Underage Drinking - General

Underage drinking was fun. Just need to not overdo it, that's all.

Its a funny subject, IMO. There are kids that would drink alcohol like they would any drink (or at least not to get wasted) and then there are the kids that drink to get wasted. It would have different effects on different places. I think its a very similar argument as drug legalization. If its legalized, then more people use it yes, but the amount of people using it in excess can be easily cut back. Its never been a personal issue since my folks always encouraged me to get some drinks in before college so I don't be that freshmen that gets himself wasted because "OMG ALCOHOL I CAN BE COOL NOW" and the second legislation like that is imposed... well statistics will flow in about "Underage Drinking Deaths Increased >????<%!!!!!!" and of course the politician/s in charge of putting it through would get hammered. So no politicians wants to be the one to deal with it.

[QUOTE=Uber|nooB;35217397]Underage drinking was fun. Just need to not overdo it, that's all.[/QUOTE] Pretty much, I think the only reason it gets a bad name is because of excess and that's generally related to something else like stress, anxiety or unemployment. Family too, if the family has a drink problem then it's obviously going to affect the daughter/son. I started drinking when I was 15, sure I had times when I over did it but I learned my limits, I met new people and learned valuable life lessons, if I only started at 18 I would be pretty damn inexperienced and would probably have been made an idiot by myself or others. Ideally I believe that our age limit should be 16, but laws like the off-license closing at 10pm should stay.

It's not bad if it's done in moderation. It's stupid if kids do it just to get wasted and look "cool".

I don't "drink" per se, I've been drunk, it was pretty fun, but since I still live with my parents and don't go to parties, I don't have loads of access to it anyways and I don't really care either way. The reason kids drink is the same reason kids smoke, you tell em they can't do it and guess what they suddenly want to do most.

There's no such thing as underage drinking, only premature awesomeness.

[QUOTE=Devodiere;35216653]Get off it. Who cares if you are less intelligent while intoxicated, you aren't going to doing particularly brain intensive tasks then anyway. Inhibitions do lower, that IS a good thing because most people are way too deep in their self-consciousness that they don't realise they're fine, alcohol forces them to let their guard down and see what happens. Instinct is a broad term but along with the decline in higher functions, base functions become more predominant. What falls is your sensory input, reaction time and strangely enough you cannot automatically read emotion on people's faces, trust me it's far more difficult. "Conversations worse", that's a lovely statement. Lowering inhibitions can make you more trusting and connect better with someone because you aren't overthinking it, unless your normal conversations are on Consequentialism vs. Deontologicalism and your brain forbids you from talking about anything less. Also your statement on drunk sex is hilariously wrong, I'd recommend you look into the actual effects of alcohol in normal occurances rather than the far end.[/QUOTE] I'm not going to try to argue with you on the fact that it makes people less intelligent, because unless I'm mistaken, we're both agreeing with that fact, but you're arguing that it's for the better, I'm saying it's for the worse. Alcohol promotes falsities, the false thought of happiness, of comradery, and such, it's how a lot of people become alcoholics, they feel that the only way to make friends is to be drunk. Before you say that not many people are alcoholics, and that it's on the far side of the spectrum, it really, really is not.

yes it really is considering the portion of the population who consume alcohol and manage to do it responsibly - which is to say, the overwhelming majority of drinkers. btw the happiness and camaraderie aren't false - seratonin and dopamine don't lie, my friend. Are you literally unable to comprehend that drinking does not make you an alcoholic, nor do you have to drink in amounts that would lead to alcoholism to have a good night out. I'm actually genuinely offended by what you're saying because it's so utterly incorrect on every level - you've made insulting generalisations about people who go out and drink, you're stating seriously dubious opinions (prove to me that alcoholics are not the sorry, sodden far end of drinking) and presenting them as facts. Everything you've said really leads me to believe that you've never ever seen or been part of a normal, healthy drinking culture - I either feel sorry for you for being exposed to a situation where people regularly abuse alcohol, or I'm probably going to mock you for foolishly assuming that all consumption of alcohol is an endemic social ill and that everyone who consumes it is an alcoholic date-rapist when you blatantly haven't experienced a normal night out. Earlier, when you were talking about this trip to Italy, you mentioned how many of your classmates got drunk. That's probably because they've been totally sheltered from alcohol (like you clearly have) and don't have anything to base their approach to alcohol on - but tell me, are Italian (or, for that matter, French and German) streets constantly strewm with drunk people? No? That's because they've been raised from a young age what a responsible drinking culture looks like and operates like - so by the time they can legally buy drinks, they already know the risks of drinking and how to handle alcohol.

Drinking underage is dangerous for your health and growth .

My Dad was an alcoholic, my grandmother was an alcoholic, my uncles are still alcoholics, so right there, a good goddamn chunk of my family are alcoholics. Also when you consider just how many deaths a year a caused by drunk driving alone, let alone other alcohol related deaths, you see just how depraved a drug it is. In fact, a large number of the population over 15, around 4% here in Canada, are alcoholics. Don't get me wrong, drink if you want to, I want that possibility to be out there for all drugs actually, just not for minors, who could potentially be harmed by their choices. And when you bring up the point of my group being sheltered, they we're more sheltered than Italian kids, yes, but all of their parents are fairly open to alcohol, only 2 of my classmates say that their parents wont let them drink. Hell, even my parents will, I just choose not to. But the minute they could drink freely on their own choosing, they abused that privilege.

Part of the thrill is the fact that you're underage, I can't say that i'm against what I did as a kid.

[QUOTE=Funktastic Dog;35222581][B]My Dad was an alcoholic, my grandmother was an alcoholic, my uncles are still alcoholics[/B], so right there, a good goddamn chunk of my family are alcoholics. Also when you consider just how many deaths a year a caused by drunk driving alone, let alone other alcohol related deaths, you see just how depraved a drug it is. In fact, a large number of the population over 15, around 4% here in Canada, are alcoholics. Don't get me wrong, drink if you want to, I want that possibility to be out there for all drugs actually, just not for minors, who could potentially be harmed by their choices. And when you bring up the point of my group being sheltered, they we're [B]more sheltered than Italian kids[/B], yes, but all of their parents are fairly open to alcohol, only 2 of my classmates say that their parents wont let them drink. Hell, even my parents will, I just choose not to. [B]But the minute they could drink freely on their own choosing, they abused that privilege[/B].[/QUOTE] I thought so. Btw, it isn't a matter of your parents letting you drink, but on the attitudes they foster towards alcohol. Parents who just let their kids have booze and don't think about it are, to use a well worn phrase, doing it wrong. The key difference with countries like italy and france isn't just that they're exposed to drinking, but the [I]way[/I] they are exposed to drinking, the environment and attitudes towards drinking that tend to be held there. It's totally different.

[QUOTE=lil timmy;35222748]I thought so. Btw, it isn't a matter of your parents letting you drink, but on the attitudes they foster towards alcohol. Parents who just let their kids have booze and don't think about it are, to use a well worn phrase, doing it wrong. The key difference with countries like italy and france isn't just that they're exposed to drinking, but the [I]way[/I] they are exposed to drinking, the environment and attitudes towards drinking that tend to be held there. It's totally different.[/QUOTE] First of all, why would you highlight that first part. Secondly, I go to a goddamn private school, if the parents pay 20,000 dollars a year to send their kid there, and on top of that payed 5000 dollars to send their kid on a school trip to italy, they care enough about their kid to tell them the basics of drinking. If you want the full and complete drinking backstory of every kid that drank, I could give it to you, but basically, their parents are both open minded and responsible and they teach their kid the ropes of alcohol drinking and such. That said, they weren't drinking from the time they we're 7, like italian kids.

I enjoy the odd alcoholic drink every so often, but I enjoy them for the taste and experience of consuming the liquid, but the effects of alcohol itself isn't that great in my small experiences of getting drunk with my mates. I just get very clumsy and regress socially into a 10 year old but keeping the horneyness of my 16 year old self, which isn't a good combination, and the last time I got drunk I completely alienated a female friend. I think people should be allowed to do what they want with regards to drugs, but getting sloshed is not for me.

[QUOTE=Funktastic Dog;35222835]First of all, why would you highlight that first part. Secondly, I go to a goddamn private school, if the parents pay 20,000 dollars a year to send their kid there, and on top of that payed 5000 dollars to send their kid on a school trip to italy, they care enough about their kid to tell them the basics of drinking. If you want the full and complete drinking backstory of every kid that drank, I could give it to you, but basically, their parents are both open minded and responsible and they teach their kid the ropes of alcohol drinking and such. That said, they weren't drinking from the time they we're 7, like italian kids.[/QUOTE] Well apparently I managed alcohol better than your compatriots and I went to a state school in the UK which, by the way, currently has one of the worst drinking cultures among young people at the moment - so again, I reiterate, it's about role models and conventions about alcohol which promote sensible drinking - and my parents, friends and fellow drinkers contributed to that. Jesus what is so hard to grasp about my argument.

[QUOTE=lil timmy;35223126]Well apparently I managed alcohol better than your compatriots and I went to a state school in the UK which, by the way, currently has one of the worst drinking cultures among young people at the moment - so again, I reiterate, it's about role models and conventions about alcohol which promote sensible drinking - and my parents, friends and fellow drinkers contributed to that. Jesus what is so hard to grasp about my argument.[/QUOTE] Your argument is easy to grasp, you just make it seem like my friends role models and conventions were the worst possible when they were not at all, their role models might've been the best ones possible, and their parents fairly openly let their kid drink, what I'm saying is, when you give your kids the choice to drink openly, no matter what background they live in, they will abuse it, unless they are basically raised from birth with alcohol.

Then why haven't I spiralled into alcohol abuse? Why haven't my friends, who were raised in a similar way to me, also spiralled into alcohol problems? Why doesn't this happen in mediterranean countries? Look, I'm not trying to demean the your friends or their parents, and I'm sure they had the very best intentions when raising their children, but your friends obviously don't have a responsible outlook on drinking despite their parents' best efforts. I said earlier that there is a [I]fundamental[/I] difference between letting your kids drink (even under supervision) and promoting a sensible outlook on alcohol. I appreciate, of course, that this is also a very societal thing - if the wider drinking culture is predominantly unhealthy, then it can be difficult to give people a sensible attitude to drink even if they do have correct role models in their parents and close friends.

[QUOTE=Funktastic Dog;35218146]I'm not going to try to argue with you on the fact that it makes people less intelligent, because unless I'm mistaken, we're both agreeing with that fact, but you're arguing that it's for the better, I'm saying it's for the worse. Alcohol promotes falsities, the false thought of happiness, of comradery, and such, it's how a lot of people become alcoholics, they feel that the only way to make friends is to be drunk. Before you say that not many people are alcoholics, and that it's on the far side of the spectrum, it really, really is not.[/QUOTE] I said in the first sentence, you aren't going to be doing anything particularly brain intensive in that kind of situation anyway so not really a big deal. The idea that they are false is also stupid given a lot of the time it's make friends and then drink with them. [QUOTE=Funktastic Dog;35222581]My Dad was an alcoholic, my grandmother was an alcoholic, my uncles are still alcoholics, so right there, a good goddamn chunk of my family are alcoholics. Also when you consider just how many deaths a year a caused by drunk driving alone, let alone other alcohol related deaths, you see just how depraved a drug it is. In fact, a large number of the population over 15, around 4% here in Canada, are alcoholics. Don't get me wrong, drink if you want to, I want that possibility to be out there for all drugs actually, just not for minors, who could potentially be harmed by their choices. And when you bring up the point of my group being sheltered, they we're more sheltered than Italian kids, yes, but all of their parents are fairly open to alcohol, only 2 of my classmates say that their parents wont let them drink. Hell, even my parents will, I just choose not to. But the minute they could drink freely on their own choosing, they abused that privilege.[/QUOTE] Wow, 4% of the [url=http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hc-ps/drugs-drogues/stat/index-eng.php]77%[/url] of people who drink. There really is no middle ground, is there? [QUOTE=Funktastic Dog;35222835]First of all, why would you highlight that first part. Secondly, I go to a goddamn private school, if the parents pay 20,000 dollars a year to send their kid there, and on top of that payed 5000 dollars to send their kid on a school trip to italy, they care enough about their kid to tell them the basics of drinking. If you want the full and complete drinking backstory of every kid that drank, I could give it to you, but basically, their parents are both open minded and responsible and they teach their kid the ropes of alcohol drinking and such. That said, they weren't drinking from the time they we're 7, like italian kids.[/QUOTE] Same source as before, youths have a three times higher statistic of drinking heavily, this is just a part of being young and something that people evidently grow out of. Teaching them about alcohol and responsibility with it isn't as simple as cashing out for private school so don't trust them to do a good job with it. [QUOTE=Funktastic Dog;35223254]Your argument is easy to grasp, you just make it seem like my friends role models and conventions were the worst possible when they were not at all, their role models might've been the best ones possible, and their parents fairly openly let their kid drink, what I'm saying is, when you give your kids the choice to drink openly, no matter what background they live in, they will abuse it, unless they are basically raised from birth with alcohol.[/QUOTE] Oh wow, that is again terribly wrong. I'd say they might push the boundaries a few times and binge to their limit but they will not develop severe alcoholism. Reality just doesn't agree with you.

[QUOTE=lil timmy;35222748]I thought so. Btw, it isn't a matter of your parents letting you drink, but on the attitudes they foster towards alcohol. Parents who just let their kids have booze and don't think about it are, to use a well worn phrase, doing it wrong. The key difference with countries like italy and france isn't just that they're exposed to drinking, but the [I]way[/I] they are exposed to drinking, the environment and attitudes towards drinking that tend to be held there. It's totally different.[/QUOTE] I think most European Countries have it down. I know alot of Eastern Europe is portayed as being alcoholic but my parents raised me well in that they taught me to enjoy drinking, not being drunk. It still annoys me when you see people being snobs about martini's and the like or idiots buying cheap shit, they're missing the point.

[QUOTE=Satansick;35220791]Drinking underage is dangerous for your health and growth .[/QUOTE] [QUOTE=FPChris;35215382]Drinking is bad for you and kills you. Doing it earlier just means you're not gonna be fully developed.[/QUOTE] sigh Getting wasted once in a while at your cool-kid high school parties isn't going to do crap to you. I understand there are a lot of kids who try to look cool by drinking/smoking, but it can be responsibly enjoyed at any age (in my opinion) and please don't be one of those ignorant fucks who instantly look down on someone for doing it.

In very small amounts its fine, but in the large, getting completely wasted ways, thats bad. Myself, i got myself drunk when i was 12, very heavily drunk, and i have never taken a sip of alcohol again, and probably never will

I'm saying, you should be able to drink, and yes kids underage will drink, but of its legal earlier, due to the fact that theyre bloody idiots, theyll get wasted a hell of a lot more. And we will never have the same drinking culture as Greece or Italy, we as North American scum are too testosterone fueled and reckless to have a good drinking culture in the foreseeable future.

There is no problem in having a taste or a small glass of beer or wine at young age. My father used to give some to me once in a while during meals and here I am. Of course I drank with adult supervision but I don't believe that the act of drinking at a young age is harmful. Now if you're talking about the circumstances of drinking and having a kid buying booze alone. Yeah, that's wrong and fucked up.

[QUOTE=lil timmy;35222748]I thought so. Btw, it isn't a matter of your parents letting you drink, but on the attitudes they foster towards alcohol. Parents who just let their kids have booze and don't think about it are, to use a well worn phrase, doing it wrong. The key difference with countries like italy and france isn't just that they're exposed to drinking, but the [I]way[/I] they are exposed to drinking, the environment and attitudes towards drinking that tend to be held there. It's totally different.[/QUOTE] Like I said in a previous post, kids in the United States see drugs and underage drinking as a "Forbidden Fruit." Here in Greece it's such a normal part of daily life that it's not seen as a big deal. I often see kids as young as 13 having a pint with their Gyro. Are they jumping around acting retarded? No. It's seen more as a social thing rather an ~Edgy~ cool thing to do. Part of the problem is the puritan-like views on things such as drinking, drugs, sex, etc...All it creates is this unavoidable need to rebel against what your authority figures are telling you.

I had a right laugh with it, as long as you're sensible with it you'll be alright probs.

im 17 and I think I'm slowly turning alcoholic, already chainsmoker fml

[QUOTE=Egevened;35253306]im 17 and I think I'm slowly turning alcoholic, already chainsmoker fml[/QUOTE] That's just because you use internet explorer! Hurr, I kid. But that's because I would say of bad crowd or parenting. I started drinking a beer or two at 16 and a wine with dinner and stuff, now I just drink on weekends / sometimes whisky, wine or beer with a movie alone. I'm 19.

If I want to drink a beer for the taste, I buy the non alcoholic one. Simple as that.

I think Americas drinking age is a little high, 18 is fine.

Also, hey, looky that! I was right about alcohol being harmful! [url]http://scienceblogs.com/scientificactivist/2007/03/study_finds_alcohol_and_tobacc_1.php[/url]