@atheist. Hey brother.... I was asked so I said and so it is...lol.

@atheist Very good question, hopefully we as humans will be able to answer it.

@Naeem thank you for the correction. When Jesus wrote it there was something nagging in my mind, I thought I was just disgusted with the thought and wanted to quickly move on.

In america the voting age is 18 and the drinking age is 21. So you don't have enough common sense and maturity to drink yet they let you vote. he, he, ha, he. The only reason they vote at 18 was the Vietnam war. When I was 18 I was in the first elections were 18 year olds were allowed to vote and the only reason was so they could draft an 18 year old to go to Vietnam.

@GipsyOfNewSpain The drinking age here used to be 20, then the day after I turned 20 they changed it to 18 lol

@Sacha I remember Puerto Rico used to be 16 for cigarettes and beer and 18 for hard liquor. Then it went 18 for drinking. Now I think everything 18. The Navy gave the option to the captain to use the laws of the visiting country as the guide of alcohol consumption. Because the states was 21 for drinking but visited many countries with 18 drinking age and the under 21 in the navy will get in trouble. So the captain will announce if the Relax rule will be in effect.

in america a 17 year old can join military but parents need to consent and sign him/her in.

I joined the military at 17. I thought it was odd that I was expected to die for my country if necessary, but wasn't able to vote until I was 18, and couldn't enjoy a beer until I was 21. I think I enjoyed quite a few beers anyway.

@DavidLaDeau That's the part that got me, You could die for your country but not vote to change it until a year later. That does not make sense to me, but anywhooooo

The drinking age in New York used to 18, then changed to 19. I had 6 months of legal drinking at the age of 19 until NY changed it 21, never "grandfathered" in all those 19 year olds, so we went to Canada every weekend where the drinking age was 18.

I don't understand how you can fight for your country, kill or be killed at the age of 18, but you can't drink.

Consensual sex happens all the time with minors. I'd say regulate mandatory education early on, like visit shelters and talk with teens who have been pregnant or have STDs they have to live with for the rest of their lives-get a realistic view of what happens when you don't stop and think and make good decisions.

Why is it strange? One is a natural human thing to do, the other things can influence a younger person than an older person.

@GipsyOfNewSpain when I was 18 I had to have my dad's signature to join the Army. That was 1976.

@DavidLaDeau First things first... Thank You for your service and sacrifice. That is exactly the vote for age 18. 1972 was the first elections with 18 vote why? Vietnam, because the draft was 18 and you were old enough to die for your country but not old enough to vote for who is going to send you to die for your country. Yet you can vote and die but you are not mature enough or with enough common sense to consume alcohol. As a member of the original 18 class... I question how can you be smart enough to vote or to die for your country but not smart enough to use alcohol properly.

@HippieChick58 Thank You for your service and sacrifice. Sometimes there are different rules for girls. I don't know if that was your case. And states may add their 2 cents too. I just don't see why his signature if you were 18. What was the emancipation law in your state?

@GipsyOfNewSpain at that time in Nebraska the laws were different for males and females. I don't think that is the case now. In fact, I think in 1976 single females could get credit cards in their own name. In 1663 my single aunt bought her own house. My grandfather had to cosign her loan.

@MyLiege I had lived in San Diego so... Gringos will cross the border to Tijuana were nobody was carded. And Party as if it was 1899.

I go with voting at 18

@btroje Like I said all the time last election... you don't have the maturity and common sense to drink and yet you are allowed to vote. There is a reason why drinking age is 21 and not 18. Only reason voting is 18 is so they could allow you to go on the military and if draft return they will start drafting at 18. 1972 was the first elections with 18 voting... why? because they wanted to continue drafting 18 year olds for Vietnam.

18 would be great in a perfect world.

@atheist I think if both the kids are close to the same age it's "ok", not preferred but understandable. When it is an underage person with an older person, not so OK depending on the age spread. There were several stories in the local news in the last few years, a couple of challenged individuals had connected, the girl got pregnant. The male was older and therefore an adult when in reality she was intellectually older than he was. Neither was intellectually fully capable. I don't remember the outcome but it was a heartbreaking story with the way the state laws are written, and why I am a proponent of birth control.

@atheist - In my parts, the age of consent is 16, but there can't be an age gap of more that 10 years (I think - that number may not be accurate). The point being that age gap plays a huge role in this issue. So does positions of power: it is far more frowned upon for a exec to have sex with an underling as opposed to a peer; abuse charges stick more.

LOL!! How many babies that would prevent.

That would solve the world population plague in an instant if enforced