South Carolina state Rep. Fletcher Smith believes that members of the armed forces ought to be able to have a drink, even if they are not 21 years old.
Rep. Fletcher plans to introduce a bill to allow military personnel who are 18 years old to purchase alcohol in the state simply by showing their military identification cards. South Carolina raised its drinking age to 21 in 1984 in part because of threats by the federal government to take away highway funding. Rep. Fletcher's bill could cost South Carolina millions of dollar in federal aid.
Mothers Against Drunk Driving has come out against the bill and officials at military bases in the state say it is against the rules for anyone of any age to drink during basic training.
3 comments:
If your old enough to die You have ot be old enough to drink. I don't see why dome people think its so bad , virtualy the rest of the world allows people to drink at 18.
it's an admirable thing, but the fact is it's a volunteer army. also, why not just require bars to allow admittance to 18-20 military personnel so they can hang out with their older brethren. they don't have to drink to enjoy the comraderie.
I believe if your old enough to die for your country than you should be old enough to have a drink. But it's not really about a number (since we all are at a different level of readiness) so I think the key is not age but giving these kids all the information so they can make the best decision THEMSELVES. They will learn what it is like to be a grown up (we all have consequences) & you can feel confident that even though they may make the wrong decisions, they had all the information to make the decision. And this can apply easily to all things regarding young adults (sex, drugs, joining the military, etc.) If they know the drawbacks as well as the obvious pluses then they can decide if it's really what they want. Empower your kids to really do their homework in life & be in a position to make wise decision about their future.
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