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Ryen King would have made a good case for a having a beer legally at 18
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The occasional “thu-thump” of a car or truck rolling over the railroad tracks in downtown Bowersville is the only sound that interrupts the Saturday-morning silence of this small, northeast Georgia crossroads.
It was here, some 16 months ago, that Jerry King was on his way to umpire a Little League baseball game. Crossing the railroad tracks, he met a military vehicle coming the other way. He made eye contact with the car’s occupants.
“I knew they were there for something bad,” King said. “I just knew.”
The men in the car bore the grim news of the death of King’s 19-year-old son, Army Spc. Jerry Ryen King. Ryen was a member of the 82nd Airborne Division. He died April 23, 2007, in the Diyala province of Iraq. An improvised explosive device detonated; eight other members of the 82nd also died in the attack by suicide bombers.
Why is this important? Well, for obvious reasons. Young men and women losing their lives in honor of their country always is important.
But Ryen’s story also is interesting for another reason. His age — old enough to go to war, but not old enough to have a legal drink — is one argument being used to lower the drinking age in our country from 21 to 18.
Most recently, a group of college and university presidents across the country has called for the age to be lowered.
Ryen was an ’05 graduate of Franklin County High School, a baseball player and a member of the Young Democrats. He chose to postpone entering college — most likely the University of Georgia — to fight in Iraq.
Ironically, Ryen was interested in politics.
“Ryen,” his father said, “believed that if he was going to have a standing in (politics), he’d have to have service in the military.”
So would Ryen have agreed with the argument that a young person deemed old enough to serve in the military should be deemed old enough to have a drink?
“He loved to debate things, and he would have had a healthy debate about that,” his father said. “We never really talked about the issue, but knowing Ryen, he would probably have agreed with the argument.”
King, who teaches social studies at Banks County High School, said he last saw his son alive when Ryen was on a mid-tour leave in January 2007. One of the things Ryen did while he was home was buy a football.
Why?
Because part of Ryen’s mission as a soldier was to develop relationships with the villagers of the war-torn nation. He was especially interested in the villages’ children, and he thought teaching them how to play football might be a good way to accomplish that mission.
Sounds like a young man with his wits about him. A young man with a good idea and a football. And a young man deserving the right to have a beer before dying on the battlefield.
Salley M. McInerney can be reached by emailing salley@hartcom.net.
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i strongly beleave if a man or women is old enough to fight for their country they should be able to buy and dring a beer even at the age of 17 or 18 the gov . could care less about our vets so let them enjoy life in their own way
yo
I think lowering the legal drinking age to 18 is a very smart move and actually empowers parents to help develop responsible drinking habbits in their kids. It puts a lot of the responsibility back on the parents and takes a lot of the burden off of colleges and other social institutions. I'm sure a lot of parents would love to have their kids and their friends drink at their home under supervision instead of knowing that the kids are drinking but having no idea where they are doing it. Kids under 21 are going to drink...its always happened. Reducing the legal drinking age to 18 creates a time frame earlier in the life of young people where responsible drinking habbits can be instilled by parents. One suggestion I would have is to allow kids 18-21 to only be able to purchase beer and wine. I do not know that allowing access to hard liquor is a good idea, but then again maybe allowing full exposure is OK.
I'm pretty sure they can buy beer on base @ 18 with their military ID. If the college kids want to use the "Old enough to die..." reasoning to buy beer, then they should pick up a rifle and stand a post FIRST.
If you can read this, thank a teacher.
If you can read this in English, thank a Soldier!
in response to BigBullyDawg
AMEN! I think that is a very reasonable solution, BigBullyDawg. Why is it so important for someone to be able to buy a drink? Some of our society is so obsessed with alcohol they find it hard to even have a good time without it. But if a soldier wants a beer I think he has earned the right to at least that much.
Oh the joyous sarcasm of cwilson4. I am the mother of an 18 year old college sophomore. Do I think that the drinking age is too high? Yes! Do I think it is ANYWHERE near politically correct that our young men and women can choose to fight for their country but can't chose whether or not they want an alcoholic beverage? NO! If, at 18, you are old enough to join the armed services and defend the rights of your fellow countrymen and to vote in local, state and national elections; then you are most certainly old enough to chose whether or not you want to drink. In addition, the psychology of human nature prevails here. The more you are told "no, you can't do that" the more you are going to try. These are not liberal thoughts, by the way, these are reality based thoughts based on years of experience of my own and as a mother.
in response to cwilson4
Once again cwilson4 has to be sarcastic. I am really surprised that somehow Joey Preston wasn't brought into the comment.
browneyedgirl:
The day isn't over, she will bring him in soon I'm sure.
As far as drinking at 18, when I was in college, that was the drinking age. Age doesn't a matter when it comes to being a responsible drinker. I know adults who don't drink responsibly.
cwilson4, I am highly offended that you would make such a judgement about how I parent just because I think that 18 year olds are old enough to be responsible with alcohol. These same 18 year olds are old enough to serve our country and die for people like you and I and they can vote! I do feel very strongly about my view, BUT NOT strongly enough to break the law OR allow my child to. To put me, because of my views, in the same category as "parents who let their kids and their friends drink underage at their homes" is actually the most maddening thing you have ever accused me of. And we both know the things you have accused me of. I will not now, nor ever, allow a child of mine to break the law!
Also, I have no idea why you would think that Mr. Preston would have any bearing on my views about the legal age of drinking! I can assure you though, that you are dead wrong about your presentation of how he would view underage drinking. He would not condone a 15 year old drinking anywhere! I personally think that that statement is pure libel in nature and hope that Mr. Preston sees it. Good Day cwilson4!
When a reasonable person looks at the reasonable logic behind the arguments pro vs the unfounded mythological arguments con, it stands to reason that the sensible thing to do would be to return to the lowered drinking age of being 18, as it was done back in the 1970's.
There are many additional arguments for supporting the lowering of the legal drinking age. An 18 yr old is automatically tried as an adult for crimes in the US. An 18 yr old is old enough and supposedly mature enough to legally enter into a contractual relationship with another party. An 18 yr old is enfranchised to vote. An 18 yr old is held responsible for negligent actions of any kind. Oh, and now, an 18 yr old is old enough to buy and carry a handgun.
Ergo, an 18 yr old is, for all practical purposes, legally an adult... except for when it comes to being able to legally buy alcoholic beverages.
Not only am I in support of the legal adult age being made 18 across the entire spectrum, if I get elected, I'll be glad to introduce the legislation to make 18 the legal adult age across the board in SC.
Plain.
Simple.
Common Sense.
Capt. Leonardo Ortiz (USMM)
www.ortizforsenate.org
and the reason it was switched to 21 in the 80s was because so many "responsible young people" were getting themselves and others killed because they didn't have the sense or experience to not drink and drive...
being a soldier doesn't give you anything other than a gun.
why not ask MADD, or the American Association of Pediatricians if lowering the drinking age will be beneficial to the youth of america? what you'll find is that since their brains are still growing at that age, its not a good idea.
and, since we all know that this is the argument kids use to drink in college, let's not forget what happens when kids start drinking at age 18.
Anyone remember Ben Sprague? If i recall all his friends and family referred to him as a responsible leader.
I understand that there are going to be differing views on this issue AND that it is a very heated topic. However, how can one possibly think that it is ok for an 18 year old to go defend your rights and get killed by a sniper or a car bomb but that same young person is not old enough to have a beer? It is a horrible double standard. If MADD was really so concerned about our young people and "when" they are responsible enough to be an adult, they would present the whole of our youth and not just the drinking part of our youth. I also think that in respect to family members, that it is inappropriate to mention specific names on here. Please understand that I support the law, I just am not a fan of the law. I would love to see it changed and adulthood viewed as adulthood at the same age in all regards.
in response to zeldaz
zeldaz:
cwilson blames 90% of anything that goes wrong in the county on Joey Preston. Give her/him time and they will find a reason to blame the hurricanes on him.
LOL! Agreed. Meanwhile, lets watch the beautiful balloons dot our sky!
in response to zeldaz
Don't you know that Joey Preston is going to come and blow them all away? ha ha ha
in response to cwilson4
Do you wanna be the pot or the kettle today? You really have a lot of room to be talking! I think your entire day revolves around thinking about what kind of comments you can put on here about Joey Preston.
How very interesting cwilson4. However, I still see no reason for his name to have come up in relation to this article. Oh wait, forgot! You can't go a day without blaming him for all of your trouble. I hope you decided whether you were the pot or the kettle. As for despising him - not for one minute! He has and will continue to be at the forefront of all things good in Anderson County. Have a good weekend.
in response to cwilson4
You are an imbecile.
in response to cwilson4
No negativity here. I am positive that you are an imbecile.
ok-- since so many people are against lowering the drinking age - how about raising the age for enlisting, voting, owning a gun etc... to the age of 21?? if that is the "responsible" age for drinking - then it stands to reason that it is the appropriate age for the other stuff too. If 18 yr. olds are to juvenile to drink responsibly then they are too juvenile to make responsible decisions about voting in a new president or enlisting in the armed forces. Just raise the age for EVERYTHING to 21...
During Vietnam you could die in battle and have been too young to vote for the politicians that put you in the position of being killed. Reference the song "Eve of distruction" By Barry McGuire. Regardless the age, anyone that can be sent into battle should have full and equal freedoms to do anything an adult citizen has, which include the politicians who seem to drink their fair share. Raise the age to do combat or lower the age to drink, regardless, they should be equal.
you tell'm tryxie
tryxie and cisco, you have raised a very valid thought. I like people who can think outside of the box! And to Mickey, cwislon4 is the height of negativity, don't let his accusations trick you.
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