College presidents seek drinking age debate

[BridgeTheGap]

RALEIGH, North Carolina - College presidents from about 100 of the best-known U.S. universities, including Duke, Dartmouth and Ohio State, are calling on lawmakers to consider lowering the drinking age from 21 to 18, saying current laws actually encourage dangerous binge drinking on campus.

The movement called the Amethyst Initiative began quietly recruiting presidents more than a year ago to provoke national debate about the U.S. drinking age, which is among the highest in the world.

"This is a law that is routinely evaded," said John McCardell, former president of Middlebury College in Vermont who started the organization. "It is a law that the people at whom it is directed believe is unjust and unfair and discriminatory."

Other prominent schools in the group include Syracuse, Tufts, Colgate, Kenyon and Morehouse.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26271328/?GT1=43001

[NJmaverick]

1. Good I hope they lower the drinking age

Raising it to 21 was stupid, in my opinion.

[Connonym]

5. I agree

same old arguments apply, old enough to go to jail, old enough to go to war, to sign a contract, to marry, to vote, etc. then you really should be old enough to drink. You're either of age or you're not. If you're not responsible enough to consent to drinking than I don't believe you're old enough to consent to entering into a legal contract.

[Rabrrrrrr]

2. They should just get rid of it entirely. Stupid thing.

At a minimum, it definitely should go back to 18. Probably even 16.

Instead of treating booze (and sex) as things that are taboo and therefore really cool and therefore something that should be overindulged in, we should make it not taboo and not so boner-creating cool; make it a natural part of life, to be neither overindulged nor afraid of.

[BrklynLiberal]

3. I cannot help but wonder what got them so interested in this.

I am cynical enough to believe that alcohol industry is involved.

On an interview this AM on the radio a rep from MADD quoted the number of lives that have been saved by the decrease in drunk driving teenagers.

I just cannot believe that there is any good to be done by lowering the drinking age, except for bars and the alcohol industry.

[BridgeTheGap]

7. I think their point is that underage drinking happens whether legal or not.

I remember being a child (8 or so) and going to town centenials in Indiana, German settlements.
My teenage cousins (13 & older) were allowed to drink. I remember some of them passed in the yard of a relative. The thing was, they didn't drive any where.

[Tripper11]

4. And like they say, if you can kill a someone in war at 18

Why the hell can't you have a lousy cold beer?

[LisaM]

6. I think they should lower it

I remember when it was 18 and you could have a keg at dorm parties. This is WAY safer than the crap they do now, like drinking 21 shots when you're 21. We rarely, IF EVER, drank hard liquor. The fraternity parties had kegs too. Of course, we also couldn't have cars on campus and hardly anyone did - that should be a component of this too.

[mentalsolstice]

8. Best thing they can do is serve alcohol on campus

The college I went to had a Rathskeller in the student center. It really cut down on drinking and driving, compared to other college campuses I've been involved with.

[Iggo]

9. My guess is it has at least something to do...

...with liability. How much (if any) I can't say. Like I said, I'm guessing.

My thought on it is this: If you're an adult at 18, then you're an adult at 18.

For any rw lurkers, let me put it this way: If you're old enough to be a soldier, you're old enough to have a beer in a bar.