Affirmative Argument
Thesis: Lowering the drinking age is a reasonable decision as 18 year old are considered adults, it would help the economy, there will be less amounts of fake ID's, and the "thrill" of drinking wouldn't be as important.
Support: http://drinkingage.procon.org
- 18 is the age of adulthood in the United States, and adults should have the right to make their own decisions about alcohol consumption. After turning 18, you get rights and responsibilities of adulthood like being able to "vote, smoke cigarettes, serve on juries, get married, sign contracts, be prosecuted as adults, and join the military - which includes risking one's life" (ProCon.org).
- Lowering MLDA 21 would be good for the economy. More people would legally be able to drink in bars, restaurants, and other licensed establishments. The revenue from 18-21 year olds would increase immensely for private business owners. Also, the more tax revenue would be collected by the government.
- The drinking age of 21 is not effective because the majority of teens will drink alcohol no matter the law. "According to the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, underage drinking accounts for 17.5% ($22.5 billion) of consumer spending for alcohol in the United States. In 2006, 72.2% of twelfth graders reported drinking alcohol at some point in their lives" (ProCon.org). If the drinking age were to be lowered, than there wouldn't be as much of a "thrill" or need to break the law and drink alcohol for young adults.
- Many people under the age of 21 already have fake ID's so they are able to purchase alcohol or get into clubs serving alcohol. If the drinking age was lowered, then there would be a smaller amount of false identification and that would overall be better for the nation's security.
Logos and Ethos:
- A statement was made that "There are fewer drunk driving traffic accidents and fatalities in many countries with a drinking age of 18" (ProCon.org). For instance, European contires have legal drinking ages lower than 18. In the 1980's, the United States had a lower amount of traffic accidents and fatalities. But, despite this fact, in 1984, the US raised the drinking age to 21.
- Drinking age enforcement isn't a priority to the police. "An estimated two of every 1,000 occasions of illegal drinking by youth under 21 results in an arrest" (ProCon.org).
- Lowering MLDA 21 would reduce the number of underage people who are hurt from alcohol-related injuries or accidents. If someone does get hurt by alcohol, and they are underage, a lot of the time they are afraid to do anything about it with the fear of getting caught for underage drinking. If the drinking age was lowered, then more people would seek to get medical help if in a dangerous circumstance because of alcohol.
- Allowing 18- to 20-year-olds to drink alcohol in regulated environments with supervision would decrease unsafe drinking activity. However, if the legal drinking age is 21, then this age group isn't allowed to drink in bars, restaurants, or other licensed locations. This then results in drinking at unsupervised places like fraternity houses or at house parties. Here, there is a likelier chance to be binge drinking and doing sorts of unsafe behavior due to the fact that there isn't any supervision.
Pathos (Examples/Stories):
Isn't it a good thing to help our economy? I mean, we don't want our economy to fail, right? By lowering the drinking age, more people will go to bars and restaurants and purchase drinks. Ultimately, these immense amount of purchases would boost our economy with the increase of revenue for buisnesses and the government.
If they say that lowering the drinking age would cause and increase in suicide rates or criminal activity of teens:
"In a 2002 meta-study of the legal drinking age and health and social problems, 72% of the studies found no statistically significant relationship [between teens and suicide or criminal behavior]" (ProCon.org).
Negative Argument
Thesis: Lowering the drinking age would be a horrible decision because teenagers aren't mature enough, underage drinking can cause problems with brain functions, high school and middle school students then have easier access to alcohol, and it will give more people the freedom to go to bar or clubs.
Support: http://drinkingage.procon.org
- Alcohol consumption can interfere with development of the brain that associates with functions like emotions, planning, and organization. There more potential for chronic problems like addiction, dangerous behavior, poor judgement, memory loss, depression, violence, and suicide.
- Lowering the drinkign age would give high schoolers and even middle schoolers easier access to alcohol. "Surveys show that the most common source of alcohol among 18- to 20-year olds is their 21- to 24-year-old peers" (ProCon.org)
- The drinking age should not be lowered because people are more mature and responsible at 21 than 18. 18-year-olds "are more susceptible to binge drinking, risky sexual activity, and other irresponsible behavior due to lack of maturity" (ProCon.org).
- More people can go to bars or night clubs, which aren't particularly safe environments for teens. "76% of bars have sold alcohol to intoxicated patrons, and about half of drivers arrested for driving while intoxicated (DWI) or killed as alcohol-involved drivers in traffic crashes did their drinking at licensed establishment" (ProCon.org). Additionally, the communities near bars or nightclubs have a greater amount of assaults and other violent crimes.
Logos and Ethos:
- The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimated that the drinking age of 21 "decreased the number of fatal traffic accidents for 18- to 20-year-olds by 13% and saved approximately 27,052 lives from 1975-2008" (ProCon.org).
- In 2007, there was a Gallup poll discovering that "77% of Americans would oppose a federal law that lowers the drinking age in all states to age 18" (ProCon.org)
- The drinking age of 21 helps to prevent underage binge drinking. Most people Binge drink when they are 21- to 25-year-olds (45.9%). Only 1.5% of people binge drink when they 12-13 year old. 7.8% when they're 14-15, 19.4% when they are 16-17, and 35.7% when they are 18-20. Still the people who binge drink most are within the legal drinking age (ProCon.org)
- Lowering the drinking age will result in having 18-21 year olds use more illicit drugs than before. "A peer-reviewed study from the Journal of Studies of Alcohol and Drugs found that the younger a person begins to drink alcohol, the more likely it is that they will use other illicit drugs" (ProCon.org) The lowered drinking age would increase the number of teens who drink. Therefore, the number of teens who use other drugs would increase as well.
Pathos (Examples/Stories):
Imagine you are a parent. You have a kid that just turned 18 and his college friends are taking him out to a night club for some drinks since he is now in the legal drinking age. He drinks with his friends all night and start driving back to campus. The driver, your kids best friend, didn't realize how much he had to drink. He passed out in front of the wheel and swerved into another car. Your kid died. He died because of the lowered drinking age.
If the other group says other countries have lower drinking ages:
The rate of drinking among US teenagers is lower than most European countries. US teenagers also show equal or lower rates of intoxication and/or binge drinking than younge adults from European countries. Plus, European countries report higher rates of intoxication and binge drinking for people under the age of 13.
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