It is nice to hear an interview for once where the interviewer asks a question and then lets the subject fully answer, instead of hopping in there to object and say "look at me", "listen to me".  Are you listening Wolf, Tim, Chris, and all you other "journalists"? 

This was a solid chance for Senator Webb to explain his position and put some appalling facts and numbers out there to support it.  My favorite is the one about the US having 5% of the world's population and 27% of the prisoners.  We used to harp at the Soviets and Chinese for having numbers like that.

The practice of sending drug addicts and the generally addle-pated to jail instead of to therapy is costing our society an enormous amount of money and trauma to the families of those involved.  I hope this initiative starts the pendulum swinging back in the other direction.

I would also like to hear the Senator's take on the recent stories about groups seeking change in the under-21 drinking law.  Personally, I believe if you're old enough to die for your country you're old enough to drink a beer. 

So I can not listen the interview.

Responding in the dark, my main issue is it costs more to incarerate then it does to send someone to the most expensive college in VA. That says our values are messed up; "Republican's".

It is a long time since I was in the service, but when I was 18 I could drink on any base in the Marine Corp, even the states that had an age of 21.

As far as drinking off base, the military must respect each states laws and reasons for wanting age 21, as there drinking age. In this push for age 18 around the country, it is rediculess. Each state has there own problems with an age limit and it needs to be respected.

As for the drinking age, it is 21 in all states not because the states wanted it that way, but because the Elizabeth Dole era Transportation Department came up with the idea of withholding highway funds from all states that did not change their drinking ages to 21 from 18.  This was based on the idea that by changing the age we were somehow going to end youthful drunk driving.  Instead, the law has acted to push youth drinking underground and is widely disrespected and disregarded, except when the police decide to do some enforcement.  Then we get to see an appalling amount of police disregard for personal privacy and property rights as they invite themselves onto the grounds of any home where a beer can might be spotted in the hands of someone who might be underage under the current law.  It's hard to tell the difference between a 19 year old and a 21 year old, so what I have encountered several times on the part of police is that they simply swoop into a yard full of youngish looking people, some of whom might have been drinking, and demand that they all admit whether they've been drinking or else "it will go tougher" for them.  Those that admit to being underage and possibly having had a beer are then subjected to alcosensor testing and issued summonses to come to court.  They don't have to be drunk, mind you.  They can have a summons if they're only at an .03 or .04.  The alcosensor is a notoriously unreliable instrument, so it's possible that a kid who has had one beer may find himself summonsed to court.  The kid goes to court and the usual disposition is that he has to go to an ASAP approved alcohol education program, that he may have to do some community service, and he has to avoid any further law enforcement violations.  In other words, he's treated as if he has a drinking problem. 

Now the very same 19 year old kid who is treated this way for drinking a beer is also encouraged to join the military  and can be sent to a war zone to die or be injured for his country.  If he commits a crime he gets sent to adult jail, not juvie, and his record is available for all to see.  He can enter into contracts and if he has a child must pay child support.  He's old enough to marry and old enough to vote.  But he's not old enough to have a beer?  Huh?  The fact is that what I've heard from many of the young military people I meet that there's a fair amount of drinking allowed on military bases in this country, and that it is openly allowed as soon as they are deployed overseas.  Thus, when my 19 year old Marine niece went on R&R in either Qatar or Kuwait, she was allowed two beers, just as her older comrades were.  Upon her return from her second tour at age 20, I was not able to take her out for a lousy beer because she was "too young."  Well, the same federal government which crammed this law down the states' throats says that my niece who is too young to drink a beer is old enough to go to a war zone to pick up and process our dead Marines and soldiers, and can drink as long as she's not in the United States.  If they're children then extend the protections of the juvenile laws to them and stop recruiting them into the military.  Otherwise, let's get rid of this stupid and misguided law and return the drinking age to 18, at least for beer and wine.  How are young people supposed to learn to drink responsibly if we have Prohibition through their 21st birthday, and as soon as that arrives all bets are off and they can drink all they want?  It really makes no sense at all.