Why the Driving age should NOT be raised to 18

Your opening statements could have been interpreted as either a constructive argument or simply your opening thoughts on the matter. I did not want to assume which one was the case, so I simply offered the premise that my negation will stem from. That said in this round I will aim to accomplish two things. First I will refute the arguments you have presented, then I will present and elaborate on my own argument. My opponent offers two main arguments to advocate a vote for the pro: In the first he discusses the amount of driving accidents in the United States, and in the second he speaks on experience. The first argument he provides is a defensive argument (meaning that it doesn't build his stance up, it only tears down my stance) and the second one is an offensive argument (meaning it does provide reasons to vote pro. ) Going onto the argument concerning driving accidents, it should be expressly noted that my opponent's cited statistics are exceedingly unclear. I'm not quite sure what it is that my opponent is trying to get at with the numbers they've cited in this debate. I would simply follow my opponent's given source to figure out what Pro is trying to advocate but even that only leads to a general page, not the specific statistics cited. Beyond that, it should be further noted that these statistics are irrelevant. If my opponent maintains that accidents are not any more pertinent among those under 18 than they are with those who are at least 18, then this is not a voting issue for Pro. Finally my opponent's argument about reflexes is outright false. The teen may have sharper reflexes at that young age, but their discretion and judgement is severely impaired as their brain has yet to finish developing. I'll get to that in greater detail on my own arguments though. As for the experience argument, it is also irrelevant; Ideally one would drive in such a way that the necessity to make split second decisions would never occur. One should drive in such a way that they have a firm control of their vehicle while on the road, so the reaction time difference of .8 as opposed to 1.3 shouldn't be a significant issue. Beyond that, the benefit of reaction time would only be relevant for about two years, during which the young driver's inexperience would nullify any benefit that this minor reaction time benefit would have. Finally in regard to basic experience, they two years a teenager would gain in experience driving before the age of 18 aren't very significant. Lax driving laws in the United States contribute to a lot of trouble in the first place, not just for minors but for grown adults as well. Because anyone and their goldfish can get a license, you see people driving recklessly just because they can; it has been empirically shown[1] that stricter driving laws do reduce drunk driving, especially for teens. They see that their driving privileges are in danger and straighten up -- by raising the driving age to 18 we cut the middle man and simply create incentive for safer driving [1] . http://alcoholism.about.com... Furthermore, if we can't wait until their brain is fully developed (25) then we should at least wait until they can be responsible for their own actions. The experience will mean more to them and will come with less a sense of entitlement and more a sense of responsibility. Onto My own argument, it's very simply an issue of accountability. When you're steering a 2000 pound hunk of metal down a freeway at 50-90 miles an hour, you have to pay attention to what you're doing. When one is a minor their brain has yet to fully develop[2], and to put them in such a seat of responsibility isn't a good idea. Given that the brain is not fully developed until the age of 24-25, I could probably even make a case to raise the driving age higher than just 18, but I won't place a burden on myself that I don't need to prove. [2] . http://www.dailymail.co.uk... So how does the issue of accountability come into play? It is both unsafe and unjust to place that kind of responsibility into the hands of a minor's parents. They shouldn't have to be responsible for their child's automobile accidents; when driving down a highway at 50-90 miles an hour, it is very possible for that child to have a wreck and injure themselves or someone else. In conclusion, on the argument of responsibility the driving age should indeed be 18. Furthermore I would like to point out that as the contender in this debate it is not my burden to prove the resolution false, but to refute the arguments of my opponent. Back to you ValentineLocke!