Lower legal drinking age?

On Sunday morning, I was reading the paper and was rummaging through the ads.  Every week this inner part of the paper also contains Parade magazine.  Usually I toss this into the "already finished" pile without even a cursory flip through its pages.  However, this week I was persuaded to dig in by the cover story: "What to do about underage drinking: Some experts think we're handling a serious problem all wrong"  I grew up in a family that would probably be considered a little more progressive when it came to alcohol so I was interested to see what the experts had in mind.

In summary, the article argues that if a person is old enough to drive, vote, die in a war, serve on a jury, and be held accountable as an adult that maybe they should also be allowed to drink at a younger age.  That by lowering the drinking age, they could remove some of the appeal for those under age to consume alcohol.  In essence, not being able to drink drives some of the desire and helps lead to binge drinking behind closed doors and in remote locations.  Without proper education and social experience drinking alcohol with older adults, the young adults are developing different drinking habits than those of past generations and that often includes binging or other unhealthy behaviors.  The article does provide a response from the CEO of MADD and of course they are completely opposed to any lowering of the age.  Since the age has been increased, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that 25,000 fewer Americans have died because of the change.

While the article lacks a really in depth look at the issue, it does raise an interesting point as far as I am concerned: young adults should be taught how to drink responsibly.  Growing up, drinking wine on special occasions was a normal occurrence in my family.  In fact, I think I had my first glass of wine at a holiday dinner when I was about 14 or 15.  I asked and my parents surprisingly said yes I could try some.  I did and of course I didn't like it.  Did my parents know I wouldn't like it and they just used this to trick me?  I can't honestly say, but I think more than anything they were trying to show how an alcoholic beverage can be enjoyed responsibly in the right environment.  There were several other times in the following years where I again tried whatever was being served.  It was an infrequent occurrence, but I think enough to keep me from seeking out ways to "get drunk" during high school.  I also remember numerous conversations about being responsible and not getting behind the wheel if I ever did drink with friends.  As I went off to college, they also warned me about partying too much but were realistic that I was going to probably drink beer before I reached 21.  They were right...I did.  But I think that I never pushed it to the extremes that I saw among some of my peers.  Yeah, I over consumed on occasion, but I also think that it helped me better learn my boundaries and understand the full effects of alcohol on my body.  Maybe I should have even tried a 6 pack before ever leaving home just to understand what that feels like.   

Ultimately I think that it is up to parents to shoulder the responsibility of teaching what they believe to be appropriate drinking behavior.  Some people object to drinking because of religious reasons, so they may choose to teach total abstinence.  That's their choice and I can respect that (although knowledge of how good an IPA tastes makes it difficult to think of going without!).  When I do eventually have kids, I think I will follow my parents lead of demonstrating the proper manner and place for consuming alcohol.  As a beer lover and home brewer, there will always be beer around.  I am hoping that I can pass on my ideas about enjoying a quality pint of beer for its taste and not simply the effects of the alcohol it contains.    

The online version of the Parade story also contains a poll where readers can vote whether or not the age should be lowered.  As I type this post, 51% have voted "No" with a total of 9,635 people participating.  Hardly a true representation of the total population, but it does possibly support further discussions on the topic.  In my opinion, the age will never roll back because its a politically loaded issue.  Who would go on record supporting such a change and risk the guaranteed attacks sure to follow?

So what are your thoughts?  Should the age be lowered?