US Flag ship seized by pirates

[Flashermac]

Just my luck ... every state I lived in or was stationed in enforced the 21 year old limit. I know an ex-Navy fighter pilot, Korean War vet, who returned from combat at age 20 and was told he wasn't old enough to buy a drink in San Diego.

 

p.s. So much for "state's rights":

 

<< The National Minimum Drinking Age Act of 1984 (23 U.S.C. § 158) was passed on July 17, 1984 by the United States Congress as a mechanism whereby all states would become thereafter required to legislate and enforce the age of 21 years as a minimum age for purchasing and publicly possessing alcoholic beverages. [color:red]Under the Federal Aid Highway Act, a state not enforcing the minimum age would be subjected to a ten percent decrease in its annual federal highway apportionment.[/color] >>

 

 

[cavanami]

As I recall the average age of GIs in Vietnam was 19. Too young to go to war? Maybe so. They couldn't even buy a 3.5% beer in the States.

 

 

Sorry.....have to disagree with ya. If Wiki is right' date=' many states had a legal drinking age of 18 at the time.

 

Link

Illinois = 21

Indiana = 21

Wisconsin = 18

 

For sure, as I was there!

[The_Munchmaster]

As I recall the average age of GIs in Vietnam was 19. Too young to go to war? Maybe so. They couldn't even buy a 3.5% beer in the States.

So Paul Hardcastle's lyrics were correct.

 

"In 1965 Vietnam seemed like just another foreign war but it wasn't.

It was different in many ways, as so were those that did the fighting

In World War II the average age of the combat soldier was 21

In Vietnam he was 19

In inininininin Vietnam he was 19

In inininininin Vietnam he was 19

In inininininin Vietnam he was 19

n n n n nineteen"

 

[Flashermac]

Note that this is COMBAT soldier. I'm sure the average age would be higher if you include the higher ranks and senior NCOs. It was Army policy not to send anyone under 18 to Vietnam. The 17 year olds would get Germany, Korea or Thailand!

 

If you were a conscript - as I was, you were almost certain to be assigned to combat arms. Also, the younger you were, the more likely you were to volunteer for combat arms. Older guys had better sense.

 

[Bangkoktraveler]

My brother-in-law was 16 when he went to Vietnam. He lied about his age. No big deal back then.

[Flashermac]

I knew a retired Navy officer who had changed the name on his older brother's birth certificate to use it to enlist in WWII when he was 16. He almost got himself thrown in the brig when his mother later complained to the Navy that her son was too young. His captain called him in, glared at him and demanded to know his birth date. Old John told me he figured it was time to be honest. He gave his real birth date. The CO then chewed him out for a long time, saying if he had lied to him he'd have had him given a dishonorable discharge. John was on the sh*tlist for some time after that, but since he was UDT the captain kept him. After the war, he went to university, got commissioned and retired an O-6.

 

Not easy to alter birth certificates these days though.