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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.

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