Alcohol Age Limit & Alcohol Problem

Because of what I've gone through, with having zero experience with alcohol and coming from a family where there was never even liquor in the house, ever, I think the age limit for drinking alcohol should be reduced.

America has a drinking problem unique from other countries.

I asked some people yesterday, given my intake, would they consider this to be a sign of alcoholism? They said no way. And I agree. I have never, ever, had a "drinking problem" or problem with alcohol.

I've never had much to drink, I don't drink to get drunk, I don't binge, and I don't have hangovers. If anything, I didn't drink enough to figure out what my tolerance levels were or establish it consistently. Until the last couple of months, I drank maybe one or two nights a month, and sometimes, a half glass of wine with dinner when I wasn't feeling well. In Europe, people drink everyday. I do not feel "compelled" to drink and never have. In the last couple of months I drank a little more, but it's because I work in food and beverage, and as everyone knows in this industry, it happens. You sample the stuff. You just drink more, with customers and in general. But I'm still not an alcoholic and I don't drink to the point of passing out. I just have a drink now and then, more than I used to.

The problem with alcohol, for me, was that I had ZERO experience and knowledge about it. I had to learn about tolerance and levels that are right for my body, very late in life. And it wasn't in the best of environments.

Many kids coming from houses similiar to mine, go through this phase in college, and the biggest crime on campus is date rape.
How many people have been raped while under the influence, or assaulted while technically impaired and unable to give true consent? It's a major problem, and the fact that someone is assaulted while under the influence doesn't make that person an alcoholic. Most of the time, they are naive and someone else is acting as the predator.

If people could experiment with alcohol and become familiarized at an earlier age, they would be better off. In their parents home, or with their family, they could learn about the effects and how much is "too much" for them. It would be a safe environment, and prepare them from becoming out of control later or taken advantage of.

European countries all know this! Why don't we?

We've set ourselves back, and left our daughters without any defense. Ask any woman, and she or some other woman she knows has been raped or assaulted through this manner. It's becoming more common with men too, where women take advantage of the man after he's been drinking. I know this is true, because this is what the sex abuse organizations say.

I think it's a particular problem with men though. When you have so many men, who are going to college to then become law enforcement, lawyers, and judges, practicing date rape themselves, it's a little bit difficult for women to be taken seriously when they attempt to report or press charges. And I'm sure there are a lot of women, like me, who blamed themselves, and didn't even know what was happening to them was illegal to begin with.

This is partly why I chose to reveal what has happened to me. I know I'm not alone. My situation is unique in some ways, but in other ways, it is not.

Do not blame yourself.

You learn from your mistakes, and from the crimes and illegal actions of others, and eventually, when you make your discovery, you become stronger and try to think of solutions to help prevent this from happening to others, and to minimize the risk.

To CPS and Wenatchee people or whoever claims I have an alcohol "problem", I say

FUCK OFF.

Stop trying to find a scapegoat for the criminal actions of others.

Listening now to "Survivor" by Destiny's Child (I disagree with her one line: "I'm not gonna dis you on the Internet")