Age of Consent and Legal Ages.

1. Age of Consent and Legal Ages. Mr Wilson’s ERC (Secondary 4)

2. The state of Affairs • In the United States of America, you can enroll in the army at 18, but you cannot have a beer before you are 21. • So you are old enough to want to die, but not to drink responsibly.

3. A little bit of vocabulary Age of consent only means the age at which someone is considered legally competent of consenting to sexual acts. Other « legal » ages include: • Age of majority • Age of criminal responsibility • Age of marriage • Legal driving age

4. Sexual Activity • What does it mean to even have an age of consent? • In June 2006, the Canadian government proposed a bill to raise the age of consent from 14 to 16, while creating a near-age exemption for sex between 14-15 year olds and partners up to 5 years older, and keeping an existing near-age clause for sex between 12-13 year olds and partners up to 2 years older. The initiative also maintains a temporary exception for already existing marriages of 14 and 15 year olds, but forbids new marriages like these in the future. This was adopted on May 1st 2008. • Do you think it is important to protect younger persons from older ones?

5. Adults and Children • Laws put into to place to protect child abuse have become more popular since the 19th Century. • During the Industrial Revolution, children would start working before ten, because of their small size. • In Ancient Greece, it was common for a 30 year old man to marry a girl in her early teens.

6. In the news… • A 17 years old drove his SUV through a couple’s bedroom. • He was high on speeds. • The speed at impact was 154 km/h. • He killed himself and the two sleepers

7. … and yet some more • This car’s driver was 17 years old, had a blood-alcohol level of .094, was driving at 140km/h in a 50 zone. • He survived, his passengers didn’t. • How would you feel?

8. Drinking & Driving • Is drinking alone the problem? • The most significant concern is about combining driving and drinking. • 40% of fatal accidents involve alcohol. You are 4.4 times more likely to die in a car crash due to alcohol consumption, than being murdered, in Canada. • It is hoped that between 16 and 18, drivers learn good habits before adding the danger of alcohol. • North Americans are 4.6 times more likely to develop alcohol abuse or alcohol related health problems if they have begun drinking before the legal age.

9. Five facts about accidents involving young drivers • 1 in 5 drivers are involved in a crash during their first year on the road . • male drivers aged under 21 are 10 times more likely to have a car accident than male drivers aged 35 or over. • young drivers have a higher proportion of crashes at night than older drivers. • 1 in 8 British drivers are under 25, but a quarter of drivers who die in traffic collisions are in this age group. • In 2007, 40% of passengers killed or seriously injured – meaning lost limbs, paralysis, brain injury and other life-changing injuries – were in a car driven by a young driver.

10. To the batcave! • A little video interlude.

11. Smoking, gambling, clubbing • Why is there even a legal age to smoke? • What about gambling? After all, it is your money, so why should they stop you from spending it? • If a club offered no alcohol, would you still want to go? • Flipside: maybe adults want a place where there are no kids.

12. Rights & Privileges • Not everyone even agrees what rights are. • Natural rights: Rights that stem from God or Nature, do not depend on the law of a specific society and cannot be taken away. Examples include the Right to Life, or some would say the Right to own a firearm in the United States of America.

13. Rights & Privileges • Legal Rights: These are based on a society’s rules and laws. The most important example is the Right to Vote, but others include freedom of speech, Legal Equality, etc. • This means that they are not universal and can be taken away by legislation.

14. Rights & Privileges • Positive Rights: These give you the permission to do something. • Negative Rights: They prevent you from doing something, often in order to protect the positive right of another entity.

15. Rights & Privileges • Privilege: a special entitlement granted by the ruling authority, either by birth or on a conditional basis. • Examples include a driver’s license. • Generally, privileges come with obligations. Some privileges do not.

16. It’s all about me, and I want it all! • Because you want something, does it mean you should get it? • Does it mean you should have everything you want, even if it means others might not? • What are we willing to pay to get what we want?

17. It’s that time again, let us reflect… Is access to certain material goods 1) a natural right, 2) a legal right or 3) a privilege. Why do you think so? (i.e. think about cell phones, cars, health care, shelter, food, different types of clothes) Which material goods do you think ought to be considered as legal rights?

18. …and some more thinking to do! Should children be protected from adult influence and power? Give examples to support your answer. Is smoking a victimless crime? Should you be allowed to smoke if you want to?

19. And for good measure Why do you think teens pay more for car insurance, and do you think statistics matter? (ie do you believe the statistics?) If driving and drinking is dangerous, why do people still do it? Propose a way to change this state of affairs.

20. References • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Privileges • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rights • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Age_of_Consent • http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20060107/crashes_homicide_060107/20060107?hub=TopStories • http://www.drugabusestatistics.samhsa.gov/NSDUH/2k5NSDUH/2k5results.htm • http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20060623/age_consent_faq_060623/20060623/ • http://www.allstate.com/foundation/teen-driving/teen-safe-driving-facts.aspx