Posted on Nov 28, 2013
Should 18 year olds in the military be allowed to drink alcohol?
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One of the most annoying things is busting college students for drinking. The problem is that you can at 21 at college but most graduate at 22-24, so part of the population can and part cannot.
But for the sake of argument, let's say that it is 21 and over, should military personnel be allowed to drink?
But for the sake of argument, let's say that it is 21 and over, should military personnel be allowed to drink?
Posted in these groups: 
Alcohol
Alcohol
Posted 12 y ago
Responses: 186
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<p>18 year olds should be allowed to drink alcohol, military or not. It is an unreasonable message for politicians to send by saying you are old enough to be given the death penalty, enter into a contract, win the lottery, et al..... but not drink alcohol.</p><p> </p><p>The continued assumption that the level of maturity of the brain should determine the age at which you should be allowed to conduct certain activities does little more than prevent people from developing decision making capacities at younger ages. The term is infantilization. </p><p> </p><p>In addition, it sends these types of behaviors into the dark corners of society. The more you restrict the activity, the less of it you will see. That does not mean it is not happening, it means that the guidance that should be legitimate authority, authority figures, or even peer pressure, is completely absent.</p>
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TSgt (Join to see)
I don't think the age is the problem with people getting in trouble for drinking. I have seen just as many people over 21 get DWIs and ARIs as those under 21. Being stationed in Germany and seeing a culture where the drinking age of base is 16, I have noticed it is not as big a deal as in the States. Even the Airman we get straight out of tech school generally handle it well. There are always going to be people that abuse it and get in trouble but they would regardless if the age limit were 18 or 21. Personally I think if someone has the choice to serve their country at 18 they should also have the choice to enjoy a drink. When I was 20 I served in Iraq. On the way there I was not allowed to have a drink with my team while we waited in Baltimore. Luckily no one was hurt while we were there and I turned 21 during that time as well.
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PO1 Bil Green
In the mid 1980's the feds passed a bill that to get funding for your freeways by the feds, the drinking age has to be 21. LA later changed their law back to 18 since they were losing money. HI should have never changed theirs since at that time there were only 2 freeways in the state and they lost a ton of money with the tourists not being of age.
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SGT Russell Colburn
The Fed does not set the drinking age for the States. That is their , (the States job). But the Feds can force them by threating to with hold money, which is what they did. As far as the Military drinking age that was Cap Weinbergs parting shot when he left as Sec. of Defense. He said the drinking age would be the same for service members as the State or Country they are stationed in. Do I think it is right? No. If that person can't be trusted when it comes to drinking how do we trust them with a half million dollars of equipment and the lives of soldiers? If one is still a kid they need to wait a few more years to join. The military needs men and women. Send the kids to school.
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SPC Brian Ezell
Everyone should comply with the local or national drinking age regardless of whether they are military or civilian.
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Drinking age in Okinawa is 20. Honestly, I'm not seeing our 20 yr olds making worse composite risk management decisions than 21 or older.<div><br></div><div>Personally, I would feel comfortable allowing 18yr old drink. Let's go ahead and teach/educate them on drinking moderately and making good choices at 18.<br></div><div><br></div><div>Will we have incidences with 18yr olds? Yes. But it's probably the same ones that would have had incidences when we allowed them to start drinking at 21.</div>
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SPC Matthew Birkinbine
My dad taught me at a young age about drinking moderately. I drank at age 18 only in the confines of my armory club room, and stayed at the armory on drill weekends. Nowadays it's news if I get a six pack in a 3-month timespan.
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MSG (Join to see)
We have lost plenty of men and women under 21 in the last 12 years. It is a travesty to look these people in the eye and tell them they are not mature enough to enjoy an "adult" beverage.
We should stop recruiting people who can go into battle with their comrades, but cannot enjoy a drink with them when it's over.
It's an embarrassing shame.
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SSG (Join to see)
I totally agree with you CSM Maynard. However, the main thing that I see with this whole age limit drinking issue is that there is a microscopic percentage of underage soldiers who actaully don't drink. What is the difference? Underage soldiers are going to complain about it and most of them have been drinking since 15 or even younger so why harp about the law. They could have been caught just as easy before they came into the Military but they weren't. The only reason that this is an issue, is because they are held accountable in the Army for their actions of breaking the law. Sounds more like a disrespect for authority. If they are able to get by till they are 21 then good for them but if not then they should be responsible and accept the consequences but they can't because they were never made to do that when they were younger. Mom and Dad always said it was ok as long as they didn't do it again, in which they "said" they wouldn't, then were at a party by the weekend.
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My mentality has always been if you are old enough to die for your country, you be able to have beer for her as well, I actually was as the right age each time they changed the laws. I was 18 when it was still 18, was already 19 when it raised up for a few years, and was already 21+ when the made the current restriction to 21. I give a resounding Yes, if they can die and vote, they should be allowed to responsibly drink.
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SGM Matthew Quick
"Responsibly drink" is the key...the many horrific alcohol-related vehicular homicides cast a large shadow over those 'just wanting a beer or two".
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Maj (Join to see)
Agreed! I was raised overseas (military brat), and in all those foreign countries, I was taught the proper way to enjoy a good beer or wine with foods (from age 7 or 8); I was taught the proper way to complement a meal with a beverage vice abuse it (even got my own favorite bottle of wine for my 10th birthday present -- for use under proper parental supervision, of course!). When I finally moved to America at age 15, I was culture-shocked by how all the teens would sneak alcohol at parties. Now, I allow & teach my kids (15, 13, 11) the same so as to prevent their "going crazy" when out with their friends, away from me, some day.
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SrA Brian Walker
Not a military brat, I was however raised to drink moderately. I was given the choice of the occasional alcoholic beverage at parties/with meals during special events. As I got older I was amazed by the number of people who "abused" alcohol when I had been drinking for awhile. However I think what is important to keep in mind is that some people will have issues with drinking at 18, and they would also have issues with it at 21.
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SSgt (Join to see)
I was also a military 'angel' hahaha and I really didn't care to drink and I didn't really party with my friends who did even under 18. Such were the times and maybe they are even worse these days or we just didn't know about it.
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You know, I'll come out and say it. Yes. We have to acknowledge, drinking is a part of military culture - it has been a part of military culture, probably since the very beginning, so we either finally find a smart way to integrate it, and diffuse the impact of dangerous, immature practices, deglamorize binge drinking, by demystifying it. The more we make into a "no big deal" thing, but also one where there is a whole lot of shame to go along with being stupid and OVERDOING it - and I do mean public shaming too - I think we'll actually see a reduction in the number of incidents.
Teetotaling and putting servicemembers into "time out" or "lock down" on base has worked so well, hasn't it?
Teetotaling and putting servicemembers into "time out" or "lock down" on base has worked so well, hasn't it?
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I am LDS which means I don't drink because of my faith, but also because I see the effects of alcohol a lot around me. However, if drinking is allowed, everyone old enough to join should be able to partake.
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TSgt Scott C. Brammer
This is a question that I have heard asked for more than 35 years now (when I was an 18 year old in the service) and my opinion has not changed one bit even though the law has. Of course, 18 year olds should be able to "responsibly" drink on base. I admit, there would be legal problems with extending this policy off base because it would conflict with local laws, but on base definitely. Like anything else, if it was abused it would be very easy for a commander to take this privledge away from someone but for the vast majority of servicemembers drinking should be OK. Although I personally have never deployed to a warzone, I was at very many homecomings, going all the way back to Granada, Desert Storm, wars in the Balkans as well as what is currently going on in Iraq and Afghanistan. In every single case, regardless of base, MAJCOM, branch of service or whether you are talking about active duty military or guard/reservists the one constant in all of these situations is when the troops get off of the aircraft there is always a celebration complete with happy families, crying wives, girlfriends and mothers. There is also food for everyone and BEER. As I think back, I cannot recall a single instance where anyone was running around checking ID's of any of our homecoming heros to see if they were 21. If a soldier, sailor, airman or marine is old enough to serve in combat and possibly die for his country he/she should be old enough to drink.
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SSgt (Join to see)
Not ironically, those who predisposed to excess are going to get drunk and those who are more temperate will not, as a rule. Yes alcoholism is a bad thing but making laws to head it off probably is ineffective.
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Cpl Brenton MacKinnon
Free Will s the consequence/benefit of expulsion from the Garden of Eden. Do we want to return to the arms of Big Brother?
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PFC Stephen Snyder
Cpl MacKinnon,
FYI...Adam and Eve had free will when they lived in the garden. They were expelled as a consequence to partaking of the forbidden fruit which they were commanded to not partake. Free will has always existed and it will continue to exist. The consequence for using their agency to partake meant that they HAD to leave Eden because it was the law.
If the law states that persons can drink alcohol then there is no legal consequence when persons decide to drink. However, there is a natural law whose consequence Will be had when ANY person decides to partake of. We have learned that substance abuse has many consequences. Most of them not are not good ones. Crime, abuse of others and self, list list goes on and on. The consequence of abstaining from Alcohol can also be listed. (health, self control, clear mind, etc)
I have chosen to abstain and I hope others will choose this way of life too.
View the full military profile of Cpl Brenton MacKinnon, Consultant for Vets - state Prison at CDRC | RallyPoint professional military profile.
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I enlisted on my 17th Birthday so I guess I would have been SOL for a year.
I think our country is too up tight about drinking.
For me it's a rule of law question, there should only be one age of majority.
I think our country is too up tight about drinking.
For me it's a rule of law question, there should only be one age of majority.
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SGM Matthew Quick
MAJ Miller, what 18-20 year old that drinks wants to "talk to their leader and come up with a plan"? A plan for what?
How about we just continue to educate our Soldiers about the effects of drinking alcohol in excess? Don't want to turn this into another obnoxious quarterly mandatory 'SHARP' training event.
How about we just continue to educate our Soldiers about the effects of drinking alcohol in excess? Don't want to turn this into another obnoxious quarterly mandatory 'SHARP' training event.
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SGT Michael McMahon
MSG(P) Matthew Q, How many teenagers get pregnant each day, and which will cost us more every year? If the United states would stop being so prude about alcohol, and take a stance more like most of Europe, the number of alcohol related deaths would drop, as since it is "BAD" to drink alcohol under 21, then those under 21 take to to the extreme when they do access alcohol, and then that leads to alcoholism. In Europe, they drink beer and/or wine, like we drink milk, from childhood on, so it is nothing to them, they just teach moderation.
You happen to be on one of the only posts in the US that allows all service members to drink on post, or at least it used to when the ADA was there, because the wanted to stop the service members from having to go to Mexico, where they can legally drink. Enjoy your time at the SGM Academy on Biggs Field!
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SSgt (Join to see)
Bobby Phills, the NBA player was not drunk or under the influence when he died in a vehicular accident. He did have a penchant for speeding, which he chose to overlook. So laws seem to have little impact on that. Secondly Matthew, those under 21 will find other ways of getting something to drink, because as we have observed, laws, rules, etc., have very little influence over behavior.
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If you're old enough to put your life on the line, you should be old enough to have a beer. Given that, you are also old enough to be responsible for your actions.
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Here is a thought.... Why not bring new recruits in at 21 instead of 18? Problem solved.
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SPC (Join to see)
SGT, the problem with that is the time difference between high school graduation and when they'd be allowed to enlist. That'd be three years of limbo, throwing money away at a few years of college and not earning a degree, or three years of minimum wage because of how bad the economy is.
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SSgt (Join to see)
Yes but there is the deal with that and even at college many students are getting drunk every weekend. I guess we can't control people but their behavior can dictate a life of hardship based on their own decisions.
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In a perfect world the answer would be yes. You reach the age of majority, and immediately gain all of the rights and privileges assigned thereto. The unfortunate reality is that we don't live in a perfect world. The reason the drinking age was raised to 21 was because very solid long term statistical data indicates that the younger members of our society (a group already known for its lack of sound judgment) do increasingly stupid things when alcohol is introduced. Raising the drinking age is predicated on mitigating poor behavior (DUI, fighting, etc.), and the accompanying bad consequences (death, life long disabilities, criminal record, etc.)
Working in law enforcement in both the civilian and military worlds, I can attest based on personal experience to the validity of this theory. As a SNCO, I have likewise seen the vast majority of career ending events tied to the less than judicious use of alcohol by our junior members.
A personal observation is that we (American society) do not approach alcohol in a very healthy manner. We as a nation endure disproportional negative impacts (traffic death/injury, continued substance abuse, etc.) as the result of alcohol use compared to other western democracies. If culturally we educated our children in a healthier fashion, then reducing the drinking age might be possible.
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YES, Military members should be allowed to drink...period...While I was in Nam in 1970, they had an under 21 club, where only 3.2 beer was served and an over 21 club where you could drink beer and misec drinks...one day I was legal only in the under 21 club the next day in the over 21 club...just a bunch of politicians once again dictating to the military what is politically correct...
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