Shoremen

Working Outiline

2005-05-10T05:47:00.000-07:00

A. Introduction
B. Age-21 Laws
1. 1987
2. 1984
C. Negatives of lowering the drinking age
1. Argument
2. Response
D. Statistics
1. Drinking related car crashes
2. Rosemount Survey statistics
E. Lowering the drinking age to 18
1. Arguments
2. Response
F-J. Arguments
K. Conclusion

5 Annonated Bibliography Sources

2005-04-28T06:05:00.000-07:00

Web-based Source Number 1

This is a good webpage concerning my topic with fun facts, issues, and controversies.

MLA Citation
"Problems and Solutions." Alcohol . 23 May. 2005 .
Bibliographic Reference
(Problems and Solutions)

Web-based Source Number 2

This is the Alcohol Policies Project webpage. Its a great site for facts, statistics,

MLA Citation
"Fact Sheet." Alcohol Policies Project. Center for Science in the Public Interest. 23 May. 2005 .
Bibliographic Reference
(Fact Sheet)

Web-based Source Number 3

This is a good webpage concerning my topic with fun facts, issues, and controversies.

MLA Citation
"Minimum Legal Drinking Age Laws." Maryland Underage Drinking Prevention Coalition. JTO Direct. 23 May. 2005 .
Bibliographic Reference
(Minimum)

Web-based Source Number 4

This is a good webpage concerning my topic with fun facts, issues, and controversies.

MLA Citation
"Alcohol Alert." Publications. July 1997. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism . 23 May. 2005 .
Bibliographic Reference
(Alcohol Alert)

Web-based Source Number 5

This is a good webpage for high school teenagers concerning my topic with ways to turn down alcohol, facts about alcohol, and Alcohol 101.

MLA Citation
"Underage Drinking." Alcohol 101. The Century Council. 24 May. 2005 .
Bibliographic Reference
(Underage Drinking)

Web-based Source Number 6

MLA Citation
"Lowering the Minimum Drinking Age Is a Bad Idea." Fact Sheet. Febuary 1998. AAT. 24 May. 2005 .
Bibliographic Reference
(ATT)

Web-based Source Number 7

This is a good webpage concerning my topic with fun facts, issues, and controversies.

MLA Citation
"Facts About Alcohol are Often Fiction." The Dangers of Gateway Drugs. 4 December 2000. 24 May. 2005 .
Bibliographic Reference
(Gateway Drugs)

Survey

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1. How old are you? ______

2. Gender: MALE FEMALE

3. Have you ever consumed alcohol? YES NO

4. On average, how many times per month do you consume alcohol? 1-2 3-4 5+

5. Have you ever driven a vehicle after drinking? YES NO

6. How would you rate your access to alcohol? EASY 1 2 3 4 5 HARD

3 RHS Library Sources

2005-04-12T06:02:00.000-07:00

RHS Library Source 1

MLA Citation
Bibliographic Reference
"Teens and Alcohol Advertising ." Issues and Controversies. 14 July 2000. Facts.com. 17 Apr. 2005 .
Parenthetical Within Text
(Teens and Alcohol Advertising)

RHS Library Source 2

MLA Citation
Bibliographic Reference
"Alcohol Issues." Issues and Controversies. 20 Febuary 1998. Facts.com. 17 Apr. 2005 .

Parenthetical Within Text
(Alcohol Issues)

RHS Library Source 3

MLA Citation
Bibliographic Reference
"Drunk Driving." Issues and Controversies. 13 April 1999. Facts.com. 17 Apr. 2005 .
Parenthetical Within Text
(Drunk Driving)

2 Hard Copy Sources

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Hard Copy Source 1

MLA Citation
Bibliographic Reference
Alan, Lang. Alcohol, teenage drinking. New York: Chelsea House Publishing, 1985.
Parenthetical Within Text
(Lang)

Hard Copy Source 2

MLA Citation
Bibliographic Reference
Ross, Fishman. Alcohol and alcoholism . New York : Chelsea House Publishing, 1986.
Parenthetical Within Text
(Fishman)

5 Scholarly Sources

2005-04-11T07:48:00.000-07:00

Scholarly Source Number 1

MLA Citation
Bibliographic Reference
"Arguments for Lowering the Drinking Age Are Misguided" by Center for Science in the Public Interest. Teens and Alcohol. James D. Torr, Ed. Current Controversies Series. Greenhaven Press, 2002. Reprinted, with permission, from "Talking Points/Arguments: Answering the Critics of Age-21," by the Center for Science in the Public Interest, February 1998, published at www.cspinet.org/booze/mlpatalk.htm. Reprinted with permission.
Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Thomson Gale. 11 April 2005

Parenthetical Within Text
(James)
Scholarly Source Number 2

MLA Citation
Bibliographic Reference
"Do Not Lower the Drinking Age" by Alcohol Policies Project. Teen Alcoholism. Laura K. Egendorf, Ed. Contemporary Issues Companion Series. Greenhaven Press, 2001. Reprinted from Alcohol Policies Project, "Talking Points/Arguments: Answering the Critics of Age-21," available at www.cspinet.org/booze/mlpatalk.htm. Reprinted with permission from the Center for Science in the Public Interest.
Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Thomson Gale. 11 April 2005

(Egendorf)
Scholarly Source Number 3

MLA Citation
Bibliographic Reference
TREAT STUDENTS AS ADULTS: SET THE DRINKING AGE AT 18, NOT 21 , By: Smith, Michael Clay, Smith, Margaret D., Chronicle of Higher Education, 00095982, 3/12/99, Vol. 45, Issue 27
Parenthetical Within Text
(Clay)
Scholarly Source Number 4

MLA Citation
Bibliographic Reference
HOW TO MANAGE TEEN DRINKING (THE SMART WAY) , By: Kluger, Jeffrey, Bower, Amanda, Fonda, Daren, Goldstein, Andrew, Park, Alice, McDowell, Jeanne, Sieger, Maggie, Time, 0040781X, 06/18/2001, Vol. 157, Issue 24
Parenthetical Within Text
(Kluger)
Scholarly Source Number 5

MLA Citation
Bibliographic Reference
MINIMUM-AGE DRINKING LAWS AND YOUTH SUICIDE, 1970-1990 , By: Birckmayer, Johanna, Henenway, David, American Journal of Public Health, 00900036, Sep99, Vol. 89, Issue 9
Parenthetical Within Text
(Birckmayer)

21 Plus Topic Questions

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Who is going to take the initative to change the drinking age?

Who is important in this change?

Who was the President when the driking age was changed to 21?

What are the long-term affects of drinking?

What is the reasoning behind limiting the drinking age to 21?

What are the consequences of underage drinking?

Where will the United States stand with drinking in ten years?

Where do other countries stand with the drinking age?

Where is the drinking age 18?

When will the drinking age be dropped to 18?

When did the drinking age change to 21?

When will the process of turning the drinking age begin?

Why is the drinking age 21?

Why are you able to vote, fight a war, and gamble at 18 if you can't have an alcoholic beverage?

Why do many countries have the drinking age as 18?

How are associations such as MADD going to prevent the outcome of changing the drinking age?

How much more drinking will connsist if the drinking age is lowered?

How come the drinking age was changed to 21?

What if the drinking age was lowered to 18, would their be an increase in teenage deaths?

What if the drinking age was never raised?

What if every country had a drinking age of 18?

Article Summary

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Only seven countries on the entire planet have a drinking age of 21. Most countries have lower drinking ages, and many don't have any drinking age at all. There has been the statement that raising the drinking age has saved 20,000 lives. But, this is one of the most misguided statistics circulated by the Youth Prohibitionist movement. The problem with the 20,000 lives saved statistic is that it looks oly at deaths for people aged 18-20. Raising the drinking age reduced deaths 18-20 but resulted in more deaths among people 21-24. At the age of 18, you have been giving many responsibilities. So why is drinking a beer an act of greater responsibility and maturity than flying an airplane or serving your country at war. Your body and mind improve all through out life. Youth Prohibition activists ignore the fact that maturity is a gradual but uneven process that continues throughout life and is not complete on one's twenty-first birthday. Some believe that lowering the drinking age to 18 just puts alcohol within reach of 15 year olds. In fact nearly three-quarters of 8th graders say that it is "fairly easy" or "very easy" to get alcohol.

Article Outline

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Lowering the Drinking Age

A. Education
1. Responsible Drinking
2. Realistic Alcohol Laws for Legal Youth
3. American teenagers
B. Country Comparison
1. Drinking Laws
2. European Countries
C. Laws Enacted
1. Minimum Legal Drinking Age Law
2. Adult Responsibility Law
D. Misleading Statistics
1. Indiana University Human Subjects Committee
2. Alcohol Consumption
3. Drinking and Driving
E. Unfair Drinking Age
1. 26th Amendment
2. Responsibility
3. Don De Broux
F. Why not to lower the Drinking Age
1. Minimum Age Law
2. Dan Vergin
3. Increase in Crime

5 Direct Quotations

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“Isn’t it ironic that the United States has the highest minimum drinking age and for some strange reason the largest problem with underage consumption” (Toomey & Rosenfeld, 1996)?

"It’s one of the stupidest laws in America," said Justin Schmid, 21, a student at Southern Methodist University in Dallas. "You can be drafted by your country, go to war — yet you can’t have a beer. You can be tried as an adult — yet you can’t have a beer."

"In some ways, it perversely encourages drinking because it made it a rebellious thing to do," said Jonah Goldberg, an editor with National Review.

"We [the United States] need to stop thinking we know better than the rest of the world," Koronkay-Palicz said. "We don't. We need to learn from Europe where they have much lower drinking ages and they experience fewer problems with alcohol."

"I think that 18 is a good drinking age," said freshman Suzanne Smith. "It promotes responsibility. Regardless of what the drinking age is, kids are going to rebel against the law, use fake ID and try to get into clubs when they're not of age."

15 Interesting Facts from a Web-based Resource

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In 1987 the Minimum Legal Drinking Age Law was passed to “make it illegal for any person who is less than 21 years old to either purchase, possess, or consume alcoholic beverages or to misrepresent their age to obtain such beverages” (Policy and legislation, 1996).

Also in 1987, the Adult Responsibility Law was enacted to try to decrease underage drinking.

There has been a huge increase in younger people that drink more abusively when they do drink. This change has occurred after the drinking age was increased.

Only seven countries have a drinking age of 21. The Ukraine, Russia, Honduras, Egypt, South Korea, Malaysia, and the United States.
Youth Rights

In the early 60’s the government changed the drinking age to 21.

Between 1970 and 1975, 29 states lowered the MLDA to 18, 19, or 20. These changes occured when the minimum age for other activities, such as voting, also were being lowered.

In 1984, Congress passed the National Minimum Purchase Age Act, to encourage each state to enact a minimum legal purchase age (MLPA) of 21 by 1986.

State motor vehicle fatality data from the 48 continental states found that lowering the MLPA for beer from 21 to 18 during the 1970's resulted in an 11% increase in fatalities among this age group

A Michigan study found that police reports of "had been drinking" crashes increased 35%, while the incidence of nighttime single-vehicle crashes among young men increased 17% after the state reduced its MLPA from 21 to 18.

University of Illinois, found that children who watched many hours of TV violence when they were in elementary school tended to also show a higher level of aggressive behavior when they became teenagers.

Studies by George Gerbner, Ph.D., at the University of Pennsylvania, have shown that children's TV shows contain about 20 violent acts each hour.

At the age of 18 one can: get married, sign legally binding contracts and even fight for their country in times of war. These require a lot of responsibility and the same maturity that someone who is 21 or even 40 would need to make the same decisions.

After Prohibition, nearly all states restricting youth access to alcohol designated 21 as the minimum legal drinking age (MLDA). Between 1970 and 1975, however, 29 states lowered the MLDA to 18, 19, 20.

High school seniors who could not legally drink until age 21 drank less before age 21 and between ages 21 - 25 than did seniors in states with lower drinking ages.

The United States is one of only four nations with a legal drinking age of 21.