What age do you let your kids drink?

In reply to edizzle89:

We got our hands on a pony keg for a "camping" trip, thanks to a friend's of-age older brother, contributing to our delinquency.

Clueless us, had never had a keg, nor did we know how to tap it. Tap on, nothing is coming out, who knew you were supposed to pump it? One of us got the bright idea that the keg must need to be vented for the beer to come out, and proceeds to knock the fill bung out of the side of the keg.

We emptied 2/3 of the keg in the bed of one of my friend's truck.

Stupid kids are going to do stupid things, it's part of growing up, our bonfires, and "camping" trips, always had booze, fireworks, and firearms. Actually not a lot has changed over the years. I guess tragedy can find its way into any situation, and we sure tempted fate, but we all turned out alright, more or less.

I mean if you wanted girls at the party you had to have the Downhome and Blackberry Punch.

Boy, some seriously sanctimonious pontification here.

I started drinking when I was 2, taking a sip of Grampa's beer while sitting on his knee. As children we were allowed to have wine with dinner if we wanted it - mostly we didn't. By the time I was 13, if I wanted a beer I just had to ask. My parents felt that making alcohol taboo just increased the allure.

Like many, I made my share of mistakes when I was younger and alcohol was sometimes a contributing factor, but I was most definitely less fascinated by drinking than my peers.

All I'm saying - especially to you self-righteous "against the law, go directly to jail" proponents - is that there are merits to both sides of this discussion.

When's the party? So I know when to be watching for the news stories on Yahoo.

Edizzle's experience doesn't sound far off from my own either. Though it was certainly not condoned, my parents probably had a pretty good idea of what was going on, and the handful of times I did get caught the hammer came down pretty hard, but there was also always the standing offer of "anytime, anywhere I'll pick you up."

They probably didn't know the exact extent of my underage drinking, though. I think I was 16 when my buddy and next door neighbor's dad had the liquor license pulled from the bar he owned (forget the exact story on that one...) ALL the alcohol had to be out of the bar immediately and ended up being stored in their garage for well over a year. So we had an entire garage bay literally filled floor to ceiling with booze to pilfer from. Somehow we're all still alive and (for the most part) OK.

Also, Jello shots are a horrendous idea. They tend to have a bit of a 'delayed fuse', so you end up gobbling down half a dozen of them without feeling anything, then all of a sudden ten minutes later they all hit you at once. Hope SIL likes cleaning up puke.

Some of you seem to have forgotten what you were like at 16.... Or you remember and think that you can stop people from making your mistakes.

At 16, those who want to drink will. No amount of laws or parenting will stop that. Its far better for them to drink in a supervised situation with a responsible adult than it is to be doing it on the sly in potentially dangerous situations.

Our legal drinking age in Australia is 18, as such, alot 16 year Olds are exposed to alcohol via siblings, friends and family. Knowing this, Mum and dad started introducing me to responsible alcohol consumption at around 13-14, nothing crazy, a beer after working with dad, or a glass of wine with dinner. they knew I'd be exposed to alcohol and wanted to try and make sure that my first experience with alcohol wasn't Half a bottle of spirits at a party follows by a stomach pumping in hospital. It was the right choice for our family, by 16 I was able to go to a party that involved alcohol and not do to many stupid things. Some of my friends who had not had such reasonable parents waayyy over did it at 16-17 as they had no concept of how alcohol would efect them. They didn't understand how to pace themselves and take it easy, to almost scary results.

Prohibition didn't work for adults, it doesn't work for minors either.

If you aren't ready to start learning the responsibilities of adulthood by 16 then maybe you never will be

My conservative son decided to be like me and at almost 26 years of age doesn't touch alcohol.

My 14 year old popular daughter will be a challenge with the stuff. I pray she doesn't dive headfirst into drugs and alcohol.

As a 17 year old, I can firmly tell you that even some of my more impulsive friends sure as hell wouldn't even consider attending an event such as the one listed even just because of the sheer heat threat alone.

Although speaking from experiences of people I know, drinking is probably one of the less dumb things teenagers do (unprotected sex, dropping e, sending nudes, smoking sherm, general destruction, street racing, vaping nic, UrbEx, illegal warehouse raves, amateur pyrotechnics, dealing mids, etc.).

I still don't understand this NEED to drink alcohol.
As an educator I'm a mandatory reporter for children I come into contact with. posting this online is a bad idea. Less so since you've chosen to not let em go.

Brain science is moving at an incredible pace. The truth is it ain't about killing brain cells. It's about changing neural pathways and programming the brain for certain tendencies. The earlier one starts, and Teens having little or no executive functioning skills, the percentages favor long term poor choices.

Did I drink in HS? YEah, twice. Got sick both times. never drank again until my 21st birthday. I occasionally have a beer or hard cider, maybe a glass of wine. But I've had time to consider the ramifications of what alcohol in my system can mean in outcomes. I also teach DE and have seen enough research, heard the conversations, and experienced the troubles that happen when teens drink.

Is it really worth it? Grumble, grumble, personal rights, grumble grumble.

"Jello shots" stands out to me. Jello shots were always the way the non drinkers got drunk when they wanted to drink too much. Easy to drink rapidly with lots of celebration about the amount you are drinking quickly. Allowing drinking at a party is different than encouraging the patterns of drinking that are focused on getting really drunk as fast as possible.

Here's my question: I know you can grow to like beer, or liquor, or wine, even though most people don't like it at all the first time.

Does anyone ever grow to like jello shots? Truly, truly awful those things are.

G_Body_Man wrote: As a 17 year old, I can firmly tell you that even some of my more impulsive friends sure as hell wouldn't even consider attending an event such as the one listed even just because of the sheer heat threat alone. Although speaking from experiences of people I know, drinking is probably one of the less dumb things teenagers do (unprotected sex, dropping e, sending nudes, smoking sherm, general destruction, street racing, vaping nic, UrbEx, illegal warehouse raves, amateur pyrotechnics, dealing mids, etc.).

I know what most of those things are.

That means I'm still hip and cool right?

My dad didnt care from 18 up as long as i was at home. I did dumb E36 M3 drunk well before that and im not looking forward to my kids hitting that age.

Robbie wrote:

G_Body_Man wrote: As a 17 year old, I can firmly tell you that even some of my more impulsive friends sure as hell wouldn't even consider attending an event such as the one listed even just because of the sheer heat threat alone. Although speaking from experiences of people I know, drinking is probably one of the less dumb things teenagers do (unprotected sex, dropping e, sending nudes, smoking sherm, general destruction, street racing, vaping nic, UrbEx, illegal warehouse raves, amateur pyrotechnics, dealing mids, etc.).

I know what most of those things are. That means I'm still hip and cool right?

What the hell are sherm and UrbEx?

In reply to Furious_E:

Sherm is a blunt of tobacco and/or weed dipped in angel dust. UrbEx is Urban Exploration, or trespassing on and in abandoned buildings/structures for cool pictures and for seeing something once great now abandoned and neglected.

My 21st birthday is next month. My only major concern about the event is that since I still live at home, this means my dad will send me on the beer runs until I move out now.

Love jello shooters. They are like candy. I expect a 16 year old wouldn't be much different.

Robbie wrote: Here's my question: I know you can grow to like beer, or liquor, or wine, even though most people don't like it at all the first time. Does anyone ever grow to like jello shots? Truly, truly awful those things are.

A question for you guys. I don't drink largely because my dad was (and still is when his life derails) and alcoholic. So was his dad. And all of my uncles on my mother's side. And way way too many other genetic links to probably mess with.
So we don't have alcohol in the house. Mrs. Deuce has two drinks a year at her company Christmas party and I drive her home.
I don't think all four of my kids are likely to make the same decisions as I did, but I don't have the very intelligent option of sitting down and sharing a beer with them as an introduction to alcohol. We talk about it a lot starting at a young age. They know people drink because it's fun and they know I don't because it can also be destructive. My oldest is starting to get invited to high school parties so this is a looming issue that I'm not quite sure how to handle.

I wanna try some UrbEx.

bludroptop wrote: Boy, some seriously sanctimonious pontification here.

Gee, you're right. Seems to go both ways...

In reply to mazdeuce: So have you ever drank? I understand the urge to not follow what may seem a preordained destiny of alcoholism. ( I have a similar family tree). So I keep a careful eye on my consumption, but I enjoy alcohol. A tasty beer, a nice bottle of wine, or an evening nightcap are all experiences that occur with alcohol and really can't be reproduced with soda/water/tea/juice.

It's also why I can't remember the last time I had a jello shooter. Getting hammered for the sake of getting hammered is poor form. Responsible use and consumption when appropriate is way better.

bearmtnmartin wrote: Thank you for all the opinions. As varied as I expected them to be. I have decided to not allow him to go, and really it was the jello shots that tipped the scales. But my compromise is that I am going to start offering him the occasional beer at home as I do think he is of an age where he will be drinking eventually and I would rather have some control over the circumstance. And I think perhaps if he can have the odd drink at home, the pressure will be much reduced in another environment where peer pressure is more of a factor.

I think this is a very good decision for good reasoning. Good job teaching your kid the difference between responsibly consuming alcohol in moderation at home and parties with the express purpose of getting drunk.

Huckleberry wrote: I'm not sure how I feel about this. I went to parties in the woods when I was that age. I have done many foolish and dangerous things in my life as a result of drinking when I shouldn't have been. But, I lived and I have some good stories. I have some scars. And some enemies. I'm not sure I would get the same results twice so I'm leery of condoning asinine behavior from my own children. I also have a 16yr old and he has gone to a party recently, been caught and punished. I am setting the boundary - expecting it to be pushed. If I don't set one then I'm afraid we will be pushing at a whole different level. I could be wrong though. If someone else catches him drinking he won't drive until he is 21, he will face penalties that are pretty harsh and questions that might cause others to go to jail. I can't condone that - but I can't realistically chain him up in the basement until it passes either. So, I am at the mercy of his honor at times. If he is anything like his father... there will be a few sleepless nights for his parents. I hope that is the extent of it. If I were you though - I would probably give your sister-in-law hell for making it too easy. Hard liquor? Nucking futs. Cheap, light beer is more than adequate to make teenagers puke and piss themselves.

Good ol Pennsylvania, my story is pretty much the same. I started when I was 16 and had my license also, wed drive to a field, start a fire, drink cheap beer and then sleep in the cars or tents. No one drove until the next morning, those are some of my best memories. Kids are going to do it, honestly beer is a lot better option than drugs just make sure they are safe and don't drink and drive. Also I am not a parent lol

G_Body_Man wrote: unprotected sex, dropping e, sending nudes, smoking sherm, general destruction, street racing, vaping nic, UrbEx, illegal warehouse raves, amateur pyrotechnics, dealing mids, etc.

Wait, so what's the problem here? Trust me, this behavior isn't limited just to teenagers. I definitely tried way more drugs and did way dumber things in my 20s than I did as a teen.

In reply to penultimeta:

I mean, other than sending nudes (if you're 18+ that's fine, whatever), unprotected sex for the purpose of trying to conceive (or if you or your partner have had surgery), and maybe general destruction and amateur pyrotechnics in a tightly controlled environment, I'm not sure anyone should really be doing this stuff.

G_Body_Man wrote: In reply to penultimeta: I mean, other than sending nudes (if you're 18+ that's fine, whatever), unprotected sex for the purpose of trying to conceive (or if you or your partner have had surgery), and maybe general destruction and amateur pyrotechnics in a tightly controlled environment, I'm not sure anyone should really be doing this stuff.

No, you're totally right. I'm only suggesting teens don't have a monopoly on doing dumb E36 M3 and that I've found in my experience as an educator that many teens are way more responsible and mature than we (adults) tend to give them credit for.