College Binge Drinking

College Binge Drinking The drinking age for the United States is a highly debated topic. When my parents were younger the drinking age was 18. In 1984, the drinking age was changed and increased to 21. There have been many politicians arguing about this topic and there will always be no matter what happens to the legal age to consume alcohol. Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), argue to keep the drinking age as it is. They claim that decreasing the drinking age will increase the number of deaths on the highways because younger kids will be consuming alcohol and driving. In Wisconsin, youth traffic crashes, due to underage drinking, costs the state 311.3 million annually. This is the second highest cost behind youth violence. It is appalling when there is a fatality because of drinking and driving, and I understand what the MADD group is pushing for. If the drinking age was moved from 21 to 18 it would be more easily available for even younger kids. With the drinking age at 21 years old now, there are no high school students able to buy alcohol. Having the drinking age at 21 makes it harder for high school kids to get their hands on it because most adults that are able to buy alcohol and that would for underagers are in college. There are 18 year olds in high school and if it was legal for 18 year olds to buy alcohol, it would be even easier for younger kids to get their hands on alcohol. This would make 16 year olds more likely to drink and drive, not really knowing the affects and the consequences. Most people are friends with people about the same age as themselves so if the drinking age was 18 it just makes it that much easier to get alcohol for younger kids still in high school. College students are going to drink no matter the age limit and campus police are aware of this also. I have heard many stories for all different University of Wisconsin schools, saying an officer will walk into a party and either tells them to leave or just turn the music down. They clearly know there is underage drinking going on right in front of them. I think this is just because they do not want to go through all that paper work and filling out numerous underage tickets. I know it would take a long time to do all the reports and paperwork, but it is their job. If the rules are going to be enforced, everyone should be enforcing them. Also bars and stores that sell alcohol need to be doing their part and checking younger customers ID so minors are not getting away with buying alcohol. Some small town bars really do not care if you are underage, as long as you are a paying costumer they will serve underagers. I know there are undercover cops and minors working for law enforcement that go into bars to try to purchase alcohol to see if they are getting carded and I believe that it is a responsibility that needs to be done. I also think there should be more undercover work to help stop underage consumption. Binge drinking is a problem in colleges all over the United States. A study estimated 1,700 college students die a year because of alcohol related deaths. Another estimated 30,000 students require medical treatment after alcohol poisoning, consumption of too much alcohol. College age adults are supposed to be more mature than high scholars’, although this is not always the case. But if the drinking age was lowered to 18 years old it would be giving younger, less mature, kids the ability to consume alcohol. The number of injuries and deaths would increase significantly if the drinking age is decreased. There is no doubt they would abuse the alcohol and have a greater chance of injury. Many studies have shown, that the younger kids start to drink and binge drink, the more likely they are to develop some kind of alcohol dependence in their lifetime. So why would we want to lower the drinking age? So they can start younger? I know if the drinking age was lowered there would be more alcoholics, more injuries, more people that need help for their dependencies, and more deaths. Studies also show college kids who frequently binge drink are 21 more times as likely to skip class then non binge drinkers. These are kids who are actually paying for their tuition, so when they skip class they are really losing money. So if the drinking age was 18 then high school age kids would be skipping class and possibly not meet the requirements to graduate. Decreasing the drinking age would result in younger kids living an unfulfilling life. I graduated with some people that are experiencing this right now. In high school they partied often and missed many days of school. Some are not attending college and now are drinking even more. Lowering the drinking age would allow many more kids to fall into this pattern. Sexual assault is increased when alcohol is involved also. Five percent of female students reported they were raped while attending college. Three of four females were under the influence of alcohol at the time of being raped. This statistic would dramatically increase if the legal age to consume alcohol was lowered to 18. I also think even younger females would be assaulted because If 18 year olds are binge drinking there will be possibly 16 year olds with them and therefore are more likely go get sexually assaulted. Although there will never be a stop to binge drinking there are a few things people could be doing to help reduce it. It first starts with law enforcement and adults of age keeping alcohol out of the hands of minors. Government officials could increase taxes on alcohol. Most younger adults, between the ages of 16-18, do not have jobs or good paying ones, therefore making it a hassle to keep up with the habit of binge drinking. I hope the drinking age does not decrease to 18 because it will be mishandled by younger adults. There is no doubt, the injuries and fatalities would increase because of consuming alcohol. Many of the statistics would increase because of the harmful effects of alcohol and being consumed by young adults. Alcohol will always be part of college, and people are not going to stop drinking, but more needs to be done so kids are consuming in a safe way.