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Change Attitude, Not Drinking Age

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By MEG WAGNER

The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 11, 2008

Monday mornings are not easy. Waking up early to attend classes after a weekend of sleeping isn't exactly ideal. But somehow every Monday morning I manage to shuffle out of bed and sit through class.

The only thing worse than nearly falling asleep in a European History lecture or a Latin test is having to listen to my classmates rave about how many shots they downed on Saturday night, and how hung over they were the next day.

The problem is that I'm not in a room of 21-year-olds on a college campus. I'm a senior in high school, surrounded by 17-year-olds who drink just as much as university students.

In case you didn't know, drinking is alive and well for underage high schoolers.

So when I heard that 100 college presidents wanted to lower the drinking age to 18, I had to laugh, because thousands of 18-year-olds also want to lower the drinking age to 18.

The college presidents think it will reduce binge drinking on campus. The teenagers just want to go out and pick up a six-pack of Miller.

Those university heads have good intentions, but have failed to realize that while a lower drinking age may make 21-year-olds more responsible, it's not going to make 18-year-olds any more mature.

Drinking is hyped up in today's culture. For many it's a social tool, a ritual with the power to bring people together and provide entertainment. Others may see alcohol as a cure-all for various woes. And still there are those who will drink to seem more mature, to be rebellious, or simply to fit in with other drinkers.

And teenagers buy into these notions, and quickly thereafter buy into gelatin shooters and cheap vodka.

So here's the thing: You need to change how people perceive alcohol, not just the legal age. If you want more maturity when it comes to youth and alcohol, you need to teach them how to be mature about it.

I'd like to think that I have a responsible view of alcohol. I've grown up in a house where drinking has never been taboo. Nearly every night my parents have a glass of wine with dinner, but know when to stop. They have exposed me to the world of alcohol - I am frequently offered a taste of the new Pinot Noir they picked up and tag along to wine-tasting excursions at their favorite wine shop.

While some parents might think condoning a child's exposure to alcohol is just asking for trouble, it has truly had a positive impact on me. Because of this upbringing, I have absolutely no urge to go out and get wasted.

I have learned that drinking is a privilege and alcohol must be treated with respect.

Now the problem is I have no idea how you could teach this to other teenagers. You can't exactly have an alcohol appreciation class, and not all parents are responsible enough to educate their children on drinking.

But some way or another, we need to get to the root of the reason why so many kids do not drink responsibly.

Lowering the drinking age is merely putting a Band-Aid on the problem. It doesn't really matter what the drinking age is - if you make it 12, there will be 10-year-olds throwing back Budweisers illegally.

The real problem with youth and alcohol is the attitude so many have toward the substance, and if you want to change how kids interact with it, then you have to change how they think they should interact with it.

Meg Wagner is a senior at Chamberlain High School.

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