I cannot help but think that such a change here in the States would produce the same results. But while incompetence may preclude a workable solution to the problems of binge drinking, the hypocrisy shown by adults only makes the situation worse. Consider the very problem of binge drinking, which is defined as drinking four or more alcoholic beverages in a night. For parents worried about their kids turning into alcoholics this is viewed as bad, as if having more than three drinks automatically turned you into the cast of Cheers. But consider the frequency with which most adults drink.
Many parents come home from work and grab a beer or two while they unwind on the couch.
Or maybe they wait and have a few glasses of wine with dinner. The net result is the same, and two drinks a night for five days equals at least two nights of binge drinking. But in a sense adults are the real alcoholics because they have the greater reliance on alcohol. They need it at the end of every day just to cope with life, whereas the typical binge drinker does it simply to get some action on the weekends. The charge that binge drinking is worse is thus erroneous, and it represents the highest form of hypocrisy.