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Time to lower drinking age?
2005 August 28
© 2005, Libertiny Financial LLC
In response to Chicago Tribune writer Steve Chapman's article in the 2005 August edition:
In the U.S. we seem to be on our way to recreating the prohibition era again through legislation. You'd think we, as a country, would have learned after the first round of this issue.
Having grown up in a culture where having wine with dinner was considered normal, even as a child, what removed the incentive to over-drink was the significant reduction in the "taboo" factor. Couple this philosophy with the very strict European drunken driving laws (zero tolerance in some countries) and I suspect that excessive drinking would be lower in the U.S.--not just in teenagers.
"Drinking and driving used to be the leading cause of death among teenagers, but no more. In 1984, more than 10,000 drinking drivers under the age of 21 were involved in fatal crashes. By 2003, the number was down to 8,035--a decline of 22 percent."
I suggest being careful when citing NHTSA data. Specific years shouldn't be used. Instead long-term trends should be shown. If the trend for 10 years prior to 1984 and 10 years following 1984 show a gradual decrease in deaths per mile driven, as it does show for overall highway deaths, then the above comparison between 1984 and 2003 is statistically meaningless.
Plus the logic just doesn't work: Yes, you as a teenager are welcome to put your life on the line defending our country, but no drinking when you get home.
Link to article:
www.chicagotribune.com/news/c....column
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