Coasters to Curb Teen Drinking

With a drinking age of 16, it's no surprise that Germany has a teen drinking problem. In fact, the problem is considered to be an epidemic. As a result, authorities have decided to launch an anti-teen drinking campaign with coasters.

Using the English-language slogan “Don’t drink too much - stay gold,” the campaign launched Friday hopes to reverse a growing binge drinking epidemic amongst German youth. The graphic images on beer coasters are supposed to remind teenagers of the consequences of over-imbibing.

One coaster has a picture of a teenage boy, dancing at a party and showing off his washboard abs. The flip side of the coaster shows the same teenager, passed out after wetting his pants. Another coaster shows a drunken football fan sitting in a pool of his own vomit. The coasters will be available for order from local police stations.

I'm skeptical about whether a slogan will do much but I believe increased awareness of the problem is helpful.

Overall, however, I doubt that the coaster campaign, illogically written in English, will have much effect. The real problem is that kids are legally allowed to drink and I guarantee that if 16-year-olds can buy the booze, their 14-year-old friends are also consuming.

Think about it. It's hard enough trying to get kids to do their homework.

"Juergen! Put down the beer and do your homework!"

Society has a big enough problem trying to get adults to stop drinking. Logically, it would seem to be much harder to get the kids to stop drinking.