The drinking age debate

A heated battle is looming on the horizon as presidents from some of the nation’s most prestigious colleges are planning to open a national debate about lowering the drinking age to 18.

The presidents, including ones from Duke and Ohio State, favor the lowering of the age because they believe it will lessen the want for binge drinking that has plagued campuses for decades.

Not everyone agrees with that premise, including Miami University President Donna Shalala, and of course, Mothers Against Drunk Driving. The latter believes that the lowering of the drinking age will increase traffic fatalities.

One of the compromises mentioned by several involved, and cited in a recent editorial by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, is lowering the age to 19, which for the most part would eliminate legal drinking by students in high school.

Factoring into the discussion from other groups will be the age-old argument that if you can risk your life fighting a war for your country at 18, you should be able to have a beer at that age as well. It will be interesting to watch this forum unfold.

Jim Raykie is the editor of The Herald and writes this column on Mondays. His e-mail is jraykie@sharonherald.com