To Sam above: I used to also think that the reason irresponsible drinking was such a problem in the US was because of the higher drinking age, and the resultant view of alcohol as "forbidden fruit." Then I talked to an Australian friend, and she pointed out to me that it's also a big problem there, where the drinking age is 18. If you take a look at Wikipedia under "binge drinking" you'll find many references to international government studies showing that binge drinking is becoming (or already is) a big problem all over the world; indeed, southern Europe is unusual as a place where alcohol is legal and it isn't a problem. The most obvious evidence of this is that binge drinking rates are as high in Canada as they are in the US, despite the drinking age being 18 or 19 (depending on the province).
I think it is clear that the issue is much more a cultural one than a legal one. For whatever reason, a person who gets drunk until he or she pukes and passes out has gone from being an object of pity or ridicule to a person who is cool and knows how to party. Until that changes all of the laws in the world won't do a thing.
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What about the international problem?
Oct 15, 2009
8:23 a.m.
To Sam above: I used to also think that the reason irresponsible drinking was such a problem in the US was because of the higher drinking age, and the resultant view of alcohol as "forbidden fruit." Then I talked to an Australian friend, and she pointed out to me that it's also a big problem there, where the drinking age is 18. If you take a look at Wikipedia under "binge drinking" you'll find many references to international government studies showing that binge drinking is becoming (or already is) a big problem all over the world; indeed, southern Europe is unusual as a place where alcohol is legal and it isn't a problem. The most obvious evidence of this is that binge drinking rates are as high in Canada as they are in the US, despite the drinking age being 18 or 19 (depending on the province).
I think it is clear that the issue is much more a cultural one than a legal one. For whatever reason, a person who gets drunk until he or she pukes and passes out has gone from being an object of pity or ridicule to a person who is cool and knows how to party. Until that changes all of the laws in the world won't do a thing.