Congratulations, Graduate... Now Get Drunk
Welcome to America. Home to baseball, George W. Bush, and The highest drinking age in the world. I know that when I was 16 I was drinking like an Irish dock worker, because I had friends who had friends who knew a guy in college. That guy and those friends would get drunk and pass out, which is when I would pocket all the booze to enjoy with my "underage" friends at a later date. But future generations might get to enjoy something I never had: Having a drink at 18... legally.
Over the strong objection of federal safety officials, a quiet movement to lower the legal drinking age to 18 is taking root as advocates argue that teenagers who are allowed to vote and fight for their country should also be able to enjoy a beer or two.
The ban on alcohol sales to minors though is a state requirement, not federal. If states don't comply, they lose money for highway funds. Given the recent events in Minnesota, I would say the effect of missing highway funds is being felt regardless of drinking laws. Though states ban alcohol sales, they do not necessarily ban the consumption by minors. Data shows that the current drinking age really has no effect on youngsters:
The federal governments National Survey on Drug Use and Health found that in 2005, the most recent year for which complete figures are available, 85 percent of 20-year-old Americans reported that they had used alcohol. Two out of five said they had binged that is, consumed five or more drinks at one time within the previous month.
I know when I first joined the US Military at 17 and began my travels of the world, I learned more from 40-something drinkers in Australia, Italy, and Thailand then I ever learned from a high school health lecture on the effects of drinking. Others seem to agree with this factor. I think its because we all like to have a drinking buddy. Thankfully we have groups like Choose Responsibly, led by John McCardell, the former President of Middlebury College. They will teach parents to get plastered with us, and respect the rights of young adults everywhere. Well, that's the hope. I think.
To McCardell, however, the real problem is that we are not teaching teenagers how to drink responsibly.
Choose Responsibility proposes lowering the drinking age to 18, but only in conjunction with drinking licenses, similar to drivers licenses, mandating alcohol education for those ages 18 to 21.
Education works, McCardell said, but its never been tried. Now its mandatory only after youve been convicted of DUI. That is not an act of genius.
So here is an idea: Lower the drinking age, create tougher drunk driving penalties like in other countries, and make a family day of getting drunk. I'm sure we will learn more about our families and ourselves then we ever cared to know... at least parents will finally be aware of what REALLY happens in college.
"Child Molester" Appeals Conviction
Statutory rape is, and forever will be, a sticky subject. Cut-and-dry legal age limits for consensual sex make sense, and undoubtedly work to protect our children from those who would try to take advantage. But when the offender is also underage, close-in-age, or the specific sex-act falls into an ever-nebulous gray area, the lines of legality and morality can get awfully blurry.
Examine the case of Genarlow Wilson: a 17-year-old caught on videotape getting a consensual but very-illegal blowjob from a 15-year-old girl. In Georgia, the age of consent is 16, a fact that landed Mr. Wilson in a statutory-heap of trouble. Under a questionable Georgia state law, he was found guilty of aggravated child molestation and sentenced to 10 years in prison. His story has been around for awhile, but in the time since Wilsons conviction the law that put him in prison has been changed, mainly due to its overzealous application on this particular case. The Associated Press reports:
A lawyer for Genarlow Wilson, now 21, asked the appellate judge to throw out the aggravated child molestation sentence on the grounds it is grossly disproportionate to the crime. Defense attorney B.J. Bernstein noted that state lawmakers passed a law to close the loophole that led to Wilson's sentence.
"It gets back to common sense," Bernstein said. "This very act is only a misdemeanor with no sex offender registration today."
But prosecutor Paula Smith argued that the new law cannot be applied retroactively.
"The General Assembly did not make it retroactive," Smith said. "They had the prerogative to do so; they did not."
After serving 27 months of a 10 year sentence for a crime that would no longer be deemed a felony, Wilson is waiting for the results of his appeal which should be handed down sometime this week. What makes his case difficult to defend are the surrounding circumstances: also appearing on Wilsons damning video was a scene of several boys, Wilson included, having sex with a 17-year-old girl in a motel room, while the 15-year-old girl took turns orally servicing Wilson and another boy (who was himself underage). Whether or not you factor in the race card -- Wilson is black -- the peripheral details of the case are certain to rub some people the wrong way.
Wilson's most vocal critic has been Georgia's top Republican senator, Eric Johnson, of Savannah.
"This was not two star-crossed lovers on a date," Johnson wrote in an opinion piece opposing the bill written to help Wilson.
No, Mr. Johnson, blowjobs don't necessarily involve love, but neither does the law. In a complex and multi-layered case such as this, it will be interesting to see what the courts make of non-retroactive rulings, legal gray areas,"time served," the intangible definition of what constitutes actual sex, and the oft-forgotten importance of keeping it in your pants.
"Girls Gone Wild" Asshole Pleads Guilty
Joe Francis, raging douchebag and founder of the Girls Gone Wild empire, plead guilty to charges he and his company video taped underage girls. Francis acknowledged he did not maintain proper age and identity documents for each girl who performed for his camera. Although Francis will not spend any time in jail for the offenses, the court fines come directly out of Francis pocket.
GGW founder Joe Francis, along with related his related companies, Mantra Films Inc. and MRA Holding LLC, agreed to pay the government a total of $2.1 million in fines and restitution, however only $500,000 will be paid by Francis himself.
Francis showed regret for footage depicting underage girls involved in "sexually explicit conduct" in two of his Girls Gone Wild DVDs.
"Mantra Films, Inc., MRA Holdings Inc. and I admit that during 2002 and at times in 2003, we produced and distributed videos without obtaining the required records or attaching appropriate labeling," Francis said in a statement.
This is a landmark ruling; Francis was the first person to be successfully prosecuted under new federal laws requiring adult filmmakers to keep detailed records documenting age of participants in their films.
The charges in this case are believed to be the first to be filed under a law -- often referred to as Section 2257 -- passed by Congress to prevent the sexual exploitation of children. The law protects against the use of minors in the production of sexually explicit material by requiring producers to create and maintain age and identity records for every performer in sexually explicit movies and other media.
