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California - Drinking Age Question


Teacher Matt

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California natives ....

Discussion in my Government class yesterday.... I have looked for the answer and could not find it short of calling the State Government of California ..

I know that in 1984 the Federal Government passed the Federal Uniform Drinking Age Act to make all states go to 21 or loss highway funding.. all states did agree...

BUT my question is this ... Was California always 21 and over or at one point could you be 19 to purchase beer and liquor ??

thanks in advance... a free video day for my 12th graders ride on the answer...

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California has been 21 since prohibition. Most states lowered the drinking age to 18/19 during the Viet Nam era, however CA was one of about 12 that did not.

In CA "underage" consumption of alcohol is permitted in the presence of consenting and supervising family members.

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Thanks Ron... victory and video day for my students...but it will be educational... they are going to watch "In The Heat of the Night" ... good racial tension movie .... I think in order for this month ....

I grew up in Ohio where it was 19.... when they made the switch I along with others were "grandfathered" in and was able to drink at the age of 19 for that 2 year window

California has been 21 since prohibition. Most states lowered the drinking age to 18/19 during the Viet Nam era, however CA was one of about 12 that did not.

In CA "underage" consumption of alcohol is permitted in the presence of consenting and supervising family members.

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Thanks Ron... victory and video day for my students...but it will be educational... they are going to watch "In The Heat of the Night" ... good racial tension movie .... I think in order for this month ....

I grew up in Ohio where it was 19.... when they made the switch I along with others were "grandfathered" in and was able to drink at the age of 19 for that 2 year window

I was grandfathered in, too. I turned 18 just before the legal age changed to 21.

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An excellent movie, one of my all time favorites.

Kansas was 18 to drink 3.2 beer (all you could get in a bar or grocery store). Only liquor stores had liquor, you could drink in private clubs, but you had to bring your own alcohol, and you couldn't get anything on Sundays. It was raised to 21 in '85. There used to be a law against serving liquor on trains going through or planes flying over KS. In '68 KS elected an attorney General (Vern Miller) who would take trains and planes to catch them breaking the law. He once hid in the trunk of a car for three hours trying to catch someone doing a drug deal ( a whole ounce of weed). He lasted one term.

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I know that in 1984 the Federal Government passed the Federal Uniform Drinking Age Act to make all states go to 21 or loss highway funding.. all states did agree...

Louisiana did NOT agree, initially. LA (particularly New Orleans) was set in their ways of loose drinking laws... it was part of their culture (and still is! they have drive thru mixed drink stands.. the law accepts a drink with a straw with half of the wrapper still on as a "closed container.")

wikipedia says:

[Louisiana] Raised to 21 de jure in 1987,[3] but de facto age was still 18 until 1995 due to a sale loophole. De facto age raised to 21 in 1995 when loophole was closed.

interesting... the US didnt have a uniform drinking age even in the 70s! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._history_...se_age_by_state

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Louisiana did NOT agree, initially. LA (particularly New Orleans) was set in their ways of loose drinking laws... it was part of their culture (and still is! they have drive thru mixed drink stands.. the law accepts a drink with a straw with half of the wrapper still on as a "closed container.")

wikipedia says:

[Louisiana] Raised to 21 de jure in 1987,[3] but de facto age was still 18 until 1995 due to a sale loophole. De facto age raised to 21 in 1995 when loophole was closed.

interesting... the US didnt have a uniform drinking age even in the 70s! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._history_...se_age_by_state

True...while in college in the '70s we would go to Texas (age 18) and buy Coors (easternmost place it was on sale) by the trunkload (after checking in it for law enforcement officials) and take to North Carolina (age 18 but no Coors). There, we would trade for other substances.

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The very first time I ever got drunk was off of Coors... Apparently when I was almost 2 years old, my father cracked open a Coors, set it on the counter, and when he turned back around, the beer was gone... My mother found me passed out in the closet with a half can of Coors still in my hand..

And people wonder what the hell is wrong with me...

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Guest Lisacat
The very first time I ever got drunk was off of Coors... Apparently when I was almost 2 years old, my father cracked open a Coors, set it on the counter, and when he turned back around, the beer was gone... My mother found me passed out in the closet with a half can of Coors still in my hand..

And people wonder what the hell is wrong with me...

that explains sooooo much.

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The very first time I ever got drunk was off of Coors... Apparently when I was almost 2 years old, my father cracked open a Coors, set it on the counter, and when he turned back around, the beer was gone... My mother found me passed out in the closet with a half can of Coors still in my hand..

And people wonder what the hell is wrong with me...

Herdy, I don't think anyone wonders what is wrong with you. I am pretty sure it is self-evident for many of us through are behavior. Although 2 years old, man that is young.

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seeing as how i didn't turn 21 until 06, really not to familiar with the drinking laws... always been 21 to me, well legally 21///

The very first time I ever got drunk was off of Coors... Apparently when I was almost 2 years old, my father cracked open a Coors, set it on the counter, and when he turned back around, the beer was gone... My mother found me passed out in the closet with a half can of Coors still in my hand..

And people wonder what the hell is wrong with me...

there is a a picture of me when i was 2-3 years old grabbing a can of miller light and trying to drink it... it was empty which was why the picture was taken and not them taking the can... ill have to see if i can get my mom to look for it amongst the man many photo albums she has...

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Thanks Ron... victory and video day for my students...but it will be educational... they are going to watch "In The Heat of the Night" ... good racial tension movie .... I think in order for this month ....

I grew up in Ohio where it was 19.... when they made the switch I along with others were "grandfathered" in and was able to drink at the age of 19 for that 2 year window

I missed by less than a year. Of course, the 19 year old limit was for beer only, but it did get you into bars.

True...while in college in the '70s we would go to Texas (age 18) and buy Coors (easternmost place it was on sale) by the trunkload (after checking in it for law enforcement officials) and take to North Carolina (age 18 but no Coors). There, we would trade for other substances.

"Smokey and the bandit" comes to mind.

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The very first time I ever got drunk was off of Coors... Apparently when I was almost 2 years old, my father cracked open a Coors, set it on the counter, and when he turned back around, the beer was gone... My mother found me passed out in the closet with a half can of Coors still in my hand..

And people wonder what the hell is wrong with me...

definately stay away from that seat next to nys......

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