The decisions made by university President Dan Mote and University System Chancellor Brit Kirwan to sign a petition examining the drinking age show that both are taking an open-minded, critical approach to a complex question.
In examining the current drinking age and how it affects binge drinking on college campuses, Mote, Kirwan and the other signees are giving light to a problem that exists at this and other universities across the country – the underage binge drinker.
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, “The proportion of current drinkers that binge is highest in the 18- to 20-year-old group (51 percent).” By admitting that this problem exists despite, and perhaps because of, the current drinking age, Mote and Kirwan have signalled that the issue needs to be looked at in a larger context, which will allow meaningful dialogue to exist on the topic and eventually find a solution that helps keep college students safe.
This petition should not be misunderstood. These officials are not calling for the drinking age to be lowered immediately, and may not take that position at all after discussing binge drinking in this context. All they are looking at is whether the current law exacerbates the binge drinking situation on campuses across the country.
But the willingness to look at lowering the drinking age should be seen for what it is: the first step in admitting there is a problem. Though the resulting coverage thus far has been a backlash mainly over the idea of lowering the drinking age, the idea should be seen for what it is: a possible solution to a vexing problem with no easy way out.
As the officials who have thus far signed the petition continue to discuss what needs to be done to fix the problem of binge drinking on college campuses, they should continue to keep an open mind on the issue.
