ONE OF LIFE'S GREAT MYSTERIES...

I came across this article from last week's news:

RACINE — A Racine lawmaker says it’s time to give 17-year-olds the right to vote in state and local elections. Democratic state Rep. Cory Mason is circulating a proposal to that effect and seeking co-sponsors. Mason said 17-year-olds commonly are in their senior year in high school, and they should be able to put their civics lessons to work by exercising the civic duty to vote. Voters now must be 18 or older to cast ballots in Wisconsin — the same as the federal requirement. Changing the law would require amending the state constitution. An amendment must be passed by two successive legislatures and then by voters in a referendum.

And it led me to ponder one of life's great mysteries...
We let people vote at 18, smoke a cigarette at 18, enter into binding contracts at 18, go to war at 18, marry as young as 16 in some states, go to prison as an adult in some states as young as 15 (maybe 14 in some), and now, possibly, allow them to vote as young as 17, but...
They have to be 21 to drink a beer. I still can't figure that one out completely.