America tends to be the land of extremes – from high obesity rates to radical political allegiance and the prevalence of corporate manipulation, the U.S. often sets the trends, as well as serving as entertainment for horrified spectators.
Continuing on this vein, America’s standard age for receiving a driver’s license is 16, while the average age in most European countries is 18.
Although part of the reason of the discrepancy in age is due to the superior transit system in much of Europe, the general consensus in several countries seems to be no one should drive until he or she is considered an adult.
Conversely, the U.S. also has one of the highest legal drinking ages in the world, while most European countries have set their drinking age to 18. Some even allow 16- or 17-year-olds to legally drink alcohol.
Many underage people complain about the drinking age being too high, but one must take into account American teenagers often start drinking alcohol well before it is legal to do so.
Personally, I think the difference in cultures speaks volumes as to why these laws are in
place.
For example, the French often take two hours for lunch, as it is the biggest meal of the day.
Savoring food and socializing during meals is an integral part of this culture.
For these reasons, getting “wasted” and acting like a fool is not seen as humorous in many European countries, including France. Obviously, American culture does not have these same reservations when it comes to drinking habits.
Popular songs like “Shots” by LMFAO and “I Love College” by Asher Roth have lyrics that condone partying and acting irresponsibly. There are several YouTube videos featuring drunken college students yelling and drinking underage, not drinking socially at lunch.
Some people believe the reason college students drink so heavily and often is due to the high drinking age in America, but I disagree with this sentiment. Although it is true rebellious adolescents may pursue activities that are frowned upon, this is not the only factor that
drives them to drink.
People often drink heavily well past the age of 21 in America, which isn’t as common of a practice in Europe. While Americans may view alcohol as a substance that will lead to wild partying and making mistakes, Europeans are more inclined to view alcohol as a substance to use lightly as a social lubricant.
An argument that is used often in the case of drinking age is, “If you are old enough to fight in the military for our country, you should be able to have a beer.” I agree with this viewpoint only on the grounds that the driving age should be increased to 18 as well.
As for driving, emotionally, many teenagers are too immature to be operating a vehicle responsibly. Because they want to impress their friends or rebel against the rules, they might not take road signs seriously and will get into accidents due to not realizing the precautions they should take.
The fact those under 18 are held to a different legal standard often gives teenagers an excuse to speed, because their record will be purged by the time they become an adult. In order to decrease accidents and speeding tickets, those who drive should be considered an adult and tried as such in a court case.
If someone wants to argue the drinking age should be lowered, I’d have to say the driving age should also be increased to 18. However, our society still holds the belief becoming intoxicated can be funny or cute – something that will continuously hold young adults back from acting responsibly.
