When are you considered an adult in the US?

[TicklingTips]

Hi all. In Australia, you are legally an adult at 18, and have all the rights and responsibilities that go with that (including drinking). It's also rare to hear anyone aged 20 or above being referred to as a "kid".

My understanding is that in the US you are also legally an adult at 18 (but can't drink until 21) but I often hear americans referring to people much older than that as "kids". In fact the other day I heard a guy referring to himself as a kid when he was talking about when he was 26!

I'm 21 and in Australia, it would be considered by many to be quite rude for someone to call me a kid, particularly to my face.

So I'm curious: at what age do you expect to be called, and treated like an adult in everyday life? Does the word "kid" in america imply the same immaturity as when we Australians use the word? Or is it simply used to refer to a young person?

 

[Mitchell]

In America, one can vote, have a checking account, and has to register for the draft, at age 18. Drinking and casino gambling aren't allowed until age 21. I would say usually people become adults when they go off to university at age 18, or when they graduate from HS, and get a job. Until then, I consider them not adults.

This has irked me always. I can be called to get my head shot off in war at 18, but I can't have a drink in a public place, or enter a casino, until I'm 21. Seems hypocritical to me.

Mitch

 

[Angel77]

In America, one can vote, have a checking account, and has to register for the draft at age 18. Drinking and casino gambling isnt allowed until age 21. I would say usually people become adults when they go off to university at age 18, or when they graduate from HS, and get a job. Until then, I consider them not adults.

This has irked me always. I can be called to get my head shot off in war at 18, but I cant have a drink or enter a casino until I'm 21. Seems hypocritical to me.

Mitch

I 100% agree there Mitch. Make it one or the other.......

You can be sent off to war at 18 but you can't come home and have a few drinks to celebrate that you made it home alive.

 

[rhiannon]

Funny...in Germany you are considered an adult when you're 18, you are not allowed to drive before that, but you are allowed to have beer, wine and champaign when you are 16.

 

[Mitchell]

I've been to the Bahamas. One can drink and gamble at 18 there. That country has it right. The no drinking or gambling law til 21 in the US is bullshit. Either change the selective service registration age to 21, or lower the drinking and gambling age to 18.

Thanks, Angel. Glad we agree on this issue.

Mitch

 

[General Zod]

I've been to the Bahamas. One can drink and gamble at 18 there. That country has it right. The no drinking or gambling law til 21 in the US is bullshit. Either change the selective service registration age to 21, or lower the drinking and gambling age to 18.

Thanks, Angel. Glad we agree on this issue.

Mitch

I was in the army reserves when they changed the drinking age on military bases state side from 18 to 21. I think it was back in 1985 when that rule passed. I still think that rule is a crock of shit.


There was a time in the US,that you could not vote until you were 21.That changed in the early 70's I think.

 

[TonyInMyThroat]

The no drinking or gambling law til 21 in the US is bullshit. Either change the selective service registration age to 21, or lower the drinking and gambling age to 18.

The NIGA would like to remind all TMF members that the legal age to gamble in their casinos is 18. So if you’re lucky enough to return from military service with your guts intact, they invite you to come plunge your guts out in the nearest Indian casino.

 

[Tickle Fiend]

Hi all. In Australia, you are legally an adult at 18, and have all the rights and responsibilities that go with that (including drinking). It's also rare to hear anyone aged 20 or above being referred to as a "kid".

My understanding is that in the US you are also legally an adult at 18 (but can't drink until 21) but I often hear americans referring to people much older than that as "kids". In fact the other day I heard a guy referring to himself as a kid when he was talking about when he was 26!

I'm 21 and in Australia, it would be considered by many to be quite rude for someone to call me a kid, particularly to my face.

So I'm curious: at what age do you expect to be called, and treated like an adult in everyday life? Does the word "kid" in america imply the same immaturity as when we Australians use the word? Or is it simply used to refer to a young person?

That guy wasn't using the word kid to describe himself at twenty-six as he would to describe himself when he was ten. You don't feel kid-like when you're in your twenties, but I think looking back 30-years from now you'll feel differently about your 21-year-old self. It's all about the POV of the individual. A 45-year-old would likely see you as a 21-year-old kid, just not in the same sense as you would see a 10-year-old as a kid.

As long as a person shows me respect I could care less if they see me as a kid. I think I'm a kid, too.

 

[Cy/MiG]

18 or 21 are the somewhat 'official' ages considered as adulthood in the US.

However, plenty of teens consider themselves 'grown ups' or 'adults' as soon as... well pretty much automatically.

 

[TicklingTips]

OK interesting answers all, thanks.

As long as a person shows me respect I could care less if they see me as a kid. I think I'm a kid, too.

Yeah I understand that but I guess it's a difference between our countries. In Australia calling a 21 year old a kid would usually imply disrespect. Apparently not true in the US. Interesting.

 

[TheTickleMonster]

OK interesting answers all, thanks.



Yeah I understand that but I guess it's a difference between our countries. In Australia calling a 21 year old a kid would usually imply disrespect. Apparently not true in the US. Interesting.

Actually it can be used as a sign of disrespect in the USA as well, people just don't care here. I for one hate being called a kid. But once in a while in a chat room I'll be called a kid by a 60 year old or whatever and I find it disrespectful to be called a kid. They call me one because I'm so much younger than them, but the thing is I'm YOUNGER, not YOUNG. I'm not a kid. I'm 27 years old. I have an AA degree and I'm like a year away from getting a BA degree. I'm not some 12 year old high school student. I'm old enough to drink, drive, vote, go to war. In no ways am I a kid.

 

[Mephistopheles]

Funny...in Germany you are considered an adult when you're 18, you are not allowed to drive before that, but you are allowed to have beer, wine and champaign when you are 16.

Same here, and if you're under 21 when you get your motorbike license you have to spend 2 years on a 25 kW (34 bhp) bike. When you're 21 there's no limit to the power output of the bike.

 

[Redmage]

In part, it varies by state. This is because America favors a "tiered" approach to conferring the rights of adulthood. There are three basic stages:

• Municipal rights, such as the right to drive a car. These begin to accrue around age 16 in most states, though they may be partly restricted (for example, a driver under 18 may not be able to drive with anyone else under 18 in the car). The age of consent for sex also comes at 16 or 17 in most states.
• Contractual rights. These include the right to marry, the right to enter into a legal contract, the right to vote, and the right to enlist in the armed forces. At the federal level (including the right to vote and to enlist) this comes at 18 years. In some states some of these rights (such as entering a contract) may not accrue until the person is 18 and has graduated high school, or at 20 years in any case.
• The age of consent accrues by 18 years in all states.
• Purchase rights. Certain substances, such as tobacco and alcohol, can't be bought until the purchaser is 21. When I was a boy, some states allowed those 18 and over to buy tobacco and a weaker form of beer called "3.2" (because that's the percentage of alcohol it contains). I don't know if that's still true. It's definitely not the case in California, where I live.

There are exceptions. For example in many states the minimum age for getting married is lower than the legal "age of majority" (in some cases the parents' permission is required, however). In most states marriage confers many of the legal rights of adulthood, whether or not the person is of an age where those rights normally accrue. These include the right to consent to sex and the right to enter into binding contracts, but not the right to vote, nor to buy alcohol.

It is also possible (though difficult) for a minor to go through a legal process called "emancipation." The legal effect is to make the minor legally responsible as an adult for his or her own actions, to free the minor from control by the parents, and to free the parents from any legal responsibility for the minor's actions. Other emancipated rights (such as contractual rights) vary widely by state.

 

[goddess_nemesis]

In America, one can vote, have a checking account, and has to register for the draft, at age 18. Drinking and casino gambling aren't allowed until age 21. I would say usually people become adults when they go off to university at age 18, or when they graduate from HS, and get a job. Until then, I consider them not adults.

This has irked me always. I can be called to get my head shot off in war at 18, but I can't have a drink in a public place, or enter a casino, until I'm 21. Seems hypocritical to me.

Mitch

I just wanted to add that registering for the draft is required only of the men, not the women. Women can voluntarily sign up for the military, but only men have to register for the draft. To me, I think that's sexist, but you won't hear too many women fighting for the draft to be an equal requirement of both men and women. 🙄

 

[Flatfoot]

You're a legal adult at 18, but considered still too impulsive and dangerous for legally drinking, gambling, or buying a handgun until 21. Also, I don't know if it's true or not, but I think you can't rent a car here, til you're 25.

 

[ma1926]

You are technically an adult at 18, but realistically, nobody takes you as a serious adult until you're close to 30.

 

[BigJim]

Also, I don't know if it's true or not, but I think you can't rent a car here, til you're 25.

That's more to do with insurance risks, isn't it?

 

[TheTickleMonster]

That's more to do with insurance risks, isn't it?

Yeah, I guess that would be considered an insurance thing.

a person wit just his or her learners permit also can't drive unless that person is with someone who's atleast 25.