Editor:

I am most pleased in reading that college presidents nation wide have started a discussion on the legal drinking age. I never have understood the law "Minor in Possession" though my reasons differ from theirs.

At age 18, one is considered adult in this country. They can enter into contracts, vote for our political leadership, serve time in a regular jail, and sadly, die in combat in far away, hostile lands in defending this great country.

I have always held the belief, if somebody is old enough to lay their life on the line everyday in some of the ugliest places on this Earth, why are they not allowed to drink?

I think it was New Year's Eve 2004, but maybe 2005, while at the Parkway Plaza there was a young man wearing Desert BDU's at a party that our late Sen. Thomas was at. This young man was wearing Combat Jump Wings, 2nd award of the Combat Infantry Badge and a Pathfinder Badge. As a past member of the U.S. Army, and as a member of the Air Guard, and previously been deployed in the sandbox, I went over to speak to the young man who come to find out was home on leave from Iraq. Frankly I wanted to buy him a beer at the very least and to wish him a great new year and a safe return home. I was not allowed to buy him a beer because he was only 20 years old!

Twenty years old!

I wonder what the sons and daughters of most of our lawmakers where doing at that age? For that matter, what my own will be doing.

My hat will always be off to Sen. Thomas for getting him one, the law be damned.

I frankly am most angry that representatives and senators have not changed this law on a national level. I do know that Sen. Thomas was working on something, but Cubin has only played lip service (Barb may be interested to know my son is who asked her the question why her sons were not in uniform and his father, as a single parent, was deployed and she gave a flippant answer to him) as I spoke to her numerous times about it, and Barrasso has been the same way. Hell, he won't even return a letter or a phone call. Who knows what the best friend of the banking and energy industry thinks.

I do know that, at least for this voter, this issue will be at the forefront to determine on who I vote for at a the law making level of our government at both the state and national level.

E.R. SJOSTROM, Casper