No you CAN'T get your kid drunk!

[CancelMyService]

I'm a big believer in taking the mystery away from drinking. My dad and I would always have a shot of Irish Mist for his birthday and when I was sick he'd make me a hot toddy (tea and whiskey for those who don't know, better than NyQuil let me tell ya). Conversely when I was a teenager I was the only one of my friends who didn't do the whole binge drinking thing. I'd have a few beers but never get sloppy because there was no "forbidden fruit" aspect to me.

What's funny is there's very strong alcoholism running on my dad's side of the family and I'm sitting here drinking the first beers I've had in maybe a year. I've had two and I'm already getting a bit flushed. Guess I'm becoming a lightweight in my old age. I've just never had the urge to go out and get smashed.

[MoonChild2007]

The kid in the OP was eating, and 13-14 years old, one beer is not going to have the kid falling down drunk and puking. The parent was an SC because he was creating a hazard for the establishment, but I don't think from this one incident that he is a bad parent and he just wanted to get sloshed.

Can't bars get closed down for selling beer to a oh a MINOR? He may not be a crap parent but this guy should have known the liqour laws. Also, what makes him think that this kid will keep drinking? Also, drinking young can lead to OTHER problems when they are adults. I know drinking isn't a big deal when it done in moderation but having a kid drink will probably lead to bigger things.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

Any ideas as to why the US set their limit at 21?

I don't know why. I do know that having the drinking age at 21 is, or at least was, a condition for a state to get federal highway funds. No state's going to let their roads go to hell over the drinking age.

I too think the drinking age is set too high. It really turns booze into a forbidden fruit that kids want to see what the attraction is about, even though there's really no attraction to it.

[TNT]

Can't bars get closed down for selling beer to a oh a MINOR?

Yes. Yes they can.

Some years ago, my mother owned a bar. At the time, because of Pennsylvania's liquor laws, a license to sell booze in our particular township was worth $250,000.

So, one day I see my very best friend in the world giving his beer to his 16 year old son.

Friend: It's okay. You are and I are pals.
Me: We are. Under normal circumstances, you're the best friend I've ever had. But at the moment, I can think of 250,000 reasons why I don't even want to know you.
Friend: Hrumpph.
Me: Bite me.

[Rolling Star]

In Texas it's okay to give your kids a drink as long as it's the PARENT who does so.

[Sonoma]

I had a similar experience with exposure to alcohol as many of the replies I have read. I was probably 5-6 when we'd get to take a sip of Dad's beer. I still remember wondering why Dad was drinking this, when it tastes so bad. It was never a forbidden 'secret', so it was never an issue. When my Mom wanted to see what being drunk was like, when she was a kid, her mom let her get drunk at home, under her supervision. To this day, I've never seen my mom drunk. We'll have a Mikes or two when we're camping, but that's it. I'm sure she would have done the same for me, had I asked, but I never had the desire to get drunk. I think my entire college career, I had 1.5 beers. TOTAL.

Slightly OT, my cat's father seems to have developed a taste for beer. He'll jump on the endtable & drink the beer left on the rim of the can. When his owner had to have surgery a month ago, and couldn't drink, there was a can of something else (soda?) sitting up there. Casey's father jumped on the endtable, lapped up the liquid, as usual, then shot the dirtiest glare at his owner. That was not what he was expecting. Trust me, he can give a pretty good glare - something his son has inherited as well.

[ZumZum]

Just so everyone is on the same page, the OP is from the UK.
They have different drinking laws there.

Carry on...

[bigjimaz]

I wonder if their trailer is a Champion or a Palm Harbor or whether they left the wheels on to effect a quicker escape.

[Broomjockey]

Yep, my dad played the "Sure, you can have a sip" game too. Worked beautifully. I was about 5 or something like that, and wanted a taste. He looked at me, shrugged, and said "Okay, just a small sip though." I took it, took a sip, and promptly wanted to spit it out and gargle lemon juice. He said "Remember that taste." I did.

I didn't have any alcohol again until I was 19 and out with some frat guys, and no beer until I was 22 (still tastes awful) and I can count the total occassions I've had drinks on one hand.

[hecubus]

When I was growing up, from about the time I was 13 or so, if we had company, and my dad was making cocktails, he would make some very weak Tom Collins of Highballs for my borther and I. No big deal. There was hardly enough alcohol in the to get a fly buzzed, let alone a teenager.

On the other hand, something I used to see in the small Wisconsin town where I grew up was people bringing their two-year-olds into the bar, and giving them beer and then laugh as the little kid staggered around. Those folks should have been shot, n my opinion.

[ThePhoneGoddess]

The US has a long history of antagonistic attitudes toward alcohol. The pilgrims outlawed it completely. In the 1800's, religious tent revivals were very popular and they commonly included fire and brimstone sermons about the evils of imbibing. The Edwardian period had a huge movement towards 'temperance', in which people pledged to be teetotalers. The temperance movement got involved in politics and tried to outlaw it in the 1920's. History shows where that got us.

IPF is correct, in that we used to have different ages for drinking depending on what state you were in. Many states had 18 as the cutoff. Louisiana was the last holdout; in response to the government's pressure, all states eventually conformed to the 21 year drinking age or risked having their highway funds cut off. This was done in response to lobbying by groups like MADD and SADD. It causes two main problems:

#1, we are considered adults at 18. We can vote, live on our own, men have to register with Selective Service so they can be drafted if its ever reinstated, yet we cannot legally purchase or consume alcohol for another 3 years. Many people think this is unfair and silly.

#2, colleges have huge problems with this, because half of their students are usually under 21 and half over 21. It makes it confusing and difficult to have college gatherings where alcohol is served, and even people over 21 living in dorms can be thrown out of school for drinking a beer in their dorm room.

basically, this causes alcohol to be seen exactly as many people have described it---forbidden fruit. And of course, this makes teenagers want to get a hold of it.

Some strange facts about US laws and alcohol:

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (BAFT) bans the word "refreshing" to describe any alcohol beverage.

A young adult college student studying in Italy can't have a glass of Chianti with dinner, according to the Drug Free Schools and Campuses Act. Students under the age of 21 are prohibited by the federal government from conforming to the drinking laws and customs of the countries in which they are studying. To some people this is contrary to the goals underlying international education or study abroad programs.

In many states, including Iowa, it is illegal to run up a 'bar tab'.

It's illegal in New Jersey for parents to give their children under the age of 18 even a sip of alcohol.

The entire Encyclopedia Britannica is banned in Texas because it contains a recipe for making beer that can be used at home.


Ok, lecture over.

I really am a walking encyclopedia of useless information.

[Starlord]

As a former police officer, I take umbrage at your supposition that we would try to put blame on the place of business. I would have cited the father for contributing to the delinquency of a minor, and referred the case to family court, with a view to teaching the father that children do not consume alcohol. we did have cases where the business sold alcohol to kids, andwe would hole operations where police explorers would enter bars and liquor stores and try to buy booze. They were instructed not to lie, and to show ID if asked. you would be surprised at the number of place that sell kids booze, and now cigarettes.

[Purple Monkey Dishwasher]

It's illegal in New Jersey for parents to give their children under the age of 18 even a sip of alcohol.

The entire Encyclopedia Britannica is banned in Texas because it contains a recipe for making beer that can be used at home.

I don't doubt that the 1st statement is true - I live in California, and it is 100% illegal to furnish alcohol to a minor.

The Encyclopedia thing, however is not true - look it up.

Joe

[ThePhoneGoddess]

PMD, I can't seem to find anything about it.


There's nothing on snopes and when I look it up in google, all I get is a bunch of sites claiming it to be true but with no backup information. Could you link me to a site please?

[Dreamstalker]

I'm a big believer in taking the mystery away from drinking.

*nod*

When I was much younger, my dad would let me take sips from his glass of wine every so often. I didn't think it was that special, and soon went back to my Juicy Juice No ill effects though.

Once or twice my grandfather would let me take sips from his beer. I thought it tasted disgusting, and soon went back to mixing up my own weird concoctions like milk and root beer (I swear my grandmother used to call that a "brown cow", but my mom says a brown cow is a rootbeer float ).

Go figure, by age 14 I was known in the family for making awesome grasshopper pies (and assorted flavor variations), and my mom got yelled at by my grandmother for that "omg it's alcohol!!111" (a few tablespoons at most, added to basically boiling water).