well...to tell you the truth teens tend to have a lot on their hands right? So why should we put the responsibility of drinking on their backs too??? Plus don't you think they should HAVE a little more responsibility BEFORE the start drinking, driving, voting, etc???

As serious as I can be I think the drinking age should be "never", this world would be so much beautiful without drunk people. My mother is an alcoholic, she doesn't care about voting, she doesn't care about anything lately, not even her. She has the legal drinking age, this doesn't make me any happier... as the matter of fact I feel useless seeing her in such a miserable state. I need to get her into a alcohol rehab program, I just hope it's not too late.

I think the driving age should stay 16, but the voting age should change to 16, because if your going to let us drive were you could do alot of damage, why wouldn't you let us vote and for drinking I think it should be illegal.

I think that the voting age should stay at 18 but that the driving age should be 16 and the drinking age should be lowered to 19. While it is statistically shown that younger drivers have more accidents, I believe that the more experience a driver has under the instruction of an adult, the better the driver will become and the driver will be able to avoid accidents. However, I think that in order for this to be effective, it is necessary for a stricter program to be created to encourage frequent driving under different conditions. In many states, drivers obtain their permits after only 6 hours behind the wheel and then never drive until they receive their licenses. This pattern proves to be dangerous. Also, should there be a federal driving age? Does it make sense that in certain states you can drive when you are 15 or 16 and in others you must wait until 17 or 18? Additionally, I believe that the drinking age should not be lowered substantially because heavy drinking during the brain's formative years proves to be problematic later in life. However, by allowing kids to drink at a younger age, kids could have the opportunity to become more familiar with their limits and decrease the "forbidden fruit" nature of drinking.

My opinion is that the voting age should stay the same, the drinking age should stay at 21, and driving should increase to 18 rather than 16. Check out our Smart Driving section to see the facts like how the majority of accidents are by 16 year old drivers.

How could we benefit from lowering the drinking age, especially to 15??

Driving Age-15 or 16 or permit but 17 or 18 for license. Even though I am 14 and I want to drive ASAP, I think its important to be safe. I think the more practice someone has with an adult with them, the more they will learn and be prepared for.
Drinking Age-20. Kids are drinking at young ages anyway, but having drinking being illegal at that age will stop some people.
Voting Age- 17. I think that there are plenty or adults that vote not knowing what is really going on in an election so even if 17 year olds vote, there will be the same amount of responsible people voting.

Europe has completely different laws with drinking. Germany's drinking age is 16. Italy is lower than ours as well, yet the U.S. has a higher mortality rate due to drinking than any other country. Now that I look at it, it depends on the culture, not necessarily on the age. Age may be a factor, but it all comes down to the kid and how responsible they are. As far as smoking, I think it's gross, disgusting, etc. OK, people can have the right to smoke, but do it in an area that allows it, not on school grounds, by children, or by non-smokers. They're trying to stay away for a reason!!!

The driving age in my state is 16. It's a "graduated" program though. You get your permit at 15, have to have so many hours driving with a parent or licensed instructor and have had it for at least six months with no driving offenses. Then, you can get a restricted license, the only driving allowed between 1AM and 5AM has to be to or from school, or with a parent or guardian. At 18, you're allowed to get a "full" license, provided you have only had few minor driving offenses.

If the driving age were raised to 20, then many students would not be able to work, get to college, or home.
Teens may be INVOLVED in many car accidents, but a bit less than half of those are caused by drivers over 50.

Next, if the drinking age were lowered to 15, there would be many adverse effects on the brain. The body is still developing when you're that young, and the brain is not capable of handling the effects of alcohol. It can lead to death, alcohol poisoning, or permanent brain damage. It's also been shown that kids who drink at younger age inhibit the reasonable thinking section of their brains from complete development, which can lead to very bad decisions and is also unrepairable. I do agree that it should be lowered a minute amount so parents can teach their children moderation when using that substance.

And voting? 18 is the age of adulthood, of consent. I know not all, but most people that age are, if not entirely uninterested in politics, uninformed.

You sound like an informed person. This is just what I think and have read on the subjects.

If you want to lower the voting age or lower the drinking age, and want to DO SOMETHING about it, please check out the National Youth Rights Association:

http://www.youthrights.org

We are a youth-led, grassroots organization fighting for YOUR rights. Get involved, start a chapter, and actually go out and change the law. You can do it, and we'll be there to support you.

Again, to lower the voting age, lower the drinking age, repeal curfew laws, protect your rights in school, and fight against ageism, please go to:

http://www.youthrights.org

ok

Wow........

Hey yeah, that's fine. The officer's just doing his job (even if he clocked me at the wrong speed).

It's still legal for me to gripe about it, though! I still have my license until the court takes it away on 2/14.

It should say something about the way I drive that both times I was ticketed, I was alone on the road with no other cars around. I try to endanger myself rather than anyone else.

My car is a 1993 model.

Ok, Heroes, sorry your beloved liscense is suspended or in question. But I personally don't think it is "sucky" that you are being reprimanded for speeding. It is good that you like your car and what not, but they have speed limits for a reason, for the public.

LMAO man thats really messed up!!!!!!!!! Well if your license is suspended until you're 18, thats only a few months away! But thats still really sucky. What yr is your car?

Yeah, but I turn 18 on April 1st.

I consider myself to be a pretty good driver, and I wasn't egregiously speeding when I was caught either time I was ticketed. (Although the definition of 'egregious' in this context is subjective!) In fact, the only time the officer payed attention to me this time is because I downshifted while I was accelerating. Stupid 40R70W transmission! Stupid overdrive! Stupid noisy V8!

No, wait, I take that last one back.

oh dang thats sucky. You're seventeen now right?

I'm not talking about regular learning-to-drive schools; I'm talking about the schools where they teach you weight transfer, lines in and out of corners, apexes, defensive driving, etc. Advanced stuff. I'm really interested in it.

So far, I just know the basics.....brake in and power out, y'all!

I won't know the fine until I go to court. My first ticket was $113 total; I expect this one to be twice than and I will most likely lose my license until I'm 18.

Man that sucks! How much you get fined for? There are all kinds of excellent driving schools here in Columbus. I may have some kind of idea about how crazy you are, it shows.

Yeah....you have no idea how right you are.

I just got another ticket this morning; the officer said he clocked me at 57 but I (while still speeding) was only doing 45.

I'll say this, though; while I do speed OCCASIONALLY, I almost always drive the posted limit/with the flow of traffic.

I don't think it's speed alone that kills. Speed that is unsafe for condition kills. I've only driven at a speed unsafe for conditions three times, and it scared the CRAP out of me twice.

Trust me - safe driving a lesson is WORTH LEARNING. If there was a defensive or performance handling school nearby, I'd immediately enroll.

You are 1 crazy dude, do you know that??

Yes, if you have a parachute.

i don't think that lowering the drinking age would make kids use it less becuase it would be made "uncool" because truly they want what people in the media want, a party life. 40 year olds still party like their younger, which proves my point that that wouldn't change if they started drinking sooner i myself don't EVER want to drink or do drugs so why make them more available?

i think low/no drinking ages has its benefits. i think alot of underage drinking has to do with the fact that people know it's illegal. if they learned at an early age how to handle the responsibility of alcohol, there would be less chance of ppl get drunk beyond belief, simply becuase they know their breaking the rules.

and heroes, you say smoking is fun...so is jumping of really tall buildings...would you recommend that?

Ohio's system is you have to be 21 to buy alcohol, and 18 for tobacco. If you are caught under 21 drinking you're in trouble. They card everyone for tobacco and alcohol.

I am a fan of Ontario's no legal drinking age...and not for the reasons you may think. In Ontario, you must be 19 to buy alcohol, but you can drink it at any age as long as its given to you by a person in authority (such as a parent) and drank on private property. This way, kids get binge drinking out the way before they can operate a vehicle. Now, when people my age drink, its more of a casual thing than getting super wasted. Its also good to have your parents around at first when you start to experiment with drinking, so they can tuck you into bed when you've had a little too much. Ontario's system allows kids to start drinking in a safe environment where they are unlikely to do stupid things, because they are being supervised.

<3

Who is your idea of a good person? I'm dying to hear this one.

just let people drink, drive, smoke, drive. IF they won't to kill themselves let them go for it. Than we save food that could be used for a good perosn.

Heroes, I WAS TALKING ABOUT LEAGALIZING DRUGS!!!!!!!! Not smoking.

Ushersgirl, I really see what you said as something analagous to 'If you aren't black, then why are you so worried about racism?'. Aside from the fact that people choose to smoke and don't choose to be black, of course.

I'm plenty sick of people assuming that smoking is a terrible, terrible thing. That's fine; it's also fun. If people choose to smoke, I don't think they should be ostracized. And I really don't see much a difference between alcohol, cigarettes, and Mary J.

If you dont smoke, then why are you so worried about it? Legalizing drugs will simply do nothing more than cause even more problems. You've got to be off your rocker, (figure of speech of course) to think that legalizing drugs is a good idea!!!!!!!!

In that case, legalize other drugs. I've never had a huge problem with drugs; it's how you use them. It's possible for a human to become addicted to legal medicine. Let's give citizens in America some responsibility and allow them to chose what to do with their own bodies.

Legalize drugs, but crack down on anyone who endangers anyone but themselves when under the influence of them. Realistically, of course, people become addicted and lash out; I figure that's their problem. I don't smoke, but I WILL fight to my dying breath to protect the right to chose to smoke.

here we go again.......

Yeah I agree with that. And make smoking completely illegal while your at it. Technically, it's not different from any other drug: cigarettes are addictive, horrible for your health, and also bad for others when the smoke is inhaled secon-hand. I really don't see how smoking can be legal.

Switch them AROUND. Make the smoking age the drinking age, and vice versa.

to what? younger or older?

I'd keep things as they are now, but switch the smoking and drinking ages around. Simple enough.

yeah i think that you are completely off base with all of that

if we could drink at the age of 15....................there would be alot more achohlics in the world, and if we could vote at 16 then i think there would be alot more problems in the world.

20!!! are you kidding?

I really would not enjoy walking, swimming and walking more to get to Harvard!!!

that would be insane!!

I think that voting at 18 is perfect, driving at 16 and drinking at 18/19 would be perfect

No I didnt. Thats sucky about the job, I'm looking into Drivers Ed myself......Parents are telling me once I get a driver's license, then I have to get a job, cant wait lol.

Er...never mind about that other job. Got de-hired; apparently they hired too many people. I'm setting my sights on Bob Evans now. I'm not getting enough sleep, either....

To get back to the topic at hand, did you know that 24 hours of sleep loss can effectively mean a driver drives as if he is intoxicated?

Why did you get fired? lol coo you got another job. I'm not getting enough sleep.........ugh

Well, I was racing a guy before that. I had already won, but I decided to see how fast my car could go. My guess is that it'll top out at 150 to 160 without the limiter.

Well, I got fired from my job today, but I got another one within 2 hours lol. This is good; I plan to pour all of my money into modding my car.

wow! why were you driving 130?

I'm glad that the driving age is where it is; I can drive now, and whether or not that changes is up to me!

Incidentally, I did 130 on the freeway last night. My car has a speed limiter; how lame. I'll give you guys an update if I ever get that removed.

i agree with everything that LaLa05 says, except with the voting. I feel that the voting age actually needs to be raised. I don't feel 18 year olds are mature enough yet. It needs to be raised, but not by much.

As far as driving, you should be able to get a permit at 15. Take a driving course and have your permit for at least a year. Then, take the test for your license. As Denver has, you can only drive yourself for 1 year. Afterwards, you can drive with one person in the car with you and then the number goes up as time goes. As for others, people should have to take the test to justify that they are capable drivers. That'd be a lot of people, but it could save lives. People must also be able to have good eyesight, at least with glasses. I like the voting age at 18. It gives us another freedom that we have once we get ready to leave the nest.

Just to put a little bit of information out there, the only reason the voting age was lowered to 18 was because you could be drafted into war at 18. If you can die for your country, why can't you vote for who rules it?
Now that they don't draft anymore, what are you going to do?

Truly, I'm not old enough to drink, drive, or vote. But I'll stick my opinions out there anyway. I think the voting age should stay as it is, because kids in my school, who are my age, are more mature when it comes to polotics then most adults I know. Kids who are coming up in this day and age are becoming more wise, better informed, and thinking more like the poloticians do. The only reason why I think that the voting age should stay the same is because of this. Sure, we're becoming better informed, but what's wrong with being more mature and informed at the age of 18? Nothing. We should be able to become even more mature before we get out there and vote. Can kids truly and honestly be able to handle the stress that comes with voting, school work, and other things? No. Just thinking about it gets me stressed. Absentee ballets, electronic voting machines, mistakes on the machines, who are you going to vote for, and all the other stuff. We shouldn't be putting stress on our kids that early anyway. We allready have enough stress with getting into college. STOP IT THERE! Honestly, do you want your kids going to school, talking about and getting into debates, about voting?! We're going to change our kids into old fogies with back problems and hair loss before they're old enough to even vote!

Drinking. Kids at my school already think drinking is cool and fun. Stop it. That 's all I got to say.

Driving. The age for driving should be raised. (I am not old enough to drive anyway) Kids are not mature enough to handle it, and it should be raised to prevent accidents. And all the older people out there (80 and up) should have there driving license taken away. If you have to be two inches away from the front window, and still drive like a snail, you don't need to be driving. Kids who are not mature enough to drive now, should not have a license because, when they get old enough to drink, they will abuse that privilige. It needs to stop, and parents, you need to help. Don't a allow your kids to drive or drink untill you feel that they are old enough. Stop being timid and step in your kids lives! They might hate you for it now, but they will love you for it later.

That's all

We should all remember that all of these laws and legislations are just a guess. When some guy's girlfriend has a kid and he becomes a father, no switch clicks in his mind and makes him more intelligent, responsible, and moral than he was before. When some wino teenager celebrates his 18th birthday, nothing changes.

I wonder, when did we decide that 18 years old signified adulthood in the first place?

I think that we should get all rights at 18 (excepting driving, at 16) because if we are old enough to take care of ourselves, to die for our country, to get punished like a full-fledged member of society - we should be able to enjoy a cool beer or a glass of wine.

There was a time that we couldn't vote until 21 either - just a few decades ago. Hippies fought for it... and now we youth reap the benefits.

I think we should have all rights at 18 - I mean, are we adults or not? And can't adults handle desicions like whether or not to drink?

I think it is grate that you can dive at 15 but kid are at ricks