Written by For crying out loud, there is a simple way to stop kids drinking alcohol at every chance they get – ban alcopops!
Yes it’s a draconian measure but let’s face it, when I was a kid I was allowed the odd glass of wine or beer but I didn’t like the taste! That’s why my generation and older used to start on cider (which gives you a gives you a stinking hangover) or something like Archers and lemonade or vodka and orange – which was expensive.
Look at the facts – when I was a teenager 15 odd years ago, I didn’t go and get rat-arsed every night (I only ever really drank at parties – and even then, only when I was in the 6th form). I didn’t even start to like beer or wine until my late teens when I was work, and I hated red wine until my early to mid twenties.
The fact is, that if there are cheap, sweet, alcoholic drinks available, teenagers will be more inclined to drink than if only wine, beer, cider and spirits were available.
Yes there will always be the kids who think it’s clever to drink a litre of Vodka in a few hours – they have always existed.
Long journeys start with small steps, so lets start by stopping the kids who only want to drink alcopops and wouldn’t touch ‘grown up’ alcohol. In fact, if you get rid of alcopops, you would probably get rid of a lot of the idiots who wander the streets completely off their faces on a Friday and Saturday night.
Don’t advise against kids drinking at home in a controlled environment. Kids who have responsible parents will then lose the chance of learning to drink responsibly.
Finally, setting another barrier or rule just gives kids more reason to rebel and break that rule – it may have the effect of encouraging even younger kids to drink. The age limit for drinking is 18 unless you are in your own home and that is how it should stay.
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