Rogerian Argument Essay 1.1

Joseph Morris
Professor Henderson
Academic Writing
March 30th, 2011

Joe Doyle,

The other day I was watching Family Guy and remembered all the debates we had over Fox News and political views. I remembered specifically the heated debate we had about the drinking age in the US and thought it would be beneficial to cull the flames and have a reasonable discussion about it with you for once.

I understand that you have lived your life within a very conservative family and you find that this mindset to be flawless. I have the upmost respect for you for being so passionate about your beliefs and ideas. You have the belief that the drinking age should remain the same and that there are more cons to lowering the drinking age than pros. I understand that you think there are health risks and that it will cause more delinquent-like activity for those under 21 years old. We were raised in different environments with different attitudes on alcohol consumption. You believe that a lowering of the drinking age would cause more alcohol related accidents, that it would open up the gates for more social ills such as drugs and unprotected sex, and would cause many negative affects to those 18 year olds who do take the opportunity to drink. While you were brought up with alcohol being looked at as a taboo, I was brought up in a country in which the drinking age is much lower and when with family there practically is no drinking age.

I am sure you are fully aware of my views on the subject by now, but allow me to clarify how I feel on the subject. As I have stated before, I find that having the consumption of alcohol be illegal just contributes to the thrill for those who decide to partake in such activities. College students would not be as irresponsible about drinking if it were not illegal to drink. Those in need of medical services would not hesitate to get help without the fear of being arrested. And as I have stated many times before, the concept that a person can join the military and die for there country yet not take a sip of beer astounds me. At 18 years old someone can buy a house, get married, start a business, join the military and therefore have responsibility over life and death, vote, and many more responsibilities, yet can not have a drink at a bar. I find that the enforcement of the current drinking age is a inefficient, overly expensive, and overall useless endeavor.

We are both vigorously stubborn about our beliefs, but I truly believe that there are things we both are arguing for. I believe there are things we both want to protect and that we care about, and the problem is just that we both have different beliefs on how to protect these things. We both care about the wellbeing of other peoples, we both want to decrease the amount of alcohol related deaths per year, and we are concerned about our peers developing into alcoholics.

You have argued that 18-20 year olds binge drink more than those over 21 years old and that they are more prone to alcohol abuse. This is some where I completely agree with you and I think this is a big problem, but I think that it is the drinking age that has actually caused this to be true. I believe that if its the fact it is illegal that makes it so exciting for this group to drink. I believe that drinking would be done in more moderation if it was turned into a more normalized activity within the said age group. I am sure you would agree that it is an important priority to normalize the drinking habits of teens.

We both agree that people should not take drugs and that there is a big drug problem with teenagers. We both want to come to the same conclusion in which people keep taking drugs, but have opposite views on how the drinking age will effect the percent of teens who partake in illegal drug use. You believe that alcohol consumption leads someone into experimenting more with drugs. I feel that more students are taking drugs due to the prohibition of alcohol. Professor David J. Hanson, Ph.D, of the University of New York, has performed research which supports my belief. When the drinking age in East Carolina was increased from 19 to 21, students were surveyed on their reactions. Nearly a fourth of the students suggested they intended to use other drugs instead of alcohol due to the law. Professor Hanson says that “Anecdotal statements by students indicated the belief of some that it ‘might be easier to hide a little pot in my room than a six pack of beer.’” This suggests that lowering the drinking age will decrease the amount of drug use of those 20 and younger.

Perhaps there is a way in which we can come to a compromise on this matter. One of the reasons why I slightly agree with the drinking age is the fact that the age in which Americans start driving is very low and American teens drive a lot more than Europeans do. Lowering the drinking age to anything lower than 18 would be irresponsible, for I believe that 16 year olds are not mature enough to drive let alone have the opportunity to drink and drive. Making it easier for 16 - 20 year olds to drink while the driving age is so low is irresponsible. Perhaps raising the age in which teens can drive while lowering the drinking age would be a good middle ground for our views. It would also allow the age of 18 to become the distinct divide between adolescence and adulthood. It would also save the Government millions of dollars which they spend on enforcing the current drinking age and we can take that money and put it into more education about alcohol and teaching students the appropriate way to consume alcohol.

Doyle, you are a considerate man who cares deeply about the well being of your peers and fellow teens. I know that I can not easily convince you to look at my point of view, let alone change your own view, but I am hoping that this letter has opened your mind on the subject and shown you the bridges our beliefs have between each other. It is a valuable thing to be able to so openly discuss and debate your views with a friend such as you, and I hope you will put as much consideration in your response as I have in what I have written in this essay.

Sincerely,

Joseph Morris