Changing the Drinking Age

This is in response to Seth's post questioning why the drinking age in the US remains 21. The question lingered in my mind, so to quench my thirst I encountered an article from msnbc.com which spoke about the debate. An important aspect the article brought up was that there is no "legal federal drinking age" - it is the drinking laws concerning possession and consumption which hinder our attempts at drunken debauchery. In the state of New York, you must be 21 to purchase alcohol (although you can transport unopened containers at 18?), and consumption under the age of 21 is permitted in a "private setting." Ahh, how devious Uncle Sam is. Unfortunately, by cutting off the underage direct purchase, you have cut the underage (or in particular, the awkward 18-20 phase) out of the equation. John M. McCardell, former president of Middlebury College, stated that the true problem lies in the fact that teenagers are poorly educated on how to consume alcohol appropriately. "Education works,” McCardell says, but “it’s never been tried. Now it’s mandatory only after you’ve been convicted of DUI. That is not an act of genius.” Couldn't have said it better myself. Before coming to Ithaca my own sister told me she would sleep better at night knowing I had some sort of alcohol tolerance - alcohol is nothing new, in college especially it's inevitable that one will find themselves in a situation where alcohol is present. Moral of the story, drink responsibily.