On June 28th, 1984, President Ronald Reagan signed the Minimum Drinking Age Act into law. This was a sad day for America - it marked the verge of a period where brave soldiers sacrificing their lives at war could not even legally enjoy a beer and where 20 year-old couples could not even have a sip of champagne at their own wedding. As if this was not enough, the saddest part in this mischief is that it made our problems even worse.
Prohibitionists are very naïve, if not imbecile, people. In the 1920s, they tried to prevent people from drinking alcoholic beverages. As a result, those who once were moderate and responsible drinkers began to drink great quantities of alcohol at a time, since their access to it was limited. So, we went from a society exhibiting ordinary, commonplace, and reasonable alcohol consumption to a society where people adopted irresponsible - if not dangerous - drinking patterns.
A Kranz (wreath) of Kölsch beer.
English: Total recorded alcohol per capita consump...
Official Portrait of President Ronald ReaganThe prohibitionists cannot deny that they made a mistake. It was corrected, too, by finally removing the law in 1933.
Now that all these people from the 1920s are dead and buried, other stupid people assembled to create a futile trend called the neo-prohibitionists. Only, this time, since general prohibition proved to be ineffective, they chose an easier target for their evil deeds: young adults. In 1984, the minimum drinking age for the entire United States was raised from 18 to 21 years of age. Since the final decision was in the power of the state legislatures, the brainless prohibitionists in the US Congress used nasty methods of negotiation: boycotting and threatening. All states were to adopt the federal law; otherwise, they would be deprived from substantial highway funds. Thus, their wish was granted (with few exceptions).
Evidently, prohibiting the use of alcohol...