In your editorial “Extreme drinking means extreme danger,” you argue against lowering the drinking age, stating that a higher drinking age correlates with a drop in binge drinking (except on college campuses). But is it not college campuses where the issue of binge drinking is most serious? Any proposal to combat dangerous drinking should address college campuses, where such drinking is most likely to occur. Lowering the drinking age is a popular idea among those who deal daily with the issue of teen drinking (135 college presidents have signed the Amethyst Initiative, which calls for a reconsideration of the drinking age). The current minimum drinking age, as college administrators are all too aware, has numerous negative consequences. For example, underage students may be reluctant to seek medical help for friends who have drank too much, out of fear of retribution for drinking illegally. Educating students about the dangers of binge drinking is surely a worthy and helpful cause, but advocating a policy of no-drinking-until-21 is both unrealistic and counter-productive.
— Eric Cervone, Arlington, Va.
