DEBATE: Should 16-year-olds be allowed to drive?

Wow, didn't realize I put so many smiles in there :D

Yeah, you need sleep to drive...glad he was ok though. Scary stuff, and you're blissfully unaware of the havoc you're causing too, a little like being drunk...I'd imagine, I've never really had any alcohol (well, I've had one sip of church wine once for communion, but from the look of how much some of you people might drink, I doubt that counts as anything to you) I don't really want to either, but like I said, since it's healthy, I guess I'll had some like once a week or something when I'm older.

Happy to provide some humor, I forget where I heard that quote from, I know I didn't make it up though...maybe I heard it during drivers ed or something...

haha, f**k you, kids! *climbs up on the 'old kings' throne and throws beerbottles on everyone under the age of 20*

(jk!!!!11omg) -_-

About the cellphones, we just got a law that actually does ban talking on the phone while driving. Without a hands-free-set, that is. I think the law is ok, but you still have to press buttons on the phone and that crap.

And being tired is a bitch while driving alright! I have never actually fallen asleep, but just being tired alone makes one slow in the eyes and brain.

And about alcohol, I'm really curious about how much teenagers in there get drunk (in there = in the US). I mean, here, you're bored with getting drunk and rioting by the age you're legally allowed to buy the drinks, lol (18 for beer and wine, 20 for spirits). In a sense it's a good thing, I've noticed how sad it is when people are like 17 - 19 and are all "oh man, I'm soooo drunk now!! Let's go find some ***** dudes!! *pukes* ...hahah" <-- and it's mostly because they just didn't do it when it wouldn'tve looked as stupid. :p

Oh well, I'm rambling about nonsense again, sorry.
Let the debate continue...for ever!

for-ehhh-verrrrrrrrr!

I'm 16 and proud to say that I've never gotten drunk and don't plan to for quite a while. I don't respect people that are my age and go drinking just to get drunk so they can talk about it later. A few social drinks is OK, in my opinion, though I haven't indulged yet. But I would prefer not to get to know minors that get drunk, do stupid things, and then brag about it. Thats what most of the people that go to my school do, and it pisses me off. But I like to think that I'm above that. I have better things to do, and I still have fun.

tom

Hehe, glad you're j/k paavo...good fun

Yeah..I guess hands-free cellphones help a lil' bit, but the point is the distractiong of talking (and pushing the buttons). They've studied this, sure pushing the buttons and holding it are distractions, so hands-free helps a lil' more, but the distraction lies also in the converation. Now, some people would say 'well I an carry on a conversation just fine with someone who's in the car with me, are you going to ban me from talking to passengers?' or something to that effect...:p but the difference has been shown to be the fact that a passenger is able to see what's going on while you're driving (thus they can alert you if you're becoming too engrossed in the conversation, and they will stop talking/no longer become a distraction if a problem occurs on the road), a conversation with someone on a cell-phone, hands-free or not, does not allow the person on the other end to know that they need to stop talking at you because something requiring more attention has just popped up on the road.

As far as I know, quite a few of us (teens) in here (the US) get drunk quite often. Really a very sad thing, a friend of mine is very anti-alcohol, she works pretty hard to help people be aware of the dangers of drunk driving etc. and is on a committee or something in our city dealing with that kind of stuff.

It would've been nice if the US had started out with a similar policy about drinking as a lot of the european households have it, but if we tried to do it like you do over there things would just go crazy. Since being able to drink is an idolized priviledge here, too many kids would start drinking like crazy if they were given the chance. But then again maybe its good that we're not supposed to drink here until 21, 'cause of what I mentioned earlier about brain developement and alcohol and stuff... I dunno, I just don't like the stuff...(I can under stand the difference between beer and wine, wanna explain spirits to me though? That like martini type stuff, or whisky or something? I'm confused :p )

Yeah, its not just falling asleep that's bad (although that is pretty bad), but simply the effects of sleep deprivation make you horribly unalert, if that's a word :p . Such a slow reaction time when you're sleepy, very bad for driving.

On with the fun! :D

I think it's rather dumb that you have to be 21 to legally drink alchohol... In my opinion, 18 makes much more sense... The government considers you adult at 18, let's you vote on our presidents and mayors, lets you leave home, AND lets you join the military or navy at 18, yet you can't drink? In my mind, if you're old enough to fight for your country or vote for something as important as president, you should be allowed to drink... Although it should of course always be illegal to drink and drive....

Note: I'm not saying that because I want to drink (I'm not planning on drinking or doing any drugs), but just because it seems to make more sense....

It's also strange that you can join the military and kill a person, but you can't go to some strip clubs or watch certain movies... You can kill life, but you can't take the risk of making one!

I don't suppose you read my comments about why the drinking age is 21 in the US Ryujin?
Refer to some of my above posts if you didn't catch why its 21 around here...

Joining the military doesn't necessarily entail killing people, and you can still legally take life at younger ages (not from humans of course). Hunting is killing though, stupid sport in my opinion, but that's off topic and just me :p And you are allowed to run the risk of creating life by the time you're allowed to joined the armed forces. 18 I believe is the age of consent here in the US, and I guess that's when they let you join the military too. And making life shouldn't be taken lightly, its one hell of a responsibility (I'm sure you all know that though). It's a nice big chunck of you're income and your time if you plan on keeping the kid alive, let alone happy. And I don't even know the half of parenting, so I'm sure there's more to it than simply the time and money, so many decisions on how to raise the kid too...

I guess this topic is drifting towards just a debate about age groups being allowed certain responsibilities. No problem with me though, it's all good fun.

I don't think making life is bad. I think it's good. which is why i have 34 illegitimate children in 4 states.


*lies*

Yes, I agree totally that drinking is bad (in quantity or at too young of an age because of growth stunt and such as you said), and yes it's a HUGE responsibility to raise a kid. I agree with all of that, BUT... Shouldn't it be YOUR choice if you're going to drink and get screwed up, after all you're considered an adult...? Maybe you shouldn't have a kid at 18, or maybe you can take the responsibility, which is why it is YOUR choice, and that shouldn't change.

The point is it is your choice, and it shouldn't be controlled by the government unless it actually hurts someone besides yourself... These things should be totally up to you at a certain age and discussions with your family. At a younger age (younger than 18) it should be still only partly up to the government, and mostly up to the parents.