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Katt Mollar asked:


minimum legal drinking age (MLDA) law is currently one of the most scrutinized and debated laws in the US. This article presents the views of the different stakeholders in this issue.

The United States has the highest legal drinking age in the western world. This age limit was established by the National Minimum Drinking Age Act of 1984. This law was driven largely by the desire to reduce traffic fatalities associated with alcohol consumption.

This requires all states in the US to legislate and enforce a minimum legal age of 21 years for purchasing and publicly possessing alcoholic beverages. States that does not comply with the provisions of the act are subjected to a 10% percent decrease in its annual federal highway apportionment.

There are some ambiguities in the provisions of the law. This law “specifically requires states to prohibit purchase and public possession of alcoholic beverages. It does not require prohibition of persons under 21 (also called youth or minors) from drinking alcoholic beverages.” There are also controversies in connection with the term “public possession” which basically do not apply to the following situations: - alcohol for established religious purposes, under adult supervision - alcohol for medical purposes, prescribed or administered by a licensed health care professional - alcohol use in private clubs or establishments - alcohol possession as part of a job with a “duly licensed manufacturer, wholesaler or retailer.”

It is not surprising that parents and anti-drunken advocacy groups are the ones who are strongly against lowering the age limit. In the early 1970s, the minimum drinking age was reduced by several states between 18 to 20 years to closely align with the reduced military enlistment and voting age during the Vietnam War. Many studies show that this move resulted in increased traffic fatalities and injuries.

According to statistics compiled by Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), annually alcohol drinking by college students ages 18 to 24 contributes to the following: - Approximately 1,700 student deaths - Almost 600,00 injuries - Almost 700,000 assaults - More than 90,000 sexual assaults - 474,000 engagement in unprotected sex

In 1998, 42% of crash fatalities among 18 to 20 year olds were alcohol-related. However, the drinking rates among the youth declined since the 21-MLDA law went into effect. According to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the 21 minimum drinking age law saved approximately 900 lives per year. This means more than 17,000 lives were saved since all states adopted the law in 1988. The 21 minimum age law is considered as one of the most effective public safety laws today. Many studies have been conducted to measure its effectiveness and they all have the same conclusion-the law saves lives.

One of the most influential supporters of the 21 legal age limit is MADD. This non-profit organization was established in 1980 with the mission of helping the victims of crimes caused by individuals driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. It also aims to aid the families of the victims and to increase public awareness of the problem of drinking and drugged driving. MADD was considered as one of the most influential proponents in the signing of the minimum drinking age act in 1984.

The 21-MLDA is closely linked to the issue of college drinking. Alcohol abuse in colleges and universities in the US is becoming a major problem despite the existing MLDA law. In 2002, a report that reviews that state of science of college drinking was published in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol. According to the report, about 80% of college students drink and about 50% go on “episodic heavy drink” or better known as binge drinking.

Scientific evidence showed that drinking at an early age can lead to alcohol dependence later in life. A UK cohort study showed that teen binge drinkers are more likely to become heavy drinkers as adults, which can lead to social exclusion and criminality. In this more recent study in the US, “age at onset of drinking” is a major indicator of risk of alcohol dependence among American women.

Adults aged 18 to 20 years old who are not allowed to drink alcoholic beverages are obviously the number one opponents to the 21 MLDA. They raise concerns about the apparent inconsistency in prohibiting them to drink while being treated as adults in most areas of life. For example, American citizens are allowed to vote when they are 18 years of age. Eighteen-year old males are also required to render military service for possible drafting. This means that 18-year old males can go to war and carry guns. Eighteen-year olds can also be selected for jury duty. These youth groups are now questioning why they can be trusted to vote, serve the military and justice system, but can’t be trusted to drink alcohol.

By portraying alcohol as a forbidden fruit, the MLDA law actually makes drinking more attractive to the young. This observation is not only restricted to alcohol but other substances such as illegal drugs. However, the big difference is that access to alcohol, albeit regulated by law, is easier and more affordable than drugs. Also, by coupling the law to age, it presents a challenge to the youth to prove their maturity and adulthood.

In addition, history proves that prohibition of alcohol, as was the case in the early part of the last century in many countries, including the US, encouraged periodic but excessive drinking.

Those who are for the lowering of MLDA claim that the current law actually worsened the drinking problem in colleges.

According to Indiana University professor Ruth Engs: - Students who are “vomiting after drinking” increased from 46% in 1982-87 to 50% after the age limit law has changed. - “Cutting classes after drinking” has increased from 9% to almost 12% - “Missing classes due to hangover” increased from 26% to 28% - “Getting low grades due to drinking” increased from 5% to 7% - “Been in a fight after drinking” went up from 12% to 17%

This increase in excessive and irresponsible drinking is due to “underground drinking” in student dormitories, fraternity basements and apartments without adult supervision. These young drinkers lack the knowledge of responsible drinking behaviors. By reducing the MLDA, young people can learn the proper norms of social drinking early, under supervision, thus helping resolve the problem of irresponsible drinking.

The Amethyst Initiative Support for the reduction of MLDA came from the most unexpected places - top officials of several American colleges. The Amethyst Initiative, launched in 2008, is an organization made up of over 100 university heads, including presidents and chancellors of prestigious institutions like Duke University, Dartmouth College and John Hopkins. The organization members claim, based on their campus experience that “twenty-one is not working” so that there is a need to examine the currently existing MLDA law.

The Amethyst Initiative points out that drinking problems start even before college. They are now calling upon legislatures to review current alcohol policies and develop new ideas to prepare young adults in becoming responsible alcohol drinkers.

According to a 2002 report by the International Center for Alcohol Policies (ICAP), the United States has the highest legal drinking age limit in the world. The five other countries that set a minimum drinking age of 21 are Chile, Egypt, Honduras, Russia and Samoa. In some countries, there are exemptions or special circumstances that may affect the age limit for alcohol consumption. Examples of these are: - In Norway, beer and wine may be consumed at age 18 and spirits at age 20. - In Canada, drinking age limit are legislated by each province. Three provinces set age 18 as the consumption age while the rest have set the limit at 19. In the United Kingdom, alcohol may be consumed from age 5 with parental consent. The opponents of 21 MLDA argue that Europeans have lower problems of alcoholism and alcohol-related vehicular accidents despite the lower minimum age limit.

The National Minimum Drinking Age Act of 1984 is full of loopholes and ambiguities. For example, provisions that prohibit purchase by, selling to and public possession but not consumption of alcohol by minors are confusing. While all states prohibit vendors to sell alcoholic beverages to minors, some states do not prohibit minors from purchasing alcohol. Some states allow minors to sell or serve alcoholic beverages without adult supervisions and the majority of the states do not prohibit minors from entering drinking establishments. Because of these loopholes, cross-state drinking excursions from strict states and less stringent states are frequent. It is also common for young people living close to the borders to Canada and Mexico to go binge drinking “abroad.”

Drinking has been a government issue for years. Both the proponents as well as opponents of the 21 age limit agree that alcohol consumption is a serious problem among the youth but cannot agree on common solutions to resolve this.

Resolving the problem should probably start by addressing the previously mentioned loopholes in the MLDA. These loopholes weaken the enforcement of law in controlling underage drinking. In addition, there needs to be concerted collaboration between the major stakeholders and efforts toward additional research.

Steve K Smith asked:




There are many people who our following DASH diet recipes in hopes of lowering their blood pressure, but the diet doesn’t just lower blood pressure. The American Heart Association recommends it for those who have cardiovascular problems or high blood pressure and are looking to eat a heart healthy diet. The good news is like most heart friendly diets it can also lead to weight loss.

The word DASH stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension and the diet has been proven to lower blood pressure in as little as 14 days. The diet provides guidelines on how many servings from each food group should be eaten daily. To increase heart healthy minerals like, calcium, magnesium and potassium more servings of vegetables are eaten daily. When most people eat less meat and more vegetables, while cutting out junk food they end up reducing their calorie intake. Of course reducing daily calorie intake can lead to weight loss. The diet also stresses reduced sodium and for this reason processed foods should be limited, whole grains and other high fiber foods are encouraged.

Ironically this diet is endorsed by the Mayo Clinic, not the fad 3 day grapefruit diet which often wrongly carries the name of the Mayo Clinic in it. Anyone Looking for DASH diet recipes should get the book, The Dash Diet Action Plan by Marla Heller. The book not only has recipes but a complete 28 day meal plan and gives guidance on how to adjust calorie intake for more weight loss. It also contains more helpful tips on lowering your blood pressure by making positive changes to ones lifestyle.

The DASH diet is a healthy common sense approach to nutrition. It is easy to follow and though it does restrict or limit certain foods, you won’t be left feeling hungry. The diet isn’t just for those who are looking to eat heart healthy diets. Some of the recommendations like eating less processed foods can and should be part of any diet plan.

John Christian Sebastian asked:




What is the DASH diet?. DASH stands for Dietary Approaches for Stopping Hypertension. It is a common term used by physicians all over the United States. Basically it involves a diet which consists of foods that have proven to lower high blood pressure, or hypertension. Of course, the DASH diet also calls for a minimization of foods that are well known to contribute to high blood pressure as well.

The DASH diet is not truly defined by any means, and therefore is broad in its various executions. However, the guidelines that the DASH diet gives to people with hypertension have shown to enable them to lower their blood pressure in a matter of weeks, with drastic improvements for periods over six months of DASH dieting. This drastic improvement has led to its increased and continued usage of the DASH diet by physicians across the country.

The components of the DASH diet are very simple, and are easy to follow. The major contributors to the lowering of participants’ blood pressure are the fruits, vegetables, legumes, seeds, and nuts. The good cholesterol, fiber, and negative calories are all good components of a well balanced and healthy diet. Olive oil is also encouraged, and has shown to contribute lower blood pressures with studies throughout the Mediterranean countries and their inhabitants which use olive oil daily.

Another healthy change that the DASH diet brings to the average American diet are the low-fat items. For instance, the DASH diet recommends low-fat dairy products and lean meats such as poultry and fish. Now, some fish contain more fats than others, so it is important for you to balance your intake between the two. Besides, the fattier fishes are actually more expensive on average! Finally, it is important for you to take in several whole grain products each day. Oatmeal for breakfast is a popular solution, as well as granola bars as between-meal snacks.

The most important step in the DASH diet is to minimize foods and items which contribute to high blood pressure. The main contributors to hypertension are inactivity, excess sodium, excess alcohol, excess body weight, and inadequate magnesium, potassium, and calcium. If you also noticed, DASH diet foods are also foods that are recommended for weight loss diets. The reason that these foods are found in the DASH diet and in weight loss diets is due to the fact that most people with hypertension are usually overweight. The most effective treatment for hypertension, disclosed by most physicians, is weight loss.

One of the closest diets that you can compare to the DASH diet is the Vegan diet. I was able to write an article recently, “Make The Vegetarian Diet Work For You”, which explains the benefits and uses of Vegan foods towards your health. A lot of the foods that you see recommended in the DASH diet are also foods that are a part of the Vegan diet, which would explain the fact that Vegan’s are very rarely diagnosed with hypertension.

Proper documentation on the DASH diet is available from your physician, as well as at several online dietary sources. I would definitely recommend researching DASH diet foods and to start planning your daily diet around them immediately. The health benefits that you will see with the lowered blood pressure is important in the short term for better health and well-being, however it is critical in the long term. The DASH diet will help to extend your life due to your cardiovascular system’s inability to operate for years under a higher pressure than what it is designed for. You also will be able to access dietary tips and extensive information at my website listed below. My free membership fitness tuning site focuses on dietary as well as fitness aspects in order to contribute towards a healthy lifestyle for people of all ages and body types.

Ricky Lim asked:




One of the recent developments in the field of air conditioners is the invention of the under dash air conditioning technique. In this technique, they are mounted under the dash board of the automobile. The cooling effect from that angle is great and the effects can be felt in all parts of the vehicle.

This is available in the form of two major types or models. The first model is designed in such a way so that it can be fitted under the dash board of the car without the need of the removal of the glove box. This type of model is available in various modes, like heat and cool or cool only. This model comprises a high capacity coil and a chrome face. The evaporator fitted in this model is complete in all regards and is equipped with all the controls. The model also comprises a valve for the control of the heater along with mounting brackets. It also comes with instructions which are easy to follow.

The second unit of the under dash air conditioning which is available has certain characteristic features which double up as advantages. This second unit takes comparatively lesser space vertically under the dashboard. This is made possible by using thin rectangular louvers. This second unit or model is also available in the cool only and the heat and cool modes.

The evaporator is also complete and consists of all required controls along with the valve, which is needed for the regulation of the feat (also known as heater control valve). Extremely easy to follow instructions are also part of the package along with mounting brackets. The under dash air conditioners comes in variety of dimensions. The most commonly used dimensions being 16 inches wide, half an inch deep and high.

Olga Abscom asked:




I’m not sure if this title needs any introduction at all. I mean, only casual games freshmen don’t know the Dash game series and Flo. With regard to those, Cooking Dash developed by Aliasworlds Entertainment and published by PlayFirst, is a new sequel in the series of time-management games.

And for the time-management veterans - you are going to meet Flo and Grandma themselves in this release. It’s not like Coco or Quinn weren’t good, it’s just that Flo is better…

Cookie is making his own reality show while Flo and Grandma feel in for him and later for other restaurants’ chefs. This time Cookie, Flo’s great chef, was offered to star in his own reality cooking show on TV. But who’s gonna take care of the diner?.. Yes, it’s Flo and Grandma.

After every level you are given some comments on how Cookie’s doing with his show. And he is doing only better and better. So soon (soon means 10 levels) Ahefs from other restaurants are invited to his show. And who’s gonna take care of their restaurants and customers?..Yes, it’s Flo and Grandma.

Every new restaurant means that you are going to start all over again. I mean you can’t rely on the upgrades you used to increase customers’ patience before just because you don’t have them here. You need to earn them again.

A new restaurant means a new cuisine, a new background, a new type of customers, which is always good. This time you get a chance to really cook. Going from one restaurant to another makes it interesting to have new dishes every once in a while.

One of the new twists in this release is that the place does look more like a diner because customers don’t seat at the tables, but side-by-side at the counter. The seats are colored and you get bonus points for matching the colors of the customers with those of the seats. But don’t focus on that a lot because you may lose more on waiting for the seat of the required color to be vacant.

The bigger part of the screen takes up the kitchen area. Grandma stands in the middle ready to prepare different cold foods. Flo is rushing all over the place making all kinds of dishes - smoothies, fried eggs, french fries, pizzas etc.

The process of serving is nothing new. You seat a customer, wait for him or her to make an order, cook it, serve it, take the money and take away the dirty dishes.

There is a shop in the game where you can buy things to upgrade your restaurant. Some of the things don’t improve your score or speed at all though like new doors or tiles. But there are those that add speed or add more equipment or increase customers’ patience.

The game is very interesting with the old well-known characters and different cuisines, and challenging with the speed you have to rush around on.

Chimezirim Chinecherem Odimba asked:




Here are steps to follow if your in-dash CD or MP3 player will not play discs or if they skip.

1) First of all, ensure that your discs are clean and not damaged and have been inserted into the in-dash player the correct way up. Try other discs, especially original CD’s, to see if they will play. This is especially necessary if you are using CD-R or CD/RW (copied discs). The problem could arise if a cheap CD-R is used. It could also arise if a disc is burned at too fast a speed or if the copier hadn’t finalized the disc completely.

2) Use a CD laser cleaner disc. These are available from any music store. When these are played in your CD player, they will clean the laser. This will take care of problems related to a dirty CD laser: Discs not playing or playing but skipping.

3) Ensure that the fascia contacts/connections aren’t worn and that the fascia is making good, solid contact. Because the fascia is removable, over time, the contacts can become dirty or worn. To find out how to clean your contacts, consult your radio handbook.

4) Press the ‘Reset’ button if your radio has one, and then check for correct operation. Consult your radio hand book for details.

5) If your radio doesn’t have a ‘Reset’ button, release your radio from your dash and physically disconnect the power connector and then reconnect and test for correct operation.

If the problem is still present after following the above, please, consult a car audio expert.

Vikram Kumar asked:


There are currently three leading gaming consoles that are considered to be next generation. Those three gaming consoles are the Nintendo Wii, Sony PlayStation 3 and the Microsoft Xbox 360. Surprisingly, the Nintendo Wii has distinguished itself from its competition. The Wii games do not make the different between the Wii and its competition. Instead it is the Wii Remote. All of the Wii games allow player to swing the controller around in a fashion of game play that has never been seen before. There are a number of games that will make an instant impact upon their release including Wii Sports Resort.

 

Wii Sports Resort is a sports video game for the Nintendo Wii. The Wii Sports Resort video game is the second addition to the Wii Sports series in which the first was released in 2009. The Wii Sports Resort, like many other Wii games, is compatible with the Wii Motion Plus. The Wii Sports Resort will come in a bundle pack with the Wii Motion Plus and an extended Wii Remote Jacket included. Both of these accessories are also sold separately. This video game is set in a beach resort. The environment is the same one used in the Wii Fit game.

 

There are a number of games that can be played in the Wii Sports Resort game including Frisbee, Kendo and Jet Skiing. It has been stated that the final version of the game will include at least ten games. There are a number of very popular Wii games for Wii owners to choose from. The Wii Fit is another one of those Wii games that helps set the video game console apart from its competitors. The Wii Fit video game for the Wii is an exercise game that allows players to perform various activities using the Wii Balance Board peripheral.

 

The Wii Fit is one of the most popular Wii games currently on the market. The Wii Fit has become the third best selling video game for the Wii, selling over fourteen million copies worldwide. The video game holds a retail price of nearly ninety dollars. The video game has brought in a one point twenty six billion dollar revenue for Nintendo. Wii Console owners often have a tough time finding some of the Wii games in stock due to the high demand for them. The Wii Fit is one of those games that are hard to find.

 

You can bet that the Wii Sports Resort will also be very hard to find when it first comes out. There are a number of things you can do to help find the Wii Sports Resort when it is first released. Many video game retailers will allow customers to pre-order their video games. You could do this and then pay and pick up the item when it is released. You can also use the internet to help you find a retailer that has the game in stock. Wii Compare is one website that will help you locate to store that has the video game in stock.

Joseph Parish asked:




Survivalists and various survival groups are always interested in ways to communicate with each other in the event of an emergency. This poses a particular problem in the case of EMP pulse issues. For those who do not know EMP is electrical pulse generated by nuclear explosions. They tend to destroy and communications gear which is not protected. The only means other then long distances between the explosion and the equipment is through the use of what is known as Faraday cages. Faraday cages are grids of wire which is grounded and thus sends the waves right to ground.

Now assuming that you have a faraday cage and your communications is still functioning the problem you will encounter is others may not be so protected. We could effectively end up experiencing a propagation breakdown with no power, no satellites and no working circuitry in our radios.

I personally do not feel that EMP will be the most likely cause for communications break down. There are many people particularly ham operators who will have enough equipment functioning that communications will survive. The biggest problem that I feel we will encounter is going to be electrical power.

Radio communications in a normal emergency situation prove to be a useful and necessary piece of equipment. In the event that we are hit with massive EMP assuming that even if your circuitry is protected with a homemade faraday cage your only hope is that others have the same advantages otherwise you will quickly find that you are the only person for which you may actually be able to communicate with.

I would like to present an alternate method of communications which would be very useful in such situations and that is using Morse code. This method can be employed even if you have lost all power. As a survivalist it is important that you understand how to effectively communicate using this method as it may help to save and protect your life and that of your family.

You can easily use intermittent electrical power or lights to communicate with others by connecting or disconnecting your power supply. With the use of a properly understood code total communications can occur.

Morse code or CW as it is often known is a great way to communicate although it is considered to be a bit difficult to master. Generally when people hear the word CW they get scared and figure that they can never learn this means of communicating. On the internet is a program using the method of CW training which was developed by a German psychologist known as Ludwig Koch. With this program a person can quickly learn Morse code in a short time. The Koch method requires a personal computer in order to learn it properly.

Generally people attempt to learn the various letters of the code first and then they would try to increase their speed to about 5 WPM. With Koch you will start off by learning the sounds of each letter with only using two characters at a time. Next you would move up to 3 and so forth. This method will work much better and your speed will increase quickly.

Copyright @2008 Joseph Parish