<p>lol he/she/it is good at that, but in a general sense I agreed with the statement.</p>
<p>
Please tell me how. I can’t see that, if the people are being responsible and not total idiots.</p>
<p>
Even a glass of wine at dinner with your parents?
Because even that is underage drinking. For a comparison, 1 glass of wine is equivalent to a beer or to a shot of something like vodka. (Yay alcoholEDU knowledge!)</p>
<p>I didn’t read through the thread, but I think the drinking age should be lowered here, if only to 18. Underage drinking is HUGE here in the USA, and even moreso because kids are “rebelling” because it’s illegal and once they get their hands on some alcohol, they might as well “do it right” and get super trashed. It’s a lot different in the European countries with lower drinking ages.</p>
<p>Personally, I don’t mind just having a [not a few!] drink to loosen up a little, but I’m not a fan of getting drunk or super tipsy or anything.</p>
<p>I don’t drink, but I can act like I’m drunk really well. It’s a skill I picked up.</p>
<p>I don’t care if people around me are drinking, as long as they don’t drive or impregnate someone. </p>
<p>(Beer makes you FAT)</p>
<p>“Please tell me how. I can’t see that, if the people are being responsible and not total idiots.”</p>
<p>Drinking itself opens up the possibility of legal consequences that have further consequences. If you drink, you are automatically taking a risk that involves more than just yourself.</p>
<p>Sure, if there are no medical problems with drinking (I haven’t seen a study unfortunately) and you are not addicted and your parents don’t know and you do it in your basement and you don’t tell anybody and you never get caught and you drink a responsible amount and you follow all the rules of safe drinking, then maybe there is no risk and that drinking can be labeled “responsible.” However, that is not the context of much teen drinking today.</p>
<p>“Even a glass of wine at dinner with your parents?”</p>
<p><em>Sigh</em> I was hoping no one would bring that up, actually.</p>
<p>That is the exception. That is the most responsible form of underage drinking.</p>
<p>Aero- that comment about beer made my day.</p>
<p>Baelor- let’s take that a step further then, since wine isn’t all that taboo. What about a margarita or two at dinner with your parents?</p>
<p>^Are the parents responsible drinkers themselves?</p>
<p>Baelor, how many parties have you attended? I think the scene you’re imagining in your head is pretty far removed from what is generally accurate. It’s extremely rare for a high schooler to get alcohol poisoning (I can count the confirmed cases in my four years of high school on one hand) unless he or she is actually trying, since habitual drinkers know their “limits” and first-timers are typically cautious, and at every party I’ve been to there are extreme precautions taken to ensure that no one can be injured, and NO ONE under any circumstances is permitted to drive away intoxicated, under penalty of ostracism.</p>
<p>As for parties being broken up by police, they never will be if the noise is kept to a reasonable level, and even then not if you happen to know your rights (fi a cop is at the door, you don’t have to let them in, so just hush everyone up and send a sober person to talk to them - they cannot constitutionally force entrance if no one leaves the house).</p>
<p>*You can’t say killing people is bad because you’ve never tried it. </p>
<p>I promised I wouldn’t win this thread…oh well, lol.*</p>
<p>Ah, but you’re using a different meaning of the word “bad” there. We’ve been using “bad” to refer almost exclusively to the effects on oneself - you wouldn’t be able to speak authoritatively of the psychological trauma undergone by murderers without committing murder yourself, would you?</p>
<p>[The</a> Art of Being Right - Wikisource](<a href=“The Art of Being Right - Wikisource, the free online library”>The Art of Being Right - Wikisource, the free online library)</p>
<p>Baelor- yes, the parents are very responsible.</p>
<p>(And I’ve only been to one party where a girl got alcohol poisoning… and I’ll never go to that type of party again just because it wasn’t all that fun).</p>
<p>^ Then it’s fine. It’s illegal, but it’s still fine.</p>
<p>MD, I’ve been to enough. I didn’t go to one, however, where the police came and busted it and brought the host down to the station for some mug shots. That would have been interesting to see, no doubt. I’m not saying that blackouts occur regularly. Nor am I saying that everyone binges. I DO know from experience that many in fact do, and many others drink and drive. Even one drink will push you over the minor BAC limit. They are NOT responsible drinkers, and are incredibly selfish by putting others at risk by driving. It’s not all about (a generic) you. It’s really not. People don’t think about the consequences of their actions. Fine, maybe they get home safely that one time. But what if they hadn’t, and had crashed simply because they were drunk? Bills for DUI for minors can run over ten thousand dollars when all expenses are included. I know many people who drink excessively, then drive.</p>
<p>I also love seeing my friends post pictures of huge kegger and bong parties on FB. I would hardly call a party where a coffee tabled is literally covered with vodka and beer bottles “responsible drinking,” especially when there were…hmm, ten people there.</p>
<p>Look, all I’m saying is that people don’t drink responsibly, and selfishly don’t consider the consequences of their actions.</p>
<p>If everyone drank in the privacy of their own home (preferably under parental supervision), I wouldn’t have a problem. If everyone had a glass of wine at a party, and managed to get home without driving, I wouldn’t have a problem.</p>
<p>How often do those scenarios occur at parties I go to? Never.</p>
<p>I’m of the opinion that drunk drivers should be lined up and shot. There is almost no action more despicable, in my eyes.</p>
<p>What I’m saying, though, is that teen drinking is not synonymous with drunk driving and alcohol poisoning, or even irresponsible drinking. My friends’ parties are extremely responsible. More responsible than many college parties where participants are actually of legal age, no doubt.</p>
<p>
That’s just stupid.
I don’t get people who take/put up these pictures in the first place, or the people who keep themselves tagged in them if they didn’t have a choice.</p>
<p>drinking is just fun. I don’t drink that much, but when you go out on the weekend its always fun to pregame and if your heading to a party its fun to drink. I think beer tastes good (the right beer), its an aquired taste, but everyone likes different things. I mean vodka straight is not good, but if you mix it its fine. I don’t like rum, so I rarely drink it. Point is, everyone has their likes and their dislikes and if you drink responsibly than who cares. The idea that people judge others on stuff like this is ridiculous, do what you want, but don’t judge other people for what they do if it doesn’t affect anyone. And don’t pull the bs that you going to a party with friends hurts others (drunk driving does—but were talking about being smart and being moderate) In short, drinking makes situations more fun and it lowers your inhibitions so its easier to talk to/hook up with girls and just generally go crazy.</p>
<p>“What I’m saying, though, is that teen drinking is not synonymous with drunk driving and alcohol poisoning, or even irresponsible drinking. My friends’ parties are extremely responsible. More responsible than many college parties where participants are actually of legal age, no doubt.”</p>
<p>Then you have friends who are only somewhat irresponsible. Count yourself lucky, many people are not.</p>
<p>“generally go crazy.”</p>
<p>I know, it’s great. And they have LAWS against underage drinking? Can’t imagine why!</p>
<p>Red Bull + Vodka, anyone?</p>
<p>puts your heart on hyperspeed…lol</p>
<p>^as for underage drinking laws, how does the one extra day make you any more able to drink and make good decesions? add into the mix the fact that it should be the first time you ever drank.</p>
<p>21st birthday = blackout celebration</p>
<p>^No, but unless they find a way to administer a test to everyone to determine if they are ready, an arbitrary age is necessary.</p>
<p>^ Agreed. As with many other issues in life, a line has to be drawn somewhere.</p>
<p>^ lmao. thus leading to one of those “wth?! where did this cut come from? and that bruise?!” moments in the morning haha</p>