Why The Drinking Age Should Be Lowered

In the United States of America, eighteen years of age is when teenagers are finally considered adults by others around them. As an adult they now have the same rights as everyone around them. With the exception of one law that keeps them in a lower class. This restriction keeping them from being like everyone else is that they are still not able to consume alcohol legally. In 1984, President Ronald Reagan passed the National Minimum Drinking Age Act raising the drinking age in all fifty states as well as the District of Columbia to twenty-one years of age (“In the early 1980’s...”). Once the Mothers Against Drunk Driving presented a very strong argument for why the drinking age should be raised, the law went into effect immediately. President

Most people probably think that allowing eighteen year olds to drink legally would create more car crashes and increase their medical bills, but 18 year olds are becoming more responsible. In 2010, the alcohol industries contributed over $400 billion towards the U.S. economy (“Economic Contributions of the Distilled Spirits Industry.”) This is due to the fact that the alcohol industry provided nearly 3.9 million people with jobs throughout the U.S. What this shows is that the alcohol industry produces an extreme amount of money for the economy. The obvious part of allowing eighteen year olds to drink is that it would create a new range of customers for bars, restaurants, and clubs. With eighteen year olds now allowed to consume alcohol, bars, restaurants, and clubs would see their profits increase tremendously with all of these new adults eager to get out and have a good time with their friends. People might think that this creates a new place for them to just get drunk and be reckless, but it actually gives them a safe place to drink responsibly so they are kept off the streets where they could be seriously harmed. In addition to the increase in customers at local restaurants and such, the government will begin to see an increase in tax. In America all types of alcoholic beverages have an overwhelming amount of tax on them. Beverages such as distilled spirits, wine, and beer are three of the most common types of alcoholic beverages. For a gallon of distilled spirits the tax placed on them is $13.50, for a gallon of beer the tax rate is $6.18, and for a gallon of wine the tax is $4.86 (“Economic Contributions of the Distilled Spirits Industry.”) With all of these new adults eager to get out and drink with their friends the government is going to see plenty of money coming from taxes on alcoholic beverages. With all of this additional