If people are not mature enough to drink at age 18, then why give those same people a gun in the military?

Pineapple Hat

Don't be an idiot.

evemarkra

You know what?...As long as there have been wars people have asked that very question. I have never heard a satisfactory answer either.

ckswife

Because the same thing that makes you a LOUSY, dangerous drinker at 18 makes you a GREAT soldier at 18 - TOTAL LACK of discretion and personal conviction of immortality. Count on it.

Tommy G.

For exactly the same reasons,they don't think about the future,they think they are immune to death and if you encourage them they will do anything.

Lacey

I agree with you.

... because the government caves to the "morality police"... in almost every other country you can drink at a much younger age than 21... and they don't have tons of problems as a result...

you have all these paranoid people on here... geez... the same people that preach "we want less government" always line up for government to step in and tell you what to do... classic

sal the dog

Are you suggesting we don't let anyone under 21 into the military? That's crazy - many of the jobs they do take years to learn effectively, and the nature of the business makes it a young persons occupation.

What do you think they mean when they say "join the service, see the world?" What do you think all the youngsters are doing over there? The drinking laws are much different in other countries.

Join the Service! Travel around Drunk!

Cheers!

desiderio

Get off of it. This is such an old argument. I know a lot of 30-year olds who aren't mature enough to drink. Besides, would you want some alcoholic SOB standing in line with you holding a gun?

yogazen

If you are mature enough to be in the military, you should be able to drink. The trouble is..even with the military people...drinking is one of those things that is forbidden for so long while growing up that when given the chance, most kids abuse the privilege. 18 year olds should not be allowed to drink alcohol...it's a great law!

Joey's back

Been askin' that since Viet Nam. How do you think the voting age got changed to 18? We got tired of being led off to war by politicians that we couldn't even vote for.

But, seriously, this is a question that should make everyone think. If a person is not considered old enough to act in a mature manner while drinking alcohol, how CAN they be expected to "fight for freedom"? (And in this war, again, whose "freedom" are we fighting for? The "freedom" of American business???The "freedom" of having "unlimited" access to oil? [and I quoted the word "unlimited" because oil is NOT an infinite resource.] The "freedom" of the Iraqi people was NEVER the reason given for going to Iraq.)

The answer to your question is: if they tried to send older men off to war, they'd find very few who would go, and of those, very few with the strength and stamina to withstand the trials of warfare. You have to be young and (stupidly) idealistic, and feel lthat you will live forever; you have to be "yahoo" and "yee-ha" and lets go get those "devils". You have to be like the teens who drive 100 miles an hour--feeling like they will never die. ("Born to be wild....)

It all sounds like an adventure, until they see their comrade's head blown off, or lose a leg and an arm themselves. Older folks think about things like that; older folks KNOW they are not immortal.

Thank you for a GREAT question. Keep asking it.

Peace, from an old, old hippie!!!!

Oh yeah, to all you "naysayers": don't forget that we peaceniks were RIGHT!!!!

revolution is brewing

Don't know what it's like now but we could drink on base at 18. That was along time ago though. In nam they used to bring pallet's of beer over carried by helo's.

This is not a new argument. I think you can go to the VFW and drink if you are under 21. but I could be wrong.

cooldumb

hmmmmmmm
good question

Amber

after my boyfriend, who is now my husband, went in the army, he went in the store to buy me some cigarettes and they told him that he had to be 19. his birthday was the next day and he was 18 for one last day, oh boy, he went off. he was climbing the wall. yeah, but he wanted to know the same thing, but now we are both over 21 and now we dont care. but it seems like the army wants you to die in iraq or some other war zone before you die in a drunken car wreck. oh but let me tell you. when you get back from a war zone, they dont give a **** about you anyways. my husbands sergeants always let him drink underage though, so im guessing its the higher-ups

Shy

at 18 they are still trainable, and BTW the military is voluntary, however some people even at 30 still are not responsible enough to drink

scafool

wouldn't want a bunch of drunks with guns would you, especially if they are immature drunks

xxpija_grandexx

The answer is logical. Liquor impairs you in many ways. ex. bad judgment, slower reflexes, and so on. To kill somebody, you don't even need a weapon. At age 18, you're not manure enough to control your system in an intoxicated state. Don't get me wrong, there are people out there that don't know when to quit and lose control. By the way, back in the days you were allow to under age drink if you were in the military. But since all these kids couldn't hack it, they had to put a stop to that. So, in a way, the under age drinkers proved that they couldn't handle it.

retrotrancer

I don't get the connection. Drinking alcohol doesn't lead to anything good. It impairs judgement, makes it easier to make bad decisions, reduces inhibitions, and generally affects people negatively.

The military doesn't just throw an M-16 at you and pat you on the head. You get many weeks of training before you even see a firearm. And then more training after that.

You want to know about a senseless situation, find out why automakers build cars that can go 150 mph, but the maximum speed limit is 85. Why are car companies permitted to produce cars that can outrun police vehicles??? Does Dodge WANT the criminals to get away?

If it's that big a deal with you, run for governor. Make lowering the drinking age to 18 the main issue of your campaign. If most voters agree with you, you'll win.

~~~~~~~~

From one the the "intellectual giants" posting below: "Oh yeah, to all you "naysayers": don't forget that we peaceniks were RIGHT!!!!"

Right about WHAT? Vietnam? Did you forget the bloodbath that occured after we pulled out? The Communists killed everyone with an IQ over 99. All those anti-war protestors are responsible for an utter massacre. Over one million innocent human beings were executed by Pol Pot thugs. But hey, your side's main concern was the humiliation of the U.S. Good going, creeps.

billibadazz

That is an obviously idiotic question. I'm sorry, but you need to rethink you're argument. Think about it. How many people over the age of 18 do you know that still can't hold their liquor? Furthermore, only about 28% of the entire military ever actually get to have the honor of going into combat for this country. The fact that today's youth is as unpatriotic as never before is reflected in this question. Most of the military are what us combat arms vets call insidious shits. In other words, cowards that want to wear the uniform and look "cool", but are too scared to actually volunteer for an MOS that might actually require them to earn their pay. Besides, as anyone who has ever served will tell you. Drinking is a required part of service no matter what age. Even the cowards in the air force drink it up.

Louie G

seving in the armed service is a duty and you have to prove yourself way before you're allowed to touch a weapon,unlike alcohol where anyone can drink a beer

Chula

i know what you are trying to say! and is a good question!! When it's about goverment, and to serve for them, they don't relly care to give a gun, or kill people. I guess we can help just a little, but it's a question, because we can though about it, and find a real solution.

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