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Country still driving on the road to moral decline

3 min read

To the editor:

So now we are going to have a debate about lowering the drinking age to 18. Seems like we have been down this road before. Remember the argument about pre-marital sex? The thought was that since they were going to do it anyway, let’s tell them all about it, provide them with protection and set them “free.” And what have we gotten? Five out of 10 teens have STDs, plus AIDs, abortions and its ramifications, and some people want to lower the age of consent to 12 years.

What no one wants to face is that teens do not have the mental capacity to appreciate the consequences of their actions. This does not develop until they are 25 years old. By then, if left to their own devices, they may have STDs that need treatment for the rest of their lives, and an inability to form lasting relationships, and now, if this other folly goes through, maybe a police record that will follow them the rest of their lives, if they don’t end up in prison for killing some innocent victim.

Teens need some adults to tell them what is what, and put some restraints on their actions. They need to be told that they can’t have sex with every Tom, Dick and Harry. That they need to save themselves for marriage. That they can’t drink alcohol, that it can cause brain damage, liver damage, and ruin their lives. In a way, it’s bad enough that they can get a driver’s license at the age of 16. When we were young, it was 18. All the above was thought to be privileges, not rights, that were earned. You got them when your parents thought you exhibited sound judgment, and you were on your way to supporting yourselves.

If lowering the drinking age goes the way of pre-marital sex, soon some will want the drinking age to be lowered also. It is a slippery slope. What college presidents need to do is put their foot down and have some sort of policing of bars, and sororities. We pay a lot of money to get our children educated so that they can earn a decent living, not to have their lives ruined, or worse. No matter what society says, 18 years do not an adult make. They still need fences.

The argument that if you can vote at 18, which we do not agree with, (see above), and go to war, you should be able to drink. When Bill was the service during World War II, the only alcoholic drink available to non-coms at the PX was 2 percent beer and he was 21. And anyone who has been in service would agree that the services do put limits on your actions.

The current drinking age of 21 has saved lives. Let’s keep it that way.

Bill and Doris Heyns

Cape Coral