Drinking age
Discuss Sharon Herzberger's Aug. 28 Blowback.
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I think President Herzberger is exactly right to encourage discussion on this and should be commended. From what I have heard from my friends who are parents of college age children, the drinking situation is out of control at many schools, although, since my son is in his third year at Whittier, I also know that Whittier takes underage drinking extremely seriously and underage students caught drinking there are in big trouble. I also know that when I was in college 30 years ago and the drinking age was 18, there was nowhere near the problem with alcohol abuse on my campus that there apparently is today.
Jim @ 6:46 PM PDT, Aug 28, 2008
College presidents are passing this problem to the high schools. Much has been made of the lower drinking age in Canada. Canadians also have far more guns than Americans, yet much less gun crime. Face it, Canada has a different culture. The last time that the U.S. lowered the drinking age, we were scrapping the kids off the streets. Date rape was common. College presidents who sign this document should be ex college presidents.
Laura Cary @ 3:39 PM PDT, Aug 28, 2008
Canada has lower drinking ages and seems to have less problem with excessive drinking by young adults. Perhaps someone could do a systematic comparison of bordering states and provinces?
sm999 @ 2:16 PM PDT, Aug 28, 2008
I appreciate President Sharon Herzberger's comments. If you'd like to read more about this compelling debate, check out http://www.opposingviews.com/questions/should-the-drinking-age-be-lowered-from-21 The site has the main players going at it on the drinking age. Really good stuff.
MM24 @ 2:14 PM PDT, Aug 28, 2008
President Herzberger would have us believe that we need discussion about the drinking age of 21. The evidence is not unclear,confusing,nor difficult to interpret. We have in effect the results of a national experiment, in which we had a higher dirinking age, lowered it, saw the terrible consequences, raised it again, and saw the positive benefits. What needs to be discussed is why campuses have not been more proactive to counter the dangerous drinking culture that has evolved. There are proven programs to reduce and prevent the harmful outcomes for students. If college presidents want to discuss that, I am strongly in favor.
Robert Nash Parker @ 12:01 PM PDT, Aug 28, 2008
I agree that we have a problem that has been building on college campuses for generations. I encourage everyone to listen and contemplate as Sharon Herzberger has suggested. We need to listen to the students, all the students and hear from them what solutions they offer. This is an amazing generation and they may be the generation to begin the shift. This generation is open to more parenting and as parents we need to parent them wisely. More articles on parenting college students can be found on my web site CollegeWorks101.com where you can download my FREE eBook "Parenting College Students: 27 Winning Strategies for Success."
Dr. Debi Yohn @ 11:17 AM PDT, Aug 28, 2008
As a member of the Religious Society of Friends, I can also tell you that our faith also encourages its members to avoid using alcohol and other toxic substances. Check any edition of our "Faith and Practice," or check it out online. While I can't speak for all of us, because of the diversity of opinion that I'm sure exists within our rather small "minority faith," I have a hard time imagining that a majority of us would endorse the idea of allowing even younger people to consume such a dangerous, addictive substance. Which is what lowering the legal drinking age would do.
QuakerDave @ 11:17 AM PDT, Aug 28, 2008
Pancreas Cells to Produce Insulin is indeed good news. Who knows? Someday, a patient's own supply of healthy tissue could help make the cells in the pancreas to produce insulin. We can't wait for this to happen. It will be akin to the time when insulin was first discovered. Evelyn Guzman http://www.free-symptoms-of-diabetes-alert.com (If you want to visit, just click but if it doesnt work, copy and paste it onto your browser.)
Evelyn @ 9:25 AM PDT, Aug 28, 2008
MADD has proven that it is COMPLETELY INEFFECTIVE as an anti-DUI program, and is nothing more then a modern-day "Anti-Saloon League" PROHIBITIONIST MOVEMENT! MADD does NOT want to see the problem of drinking and driving end. They DO want to see the consumption of alcohol end! Even if NO DRIVING IS INVOLVED! Not much of a group to show any level of "respect" for!
John @ 7:03 AM PDT, Aug 28, 2008
I'm old enough to have been able to drink at 18, and I think I drank less when it was legal than when I was under-age, because of the allure of the forbidden drink. Alcohol is a fact of life, and you can't lecture people about the risks without giving them some modicum of actual experience. Drunk driving accidents are a problem, but so are sober accidents from snowboarding and other extreme sports. You have to teach people to handle risk.
rob @ 7:03 AM PDT, Aug 28, 2008