TO THE EDITOR:
The Daily Tar Heel’s recent article regarding the enforcement of alcohol laws and the drinking age was one-sided. The quotes obtained from agent Mike Mineer and his peers make his department seem more like teetotaling, vindictive crusaders during Prohibition than officers “protecting and serving” the populace. The more strictly the unrealistic 21 rule is enforced, the more a culture of secrecy, binging and abuse is fostered. Using the laughably inappropriate and insulting term “minor” to refer to a person 20 years old is revealing of the seriously flawed way our society views youth drinking. As adults, 18 to 20-year-olds pay taxes, are prosecuted as adults, vote, serve in the military and are subject to all legal responsibilities of adulthood. They should thus enjoy the corresponding rights of adulthood, including the right to decide if they want to put alcohol into their own bodies. When The Daily Tar Heel reports on the futile efforts of police to waste resources fighting a victimless crime, it should also inform young adults of their rights regarding police interaction. In any police encounter, Americans have the civil right to respond to any police questions with “no comment”, to ask if they are being detained or are free to leave, and are not necessarily required to show an ID at an officer’s request. Too many young adults with bright futures have had their opportunities tarnished for the invented “crime” of having a beer.
Zach Rachuba ’16
Economics
Germanic and Slavic language and literature
