should teens be able to drink ?

[piegirl]

When I was a teen being allowed to drink and it not being illegal would have been awesome. 

Yet now as a parent of 11 year old twins I believe that if a parent allows it they send the message that it ok.  I am not against drinking I do drink occasionally myself.  I however do not wish to send the message to my children that it is ok to drink.

[misner411]

NO, NO, and NO. I am a occasional drinker and I know that a drink can help you to calm down and be more mellow. But if you have too much I also know you can do things that you will regret later. I don't think a teen would be responsibe enough to say thats it for me. Especially with peer pressure. We have some adults that can't make that decision. Why take the chance. Be smart and don't do it because its not worth it.

[ambee1018]

Yeah Deff. not ok bc i kmow as a mom im not gunna just let my kids sit around and drink then think well hey if i can drink with my parents then i could bring my friends over to drink and im deff. not going to be apart of that.

[arms1977]

We all know that teens are going to drink wether it is legal or not. I think instead of focusing on legalities we should focus on education. They all see the cars mangled by drunk drivers and some see the people in wheelchairs as a result of drunk driving, but how many of them see things like the woman beaten nearly to death at the hands of a drunk or the child who has to prepare their own meals because their parent is too drunk to do it for them. We need to show them the truth about the consequences they will face opposed to telling them not to do it. I personally do not let teens drink in my home, but my son is much too young to have friends that age. I cannot say wether I will allow him to drink when he gets older or not. At this point I feel I would rather him drink under my supervision rather than on some country road where his (or others) life is in danger.

[gentry6451]

I think that if yo allow parents to let their children drink, then they could show their teens to drink responsibly. One of our problems is that 21 year olds decide that since they can drink legally, that they should throw parties, and get totally wasted. In France they are introduced to alcoholic beverages at a very young age, and therefore are used to it, and don't look at alcohol the way that we do here in America. So, in short, yes, we should be able to drink as a teen, but only with adult supervision, and consent. In America, you can sign up to go fight a war, where your job is to kill, and the enemy's job is to kill you, where you are put into very dangerous positions; yet you can't legally drink a beverage. Does that seem right to you? 

[muush88]

The military drinking age was/is 18 i thought   i was in a long time ago but i believe it was 18 with military id or on post

[wfelagai]

i dont think so.  they are not mature enough to handle their alchol and when they shouldnt, they should not be drinking.

[vlsm23]

teens not really, but I think the age should go back down to 18 - I realize that is still a teenager, but its a legal adult for most things.  Most college freshman are 18 and A LOT of them drink illegally.  I know personally I did, but once I hit 21 I drank hard for maybe a couple weeks and then got bored.  I drink now, possibly too much, but I think it comes down to parents treating alcohol like a responsibility instead of a poison or something that should be completely avoided (thus increasing interest in it).

[Graeth]

No.
If they want to drink, they're not mature enough to do it responsibly

[smylyfayce]

No way. Absolutely not. Some adults shouldn't be allowed to drink because some of them don't know how to drink responsibly, drink in moderation, or hold their liquor without becoming annoying and belligerent drunks. So teens definetly shouldn't be allowed to drink.

[StaciLyn1988]

I don't think teens should drink, but I started drinking a smoking weed when I was 16 I quit doing both of them when I got pregnant. I am not trying to say it was right but well we all do stupid things.

[brendy1990]

nope, i think they way a teenager generally thinks, that nothing can happen to them,, it would be a lethal combination with a teen and there drivers licences..

[ancmetro]

    I am very against anyone drinking alcohol at any age (except in survival situations- e.g.  trying to survive after an accident to stay warm and waiting to be rescued) because it changes the human body chemistry.

[GoGoKokiGo]

I think if my child was mature enough I would allow them to try some every once in a while. Anyway if they were really determined they would find a way to drink with or without me. At least this way they are with me and I can teach them responsibility. I wouldn't allow them to get sh*t faced drunk but a taste or so would be fine.

[mamasboy]

I think if it is in your home and kept in moderation that it should be ok.  That is depending on the age of the kid.