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Add to FavoritesBinge drinking is immature behavior. The reasons behind binge drinking are social and related to being accepted by the peer group. A binge drinker is either trying to gain acceptance with his or her buddies or trying to show the world that he or she is the best drinker of those present. Those who engage in binge drinking are the victims of peer pressure.
Binge drinking may provide a measure of social acceptance, but also exposes the drinker to a number of risks. First, there is the legal side. university rules and public laws censure public intoxication. A binge drinker is liable to face disciplinary action or may spend the night in jail. More serious are the consequences to relationships. A drunk seldom shows his or her best side. Friendships may be damaged by actions done while intoxicated. Romantic relationships are particularly vulnerable because subconsciously men and women are always evaluating each other as potential mates. If your girl has seen the ugly side of you while you are drunk, what will she remember about you when you "pop the question"? The most serious risk is the health risk. Alcohol is a poison. When we drink, we usually stay well below the toxic limit, but we become intoxicated as we approach the toxic limit. Drunken behavior is partly due to the body starting to shut itself down as a defense against the poison in the bloodstream. Even relatively low blood alcohol levels can trigger health problems in the liver, the stomach and the brain. A person intoxicated enough to vomit, risks choking on their own vomit. If large enough amounts of alcohol are imbibed, the person can die. This is why binge drinking is dangerous behavior.
It is human nature to justify our bad behavior. It is difficult to justify binge drinking. Aside from a small amount of social acceptance, there are no benefits to binge drinking. Nevertheless, binge drinkers and university officials look for excuses they hope will justify the existence of binge drinking parties. A convenient excuse is to cite the 21 drinking age, and to say students are tempted to drink because they are forbidden to drink.
The minimum drinking of 21 (of 18 in some localities) has been set in recognition of the need for a certain amount of self control while drinking. Public intoxication is not condoned, especially when it leads to fights, domestic disturbances, or drunk driving. Thus we want those who drink to be able to control the amount they drink and the rate at which they drink. The law presumes that those under the minimum age may not have the maturity to be able to control their drinking responsibly.
Binge drinking violates the spirit of liquor laws in two ways. First, those drinkers who are under-aged are in direct violation of the statutes. Second, the binge drinker is not in control of his alcohol intake and has no intention of staying sober. The binge drinker is making no attempt at preventing any of the inappropriate or illegal activities that result from intoxication. The binge drinker is an example of the type of person who liquor laws are intended bar from access to alcohol.
The fact that something is prohibited does tempt immature people. Temptation does not justify action. Many things in this life are prohibited. A measure of maturity is how well a person stands against temptation. Civilization exists, in part, because we have set laws and moral precepts that prohibit activities deemed destructive to society. Yes, immature people break the law and do immoral things, but we should be working with these adolescents to develop mature behavior. When we excuse binge drinking because the liquor laws are tempting the students too much, we are not helping the students to mature. We become enablers.
Years ago, as a college student, I lived on campus with a population of undergraduates ranging 17 to 22 years of age. As sophisticated as we thought we were, we all suffered from some amount of immaturity. My fellow students engaged in many inappropriate activities, and I joined them in a few. At the time, the age of majority was 21. The fact that most of us were still minors did not excuse our activities. The fact that most of these pranks were either illegal or against university rules did not mean that our actions were excused because we were being tempted. To the extent we got caught, we were disciplined. To the extent that the laws of nature gave us injuries because of our behavior, we learned valuable lessons.
The college students of today, just like the college students of my day, must recognize that they still strive toward maturity. Students must learn to discern between immature behavior and mature adult behavior. Binge drinking is certainly not mature behavior. Especially now that 18 year old college students are legally adults, they must strive to be mature. It is not a valid excuse to say, "I was tempted." Our liquor laws can not be given as the reason students binge drink.
College students today are adults. It is time they grow up and act like adults.
Learn more about this author, Reynold Conger.
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Yes
Living in a European country where the age limit for drinking is younger than the stated 21 years old in this article title, what Europeans find is that children have a much different attitude towards drink. It forms part of social life, although it does not become a part of those temptations which are prohibited and thus "fruits of temptation". Take away the right for a child to have a drink until the age of 21, and kids will abuse it.
The sad thing about society is that while it creates laws to protect the young, what it also does is take away responsibility. When you compare the differences in society where alcohol and binge drinking becomes a problem, you have to look at grass roots and decide what is going wrong. Turning a blind eye to the fact that it is this very legislation which promotes drinking among college students is shortsighted.
Let's take some figures from all over the globe and see the differences between societal acceptance and legislation in comparison with binge drinking.
Looking at figures on binge drinking what was found was the following:
*90 per cent of alcohol forming part of under age drinking in the US is directly related to binge drinking. (restriction 21 years)
Compare this with other countries whose laws respect that a child reaches mature adulthood and is capable of making decisions at a younger age:
*France is concerned about binge drinking though their statistics show 3 per cent. (16-18)
*Denmark reports 26 per cent. (restriction 18 years old)
*The United Kingdom reports 23 per cent. (18 years old)
*Finland reports 16 per cent. (18 years old)
It is clear from these figures taken from government sites that there is a problem in America and that the laws are not addressing it. What is interesting to note is that these statistics are higher among children beneath the legal age limit, which supports my argument that if you take away the right of a child or near adult to drink, they will rebel. The younger children statistics are nowhere near those reported in the US, though their very presence means that they support my argument.
To address this problem, perhaps taking the stance that European countries have taken would help American youth to realize that drink is part of life. In France for example, a child will come into contact with alcohol at an early age. Having a congenial glass of wine with adults and members of the family takes away the stigma. They know what alcohol does and don't have to experiment with it behind closed doors.
What becomes clear is that if there is a stigma created by legislation against alcohol, binge drinking or unsupervised drinking is more commonplace.
Bars will not serve young people with drinks in European countries, though the attitude between middle class English families who regularly let their young adults drink, and working class families who forbid it proves the theory that those young people who are introduced socially to alcohol rarely abuse it, while those deprived of it do.
It is interesting to note that bars and cafes are a regular part of life in some European countries, and a social part of community. These are not places where you go to get drunk. However, turn the coin a little and look at restrictive hours where even adults are not allowed to drink, and binge drinking occurs. The restrictive hours of bars in the UK mean that instead of congenial consumption of alcohol, drinkers feel pressed to drink more within a shorter space of time.
The balance with the laws should be addressed not just by the legal system, though by the attitude of society as a whole, and the acceptance of parents that kids will want to experiment with drink at some time. If parents introduce alcohol as a normal part of life, the temptation goes away, and as long as control is exercised as to the acceptable level of drinking, the problems become fewer, as proven by the statistics above.
We want our children to grow into responsible adults, though if we impose restrictions until the age of 21, what message are we sending our youth? You are old enough to be considered capable of work, driving, sexual activity etc., before the age of 21, though not old enough to decide on how much alcohol your body can take. It's a mixed message, and no legislation can make those decisions for others. If they do, as proven above, kids will rebel and binge drinking will continue. Accept that the child is adult enough to decide and that alcohol can be used for social interaction, and the child has no need to binge drink to prove a point.
Re-introduce congeniality and respect for alcohol, rather than imposing laws which state that college kids are not responsible enough to make their own decisions, and perhaps congeniality will win the day.
Sources: Doctissimo.fr
Leftinthewest.com
20 years of life in France/35 years in UK
Learn more about this author, Rachelle de Bretagne.
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