Organization for paper

My organization throughout my body paragraphs will include various subtopics about the legal drinking age. The support for these paragraphs will include numerous binge drinking statistics, as well as quotes from well-respected university presidents and administrators. After the introduction, I will go right into the history of the drinking age and why it was originally changed in 1974. After the brief overview of some of the challenges that our country is face with about alcohol consumption, I will look further into the opinions of numerous people from my field research around the Ohio University campus. I follow these interviews and comments up with my opinions about our situation with the drinking age in America and describe how the European countries have much more success with alcohol. I will conclude my essay with possible solutions to the problem and follow my main point that the drinking age should be changed back to 18, so the universities can further monitor the problem with alcohol in the United States.

Introduction

Imagine you are standing at your first college party and you asked, "Have a beer with your friends!" The moral dilemma that ensues is one of great controversy and debate all over the country. Since 1974, the legal drinking age has been set at twenty-one and the reasons for the change have caused heated arguments throughout the United States. My main goal of this paper is to examine the binge culture in America, as well as find reasons to support the eventual lowering of the legal drinking age. Alcohol consumption has been a highly debated topic in our society for years and it appears that this topic is finally gaining some leeway among University administrators and Presidents. The overall goal is to lower the amount of binge drinking in America, and subsequently lower the amount of alcohol related deaths each year in the United States.

Alcohol culture at Ohio University

It is obvious that the culture in Athens, Ohio is centered around the consumption of alcohol. Many places around the country only think of Ohio University as the "party atmosphere" and many times they don't even realize that we are an acclaimed university in our education. I really take that to heart because I am proud to be a student here at Ohio University and the rankings for party schools mean nothing to me. In my paper, I will ultimately show why the culture here at OU is so set on drinking and explore possible solutions to the problems involving alcohol on our campus. The drinking age is not a restriction here at OU because at almost every house on Friday and Saturday nights there is a large party that welcomes anyone who wants to "Have a good time" especially when there is binge drinking involved. The Sororities and Fraternities have numerous social and binge drinking is very prevalent at these parties. The entire campus seems to be proud of our bars on Court St. that only add to our reputation that OU is strictly a party school. Throughout my paper I will have a subtopic that includes why I believe that binge drinking is prevalent, and attempt to dispute that Ohio University is only a party school.

European Alcohol Age

I will research the amount of alcohol consumed by the European countries and show that there is much more binge drinking in the United States because of these limitations. It is a part of American society that if there are limitations, it causes youth in America to revolt and attempt to overthrow these limitations. The alcohol age is just another limitation that American youth has to deal with and ultimately rebel against. Alcohol in these European countries is looked at as normal and the amount of alcohol consumed by people under the age of 21 is far less than the United States for the simple fact that responsibility for alcohol is taught from a very early age, while society looks at underage alcohol consumption as almost taboo in some parts of the country. It is obvious that is why youth in America continue to abuse alcohol and will continue until society accepts that it is a privilage and should be handled in a responsible manner. 

The book

The book that I found of the legal aspect of the drinking laws is, Minimum Drinking-- Age Laws by: Ann Hawker. The book actually has a lot of research to back why the age is set at 21, but my main goal with the book is to push the boundaries and ultimately dispute that the age be set at 18. Using the sources that I have compiled, I will dispute the age limitations and counteract the overall idea that the age needs to be set at 18. Looking at the numbers, I can already tell that this will be a worthwhile book to have because of the limitations placed on adults under the age of 21. I will counter the numbers with actual life experiences because having experiences both 18 and 21, I can clearly tell that there is no difference with the amount of alcohol consumed. There is too much money for the economy being locked because of these limitations on the drinking age. Alcohol is a large part of American society and it needs to be changed to help get the economy back on it's feet. 

Sources

I have compiled a list of research sources for my eventual paper and the research appears to be going along smoothly. Through one of my sources I have found that many states are openly lobbying for the drinking age to be changed back to 18. Many University presidents, who grew up with the age being set at 18 are passionate about the change. Their argument is that people in college who are under the age of 21 are still able to consume alcohol and if the age was set at the original age, the result would be more monitoring of consumption through the various bars and liquor establishments. This source goes along with my viewpoint that there would be more success with the regulation of alcohol if there was a more rigid policy for serving people at the bar and liquor establishments. The thought that lowering the age would actually decrease the amount of binge drinking is hard for some people to wrap their heads around, but the numbers do not lie and it is a fact that people below the age of 21 are consuming alcohol at a faster pace and ultimately binge drinking. 

Observations

For my field research for the drinking age being changed back to 18 I will travel to two different places. My first destination for observation will be dorms and house parties around campus. The thought for this destination is that more freshmen and sophomores who are naturally under the age of 21 will be attending. I will also observe the amount of binge drinking as opposed to my second destination; the bars of Ohio University. In my past experiences here at Ohio University, I have noticed that more binge drinking is occurring at these house parties because it is readily available for consumption. At the bars on Court St. it is less likely that binge drinking will occur because drinkers are being regulated by the bar tenders and it is unlikely to be sold to if the alcohol abuser appears to have had too much. The regulation of alcohol consumption will be a large part of my overall idea that the drinking age be changed back to the original age of 18. With this idea I will branch off into various subtopics about regulation and monitoring. 

Binge Culture

The article entitled, "Binge Culture" in the Christian Century journal has many viable points about the drinking age being lowered, however there are a few points that are different than my overall findings. "Binge Culture" explores college campuses all over the country and explains that numerous college presidents are supporting the drinking age being lowered. Toben Nelson currently of Harvard School of Public health states, "There is something about certain college campuses that promotes binge drinking". His stance that colleges just like Ohio University promote the act of binge drinking is justified by the overall numbers and studies conducted over the years.

One stance that is also justified by the numbers is the simple fact that adults under the age of 18 are ultimately more prone to binge drink. My stance is that if the drinking age was lowered, the result would ultimately be less binge drinking and alcohol abuse cases. The thought is that if teenagers did not have to sneak around and consume as much alcohol as possible, the result would be less overall alcohol injuries.

Beginning Blog

This is my first blog about the social issues with the United States Drinking Age. My main focus of the paper will include all of the positives and negatives associated with changing the drinking age back to eighteen. I hope to incorporate quotes and opinions from people who are very passionate about this subject, along with statistics to help legitimize my stance on the issue. From personal life experience, I have battled with this issue since I was eighteen years old and now that I am the legal age of twenty-one it will be interesting to look at it in another person's perspective. I hope to enhance my writing and research skills, while honing in on the main issue of lowering the legal drinking age.