Mad About Midd I'll serve you if you serve me

Author: Dave Barker

Let's forget Fair Trade Coffee, food waste and Free Tibet. There's a new cause worthy of protest on every college campus. Ever since Congress enacted the National Minimum Drinking Age Act in 1984, states have made it illegal for those under 21 to drink. Young adults can hold a bazooka in Iraq, vote and be a juror in a murder trial, but can't be caught with a can of Busch. I'm calling on all 18-20 year old students here with an urge for Two Brothers at night or a chance to buy at BevCo to sound the alarm.

You probably heard murmurs of the drinking age issue when President Emeritus John McCardell wrote an opinion piece in The New York Times opposing the 21 drinking age at the end of his presidency. Like other college presidents, he saw that students, unlike scotch, did not become more responsible with age. A grant from the Robertson foundation in New York last year gave him the backing to confirm his belief that a higher drinking age is an ineffective way to tackle youth drinking. "Whatever is left of my 15 minutes of fame is going to be about this," said Professor McCardell.

McCardell hired three students and a recent graduate to pick apart the drinking law from an office in Warner basement. Much of their work has focused on state interpretation of the Minimum Drinking Act. Under the law, states are able to permit exceptions for underage drinking and still receive highway funding. In Wisconsin, for example, parental consent can be enough for students to have a little wine with their cheese. Vermont allows no exceptions.

Which is why the issue becomes all the more pertinent on campus with the new Vermont liquor inspector, whose literal interpretation of Vermont law has created guest lists and three-week party registration deadlines. Like a meter maid, however, the liquor inspector shouldn't be faulted for enforcing law. But with an 18-and-over drinking age, images of the liquor inspector would disappear from dart boards across campus.

With a lower drinking age, college dorm rooms would no longer have the feel of a 20th century speakeasy where shots are taken behind closed doors. Instead of a casual evening with friends and a glass of port, the atmosphere of secrecy leads to late-night visits to Porter Hospital.

As the McCardell team's white paper nears its conclusion, Middlebury students should be the first to raise awareness about the need for a lower drinking age. Since you don't get your drivers license right after Drivers Ed, how about lobbying for a drinking permit that would allow students to order a drink at a bar, but that would not restrict them from buying a handle at the liquor store? A joint march on Montpelier with other Vermont schools or even a trip to Washington, D.C., would be an appropriate start. I can already picture the sign that I would hold in front of lawmakers, "I'll serve in war if you serve me a drink."