A lawmaker in Alaska is proposing a bill that will make it legal for military personnel in active duty and under the age of 21 to buy alcoholic drinks. Rep. Bob Lynn from Anchorage, who is a Vietnam veteran, seems to believe in the old saying: if you are old enough to die for your country then you are old enough to drink a bottle of beer.

The proposed bill will also allow active military servicemen under 19 to buy tobacco related items.

Lynn said his proposal was about equality. He said it was not fair that two people go the the battlefield and one can have a drink afterward and the other can’t.

However, the Alaska armed forces commanders are not very happy about the proposals as they believe it will encourage military personnel to lead unhealthy lifestyles even as the military is trying to decrease smoking and stop drinking.

The state transport department has also revealed the the state could lose a minimum of $17 million in federal highways funding if the bill gets passed. This is because the state will violate the the federal minimum drinking age statute. And Alaska is a state where most social and financial woes are caused by alcohol. This law is therefore what most people don’t want.

Rep. Alan Austerman fears that the law, if passed, will set a precedence where any profession considered a high risk one, such as firefighters and police, will also want to be allowed to drink.

A few other states have also considered such a law in the past nothing of that manner has ever been passed so far.

Military service personnel are not allowed to consume alcohol on base. The reaction from under 21 ROTCs are mixed. Some don’t see why there should be a special law created for military personnel as the laws of the United States applies to everybody