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Callie Diller
Justin Shufelt
Mr. Gross
English 12b
May 9, 2014
Elimination of the Drinking Age
Toris first night of drinking, almost became her last. She was airlifted to the hospital due
to alcohol poisoning. The young sixteen year old was oblivious to the effects of alcohol and did
not know her limits. She had never been educated about the danger of binge drinking. Because of
this absence of knowledge, she was lucky to survive another day. Each year, about 4,700 people
die as a result of underage drinking (MADD Analysis 1). These numbers could be easily
reduced if the drinking age were to be completely eliminated. This elimination would teach
people at a young age how to handle alcoholic beverages, and therefore will diminish the deaths
of underage drinkers and also have an economic benefit. However, because teens are
simultaneously undergoing physical and mental changes, peer pressure, and new situations and
urges, alcohol could make teenagers who are drinking more vulnerable to drug and substance
abuse, unplanned or unprotected sex, violence, as well as depression (Underage Drinking 1). On
the other hand, being accustomed with alcohol at a young age could susceptibly encourage the
proper use of the beverage. The drinking age must be eliminated in order to sustain a safe,
controlled, and an economically stable lifestyle in the United States.
As mentioned above, 4,700 underage drinkers die each year. The majority of those deaths
are related to alcohol use among fifteen to twenty year olds, however 68 percent of those deaths
are not traffic related (MADD Analysis 1). Data from the FBI, NHTSA, and CDC in 2010,
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estimated that 32 percent of all deaths related to underage alcohol use were traffic fatalities and
68 percent were other fatal incidents, including homicides (30 percent), suicides (14 percent),
alcohol poisonings (9 percent), and other causes of death (15 percent) (MADD Analysis 1).
People use alcohol for many reasons, such as celebration, peer pressure, anxiety, sadness,
boredom, rebellion, and insomnia; teens fall under this category as well. Close to 87% of teens
have consumed alcohol (G., Harold 1). The main reason teens drink is to break the law. It is
natural that as a teen, they are entitled to not wanting to follow the rules. Im always the guy to
advocate for lower ages. I just believe that the lower the age the better you come to grips with
what these substances are, said Former New Mexico Governor, Gary Johnson (Nelson 1). If a
child were to grow up having alcohol on the table during dinner and learn about the effects of
alcohol, that would greatly reduce the number of rebellious teens who binge drink when they
can, ultimately reducing underage drinking deaths.
Eliminating the drinking age would result in a substantial increase economically. The
addition of consumers who are able to buy alcohol will generate more sales, represented in figure
1 (Katicus in Beer 1). The on and off-trade from alcohol sales collects revenue, which brings
alcohol benefits to the society. In turn, the Treasury receives a proportion of revenue by taxation
of company profits (Lowering the Drinking Age 3). With an increase in demand for alcohol,
more businesses need to hire employees, resulting in more jobs in order to meet this demand.
This would improve jobs in the farming industry, which grow hops, barley and other ingredients
(Maher 1). The transportation industry would increase in supplies for brewing and the increased
product output would be increased as well (Maher 1). As more plants and industries are
expanded, the construction industry would increase in job opportunity, including the breweries
and the actual brewing process. In addition to the new high demand, there would be more
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business opportunities, such as the construction of bars, pubs, dining establishments, and
entertainment venues that all sell alcohol and once
again, increasing jobs (Maher 1). Expansion of all
these industries will create a ripple effect
throughout the economy with other industries as
they receive more business.
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Teens are very hormonal and not as experienced as they think they are. When they are
drinking, it is true that most of the time they have
no idea what their limit is. Nearly 8% of teens
who drink say they drink at least five or more
alcoholic drinks in a row, also considered binge
drinking (Edwards 1). In figure 2, the picture
shows the possible outcomes with the danger of
binge drinking; not only could people hurt
themselves, but they could lose control of their
actions and hurt others unintentionally (Jussel 1).
People who drink under the age of twenty-one are more likely to be involved in
violent behaviors, attempt suicide, engage in unprotected sex or have sex with multiple partners,
and develop alcohol problems later in life (Teenage Drinking 1). This may be true today,
however its only because teens are pushed to never have alcohol. So, when they are around it,
that is when the binge drinking and the problems with that come about. Most parents never even
talk to their kids about alcohol and act like its one big secret everyone knows but no one will
tell. Therefore, eliminating the drinking age and showing the kids the effects of alcohol will
eliminate the problems related to teens and alcohol.
In 2013, Tori was airlifted to a hospital after a night of binge drinking and became sick
with alcohol poisoning. Now, she tells her story and what she has learned from the consequences
of binge drinking. "I was taking multiple shots, it started off, I was drinking Captain Morgan in
the beginning and then someone brought out 151 alcohol, and I didn't know my limits. I took a
shot of that and I sat down on the couch," Tori says. "That's when everything went black
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(Giovinco 1). Tori had not intended on binge drinking that night and was unaware of the
consequences, which shows how easily it is to be consumed by the drink with the lack of
knowledge about it. She did not realize what her drinking limit was because she had never been
accustomed to alcohol and its effects. Angie Ammon was by Toris side when she woke up in
the hospital. Angie lost her daughter Molly to alcohol poisoning in 2011. She now travels to
sororities, high schools and churches speaking to young adults trying to prevent another death
from alcohol poisoning. "I have never been a public speaker before, never wanted any part of it,
was very shy in big groups. I could talk to anyone one on one, but I've never once been nervous,
or apprehensive, or had butterflies about talking to these kids and I know that's Molly, that's
Molly saying, Save somebody else'" (Giovinco 1). Angie attempts to talk to teens about how to
control the consumption of alcohol who may not have the ability to talk to their parents about the
subject. She also mentions what to do if a friend ends up drinking too much. "A lot of parents
don't like that, they feel like I'm condoning drinking, which I'm not. But they have to know what
to do when they're in that situation, and I think that's why the kids listen. And it's working,"
Angie says (Giovinco 1). The whole idea is to prevent teens from taking risks with abusing
alcohol. It is inevitable to completely erase the use of alcohol among teens, so why not educate
them on something at a young age that will most likely be around them the rest of their life.
First you take a drink, then the drink takes a drink, then the drink takes you. This is a
very accurate quote from F. Scott Fitzgerald that really symbolizes just what happens when teens
are not aware or careful of alcoholic beverages. Eliminating the drinking age will help control
exactly this - the out of control binge drinking that many teens seem to do. This quote also shows
just how dangerous and manipulative alcohol can be. Even if teens arent meaning to binge
drink, alcohol has different effects on everyone. Tori barely survived her first encounter with
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alcohol and the fact of the matter is that she did not know her limits because she was never
educated about alcohol. So, teaching children as they are growing up how to manage alcohol
when they drink will diminish deaths among teens. Also, economy would greatly benefit from
more alcohol sales, the building of new restaurants and entertainment venues, as well as an
increase of jobs. The drinking age must be eliminated in order to sustain a safe, controlled, and
an economically stable lifestyle in the United States.























Works Cited

"Economic Impacts of Alcohol Fact Sheet." Institute of Alcohol Studies. N.p., Aug. 2013. Web. 8
Nov. 2013.
Edwards, Roxanne Dryden. "Alcohol and Teens." Medicine Net. N.p., n.d. Web. 9 Nov. 2013.
G, Harold. "Drinking Age Should Be Lowered." Teen Ink. N.p., 2013. Web. 9 Nov. 2013.
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GET INVOLVED." MADD -MADD Analysis Finds Majority of Underage Drinking Deaths Not
Traffic Related. MADD, 17 Apr. 2013. Web. 8 Nov. 2013.
Giovinco, Joette. "Binge Drinking Takes Teen to the Brink of Death." - FOX 13 News. N.p., 03
Mar. 2014. Web. 07 May 2014.
Jussel, Amy. "Media Messages and Binge Drinking Influence On Teens - Shaping Youth."
Shaping Youth. N.p., 31 Dec. 2012. Web. 07 May 2014.
Katicus in Beer. "Drink and Be Merry." Drink and Be Merry. N.p., 09 Mar. 2012. Web. 08 May
2014.
Maher, Ryan. "Lowering the Drinking Age (Economic Benefit)." Searching for Something. N.p.,
2 May 2012. Web. 8 Nov. 2013.
Nelson, Steven. "Gary Johnson: Lower the Drinking Age!" The Daily Caller. N.p., 4 Apr. 2012.
Web. 8 Nov. 2013.
"Teenage Drinking." Understanding the Dangers and Talking to Your Child. N.p., n.d. Web. 10
Nov. 2013.
"Underage Drinking." Underage Drinking. N.p., Nov. 2009. Web. 8 Nov. 2013.