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If it were that simple, a country like the Netherlands which has a legal drinking age of 16 (for ABV<20%) should have way more problems with alcohol abuse and a

If it were that simple, a country like the Netherlands which has a legal drinking age of 16 (for ABV<20%) should have way more problems with alcohol abuse and addiction than a sensible country such as the USA, which has the drinking age no less than five years later, so significantly less people in the US should suffer alcohol addiction, right? Incidentally, we don't get to take a driver's license test until we're 18, so that's kind of reversed. Care to guess who has more problems with driving under the influence? Won't somebody please think of the CHILDREN?!

pygy_ 14y ago
Your comparison doesn't make any sense. There are other factors, notably cultural, involved. For example, the praise of individualism in the US (which may encourage reckless behavior), and the limited social security net (poverty increases the risk of substance abuse). When you control for other factors, the pattern I described emerge. See: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1360-0443.1994.tb03360.x/abstract http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1360-0443.1994.... http://archpedi.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?volume=160&issue=7&page=739 http://archpedi.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?volume=160&... http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1360-0443.2005.01053.x/abstract http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1360-0443.2005.... http://informahealthcare.com/doi/abs/10.1081/JA-120025123 http://informahealthcare.com/doi/abs/10.1081/JA-120025123 There are more if you care to look for them. Of course children have to be protected. That's the whole point of education, gradually removing barriers while you teach them (or let them learn) how to get along by themselves. Whether or not the society should have a word on the topic is open for debate. I'm for, to some extent, as you probably guessed.

pygy_ 14y ago

Your comparison doesn't make any sense. There are other factors, notably cultural, involved. For example, the praise of individualism in the US (which may encourage reckless behavior), and the limited social security net (poverty increases the risk of substance abuse). When you control for other factors, the pattern I described emerge. See: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1360-0443.1994.tb03360.x/abstract http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1360-0443.1994.... http://archpedi.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?volume=160&issue=7&page=739 http://archpedi.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?volume=160&... http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1360-0443.2005.01053.x/abstract http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1360-0443.2005.... http://informahealthcare.com/doi/abs/10.1081/JA-120025123 http://informahealthcare.com/doi/abs/10.1081/JA-120025123 There are more if you care to look for them. Of course children have to be protected. That's the whole point of education, gradually removing barriers while you teach them (or let them learn) how to get along by themselves. Whether or not the society should have a word on the topic is open for debate. I'm for, to some extent, as you probably guessed.