Drinking And Gambling Age At 18-Thoughts?

[Mitchell]

I dont know if this subject has ever been discussed on the forum before. If it has, I havent seen it.

In most states, one cant legally go into a bar and order a drink until age 21. The same holds true to go into a casino. I know that in PA, DE, NJ, and NV, one cant gamble until they are 21. In NY its 18, as the sign is posted in the Acqueduct casino.

What do forum members think of this? As we know, one has to register for selective service at age 18. It seems wrong that one can go have their head shot off in a war at 18, but cant order a drink in a bar, or go into a casino. It seems to me that they should either raise the selective service age to 21, or lower the drinking and gambling age in all states to 18.

Thoughts?

 

[GQguy]

Agreed.

 

[jhop220]

If your old enough to be put into the selective service...you are old enough to drink. Want to gamble your own money? No age limit needed

 

[Mitchell]

I agree, guys, and thanks.

 

[Jagermeistered]

I do not believe in any minimal age limit. If you are working, and you have money in your wallet - spend and consume as you please.

 

[Bothersome]

If your old enough to be put into the selective service...you are old enough to drink. Want to gamble your own money? No age limit needed

My thoughts exactly.

 

[Mitchell]

LOL jager. The teenagers in this country who work and have money would love you.

I agree Bothersome.

 

[voided9]

Totally agree. Especially being around so many army guys here, including my husband before he got out - there's no way I could refuse to serve them a drink after the things they have been through!

 

[General Zod]

I think it is criminally stupid that you can get blown up between the ages of 18-20,but you are not allowed to drink alcohol,or gamble.

I was originally in the Army reserves before I went active USAF. I was reserves from 1984 to 1986. Until 1985,I think,it may be a different year,if your were in the U.S. military,stationed at a U.S. base,you were allowed to drink beer,on base only,if you were 18-20. The hard stuff was for 21 and over,if memory serves me right.

Overseas,you could drink any alcohol between 18-20,provided the host country had a lower drinking age.

 

[Dandy Jack]

Let em Drink and gamble! But get rid of 4 years of high school...

However I think that at least 2 years of military service should be mandatory or work in the peace corps.2 yrs...

Dandy Jack!

 

[chicago]

I think the drinking age should stay the way it is, if not raised to like 25. Areas of the brain regarding judgement and decision making aren't even fully developed til then and most fatal car accidents involving alcohol are caused by young adults aged 20 - 24.

However, if you're in the military, you should be able to get shitfaced once in a while. If they could make that exception, I'd agree with it.

 

[Bothersome]

I think the drinking age should stay the way it is, if not raised to like 25. Areas of the brain regarding judgement and decision making aren't even fully developed til then and most fatal car accidents involving alcohol are caused by young adults aged 20 - 24.

However, if you're in the military, you should be able to get shitfaced once in a while. If they could make that exception, I'd agree with it.

If the areas of judgment and decision making aren't fully developed until the age of 25, then shouldn't admittance into the military be postponed at least until then?

I don't think anyone who's liable to make a bad judgment call purely because of their age has business holding a gun.

 

[chicago]

I think choosing to join the military shows a level of maturity that many young adults don't have. And I believe being in the military can provide incredible growth as a person.

I also believe that there is a difference between someone in the military who is handling a gun and someone who is not trained to do so holding a gun.

That training makes a difference as well as psychological monitoring. For instance, the army puts psychological well-being on par with physical fitness.

But good argument.

 

[Brock Samson]

I'm going with Annie on this one. She has hit the nail on the head. The stats are pretty high regarding young adults and fatalities resulting from drunk driving. Military personnel, on the other hand, should be the exception to that rule once the recruits graduate from their respective branch's basic training.

 

[Bothersome]

I think choosing to join the military shows a level of maturity that many young adults don't have. And I believe being in the military can provide incredible growth as a person.

I also believe that there is a difference between someone in the military who is handling a gun and someone who is not trained to do so holding a gun.

That training makes a difference as well as psychological monitoring. For instance, the army puts psychological well-being on par with physical fitness.

But good argument.

If the argument against drinking excludes inherent maturity within the individual, than the argument against wielding a weapon applies in the exact same manner.

Choosing to join the military indicates no greater sense of maturity than choosing to adhere to any other respectable profession, anyways. Now, I won't argue that being in the military inspires growth. There are too many testimonies to that for me to honestly refute.

However, the data that shows that our sense of judgment hasn't fully developed by the age of 18 isn't based on maturity or growth. It's based on the biological workings of our bodies; workings that are not altered by life experience or maturity.

You could argue that someone who is more mature will make better judgment calls, and you'd be right. However, that is a completely separate issue from the biological development of our brains.

Just add for clarity, if you're arguing that the drinking age should be 25 because our brains don't fully develop, that's fine. I can perfectly understand that, and I'd honestly even be okay with it. However, that certainly does not exclude people who've been in the military. But, that's another argument altogether.

At any rate, if you're going to disallow drinking until the age of 25 based on that premise, and then still allow people to join the military at the age of 18, and then let them use a weapon before the age of 25, you need to prove that the military accelerates the biological growth of your brain, and that by the time the recruits are allowed to use a weapon for the first time, their brains are equivalently developed as someone who exceeds the age of 25.

 

[Mitchell]

I agree with most on here in regard to the drinking age, but Mairead has an interesting perspective. If she was setting the drinking age, she would have students in all colleges and grad schools upset with her.

I turned 21 in the middle of my junior year in college, but was in Atlantic City with my mom on my 21st bday, because it fell over my Xmas vacation. I'll never forget walking into the casino at midnight on the night of Jan 22nd/early Jan 23rd, showing security my ID, walking up to the crap table, and ordering a drink. We were down there for 3 days, and I had like one or two drinks a day.. but never got drunk.

 

[chicago]

Drinking + studying isn't typically a great combination anyway.

If the argument against drinking excludes inherent maturity within the individual, than the argument against wielding a weapon applies in the exact same manner.

Choosing to join the military indicates no greater sense of maturity than choosing to adhere to any other respectable profession, anyways. Now, I won't argue that being in the military inspires growth. There are too many testimonies to that for me to honestly refute.

However, the data that shows that our sense of judgment hasn't fully developed by the age of 18 isn't based on maturity or growth. It's based on the biological workings of our bodies; workings that are not altered by life experience or maturity.

You could argue that someone who is more mature will make better judgment calls, and you'd be right. However, that is a completely separate issue from the biological development of our brains.

Just add for clarity, if you're arguing that the drinking age should be 25 because our brains don't fully develop, that's fine. I can perfectly understand that, and I'd honestly even be okay with it. However, that certainly does not exclude people who've been in the military. But, that's another argument altogether.

At any rate, if you're going to disallow drinking until the age of 25 based on that premise, and then still allow people to join the military at the age of 18, and then let them use a weapon before the age of 25, you need to prove that the military accelerates the biological growth of your brain, and that by the time the recruits are allowed to use a weapon for the first time, their brains are equivalently developed as someone who exceeds the age of 25.

I see what you're saying and I'd change the laws to make it so you can't join the military until you're 25 too, based on what I've said, but the law states that you're considered an "adult" - able to make your own life decisions at 18, like joining the military, and lots of parents seem to agree with that, like mine did. So joining the military is sometimes a very smart (sometimes the only) decision for a lot of kids once they leave high school. But if I could change things about that law, I would do that as well.

But I thought going into all of that would detract from the point of this thread. Leaving the age at which one can join the military at 18, I still believe if you're a soldier and risking your life for others, that you should be able to have a drink, even if you're under 21 or 25 or whatever. Maybe it doesn't make sense to you, or you feel like it's contradictory to other points I've made, but that's how I feel about it.

 

[Mitchell]

While I see Mairead's point, and she makes a valid argument, I honestly think one of two things should happen.

A. Lower the drinking and gambling age to 18. One can vote at age 18, and has to register for selective service.

B. Raise everything to 21. People dont have to register for selective service until 21, and also cant drink or gamble until 21.

To me, it still seems hypocritical that a person has to sign up to potentially get their head shot off on a war at 18, but cant drink or gamble until 21.

 

[Bothersome]

Drinking + studying isn't typically a great combination anyway.



I see what you're saying and I'd change the laws to make it so you can't join the military until you're 25 too, based on what I've said, but the law states that you're considered an "adult" - able to make your own life decisions at 18, like joining the military, and lots of parents seem to agree with that, like mine did. So joining the military is sometimes a very smart (sometimes the only) decision for a lot of kids once they leave high school. But if I could change things about that law, I would do that as well.

But I thought going into all of that would detract from the point of this thread. Leaving the age at which one can join the military at 18, I still believe if you're a soldier and risking your life for others, that you should be able to have a drink, even if you're under 21 or 25 or whatever. Maybe it doesn't make sense to you, or you feel like it's contradictory to other points I've made, but that's how I feel about it.

I get that, and I understand it.

However, as an 'adult', we're all free to make our own choices. Whether that choice be grabbing a beer with our buddies, or throwing our lot in with the military.

The arguing point, based on that, must be at which age we consider ourselves to be adults that are able to make our own decisions. We can either make it an arbitrary number like 18 or 21, or base it off a scientific fact like the age at which our brains are fully developed.

One way or another, an adult is an adult. We can't go adding extraneous qualifiers to it based on how you've lived through your childhood and adolescence. You can make any number of irrelevant, anecdotal arguments as to why someone should be able to drink. However, if you make a law, then it needs to apply to everyone.

The simplest answer to this is obvious: make the drinking age the same as the minimum age to join the military.

 

[Dandy Jack]

Don't forget my point about doing something to change High School! Get rid of it or let it be reduced to 2 years

and only a half a day at that!

Dandy Jack!

 

[ticklishdanny]

Ehh, I don't drink anyways haha

 

[Mitchell]

I dont drink alcohol either. Havent for years, but I still think they should either raise the selective service age, or lower the gambling and drinking ages.