and crimes caused by alcoholism, it had the opposite effect. As such, the Prohibition Act and the ensuing age of prohibition did not succeed in reducing the consumption and abuse of alcohol but instead created a virtual “monster” that created more problems rather than finding

The Higher Education of Drinking College is a place for higher learning. It is a time when young adults are exploring themselves as individuals, expanding not only their academic horizons but for many, it’s their first time being on their own socially. Young adults find themselves making many decisions. These choices involve attending class, completing assignments and possibly engaging in behaviors that could impact their own personal health and safety. Sometimes they are faced with decisions that involve the use of various substances including alcohol.

Each year, approximately 5,000 persons under the age of 21 die from causes related to underage drinking. These deaths include about 1,600 homicides and 300 suicides. This would also help bring back the great reputations of many college institutions from

It can cause depression and he or she can develop criminal behavior which can lead to death. It has been shown that when the drinking age is lowered teens increase drinking. When Arizona lowered their age to nineteen, teenage drinking increased by thirty-five percent. Car accidents have been known to come from alcohol and research has proven that with the age being twenty-one, suicides, DUIS, and crime rate have decreased

Since 1984 there has been a federal act that strongly advises states not to allow citizens under the age of 21 from drinking alcoholic beverages. To this day there are still people arguing about this law, both for and against it. Having a minimum drinking age set at 21 is a popular ongoing debate that has many supporters and disputers. To begin, alcohol was a key topic in debates

At the age of eighteen, teens are allowed to enlist in the military, virtually putting their life on the line to defend our country. With this great responsibility, another questions continues to rise; if eighteen year olds are mature enough to sacrifice their lives for the country, shouldn’t they also be mature enough to drink at the age of 18? Michael Gonchar, an author of Should the Drinking Age Be Lowered? from the New York Times, wrote an objective article looking at both pros and cons of lowering the legal drinking age. On the other hand, John McCardell wrote an article in support of lowering the legal drinking age to eighteen. To persuade the audience, both authors use numerous rhetorical techniques.

But while it has succeeded in that, it is also believed that tougher rules, such as DUI rules and seatbelt safety rules have also played a part in this decrease. However, this higher drinking age hasn’t reduced drinking, its only “driven it underground,” Gabrielle Glaser states in her NY Times article. It has been driven underground to the riskiest settings, high school parties and frat parties that are unsupervised. This age raise segregates the drinking away from adults that can model moderation in drinking. If an 18-year-old high school senior is shown by his/her parent(s) how to drink responsibly and in moderation, I believe that it would greatly help in reducing the chance of making bad decisions by overdoing it, such as driving while drinking.

Across the country, college students participate in an illegal activity known as underage drinking. The drinking age in America is an ongoing debate of whether it should be kept at 21, or reduced to 18. While some believe lowering the drinking age would make drinking for young kids safer, others presume the opposite. According to Alexis Aguirre, a journalist at the Texas State University Star, “The legal drinking age should be lowered to 18. Once 18, a person is legally considered an adult and should be able to drink.”

A poll taken on July 2014 asked the public opinion of US adults for lowering the US legal drinking age from 21 to 18. Approximately 74% of the people opposed the idea, whereas roughly 25% of the people supported the idea ("Public Opinion" 1). The statistics indicate satisfaction among the majority of the people; however, with the current laws many issues arise that must be addressed concerning alcohol use. For starters, studies show an increase of dangerous drinking habits among young adults (Hall 2). In addition, the enforcement of the drinking laws and education on alcohol is insubstantial (Moyse, Fonder 3).

College Students’ Exposure to Alcohol Drinking Drinking alcoholic beverages among college students is widely common nowadays in this generation. Several reasons can be recognized why students drink alcohol. According to the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence Inc, (2016), improving self-confidence, altering own identity (to adapt), curiosity, lack of parental advice, problems of daily living, running away from family dilemma, experiencing academic difficulty and other mental-related problems drive the teenagers to drink alcohol. Considering the reasons stated above, these can be some of the many ways how young people manage with their personal, emotional and social problems that they are experiencing.