In 1971, the 26th Amendment to the Constitution was ratified, so permitting those who were at the age of majority, that is, eighteen, to finally be franchised to vote. The point of this Amendment was to provide to those so being eligible to be drafted into military service, at least the opportunity to democratically vote upon legislation and legislatures – of those issues of pertinence to them, because for a certainty, those that have no vote, but are subject to giving their last dying breath to their country, are certainly not free.
At the time of the passage of the 26th Amendment, the legal drinking age as well as the smoking age within the United States, was 18, but since the passage of this Amendment, this has subsequently been raised to 21. What the United States has basically done is that while lowering the voting age from 21 to 18, it has on the other hand, raised the age so needed to have a legal drink or to smoke tobacco; as if to say, that those that are 18, though legally adults, aren’t really responsible enough to be adults. If that was really true, though, why is it that those that are 18, are still considered to be old enough to die for their country, but cannot have a drink or to smoke, legally?
Those that are United States centric, might just think that its updated drinking and smoking age, must be pretty much the norm throughout the world, but it most certainly is not. There is no other western nation of any size or power, that has instituted the same sort of age restriction rules in regards to drinking and smoking, probably because these other countries are quite cognizant that there comes a time when each of us will leave childhood to enter adulthood; rather than their being some ill-conceived in-between stage of not quite being a child and not quite being an adult.
There are all sorts of laws so passed for our expressed benefit, or for the supposed good of society, but that doesn’t necessarily make those laws either just or right. This government and the busybodies that work hand-in-glove with them, seem to believe that by pushing the age of majority ever higher for things such as drinking or smoking, that this will make for a better and safer society; but if this was logically true on any level, then how is it that drinking or smoking is ever legal, or considered to be an activity that could be ever be perceived as being responsible or appropriate?
Those that are adults, are entitled to make decisions per their own volition, of which, not every decision so being made is going to be the right or the best decision, but that is the nature of what freedom of choice consists of. It would be well to remember this vital fact, that America, gets involved in all sorts of wars, battles, and altercations throughout this world, of which, the real consequence of such includes death, injury, harm, mayhem, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Apparently, all that is absolutely fine to do, once a given individual turns 18, but somehow at that age having a drink or smoke is considered to be detrimental to the health and welfare of that person.