How Czechs Live (4): I Am Fifteen, Let Us Do It

Minimum age is a tricky thing.

According to certain American legislation, an American can go to jail for having LEGAL consensual sex abroad with a fourteen year-old, if the age of sexual consent in his home state is fifteen or sixteen.

So, what can Czechs do and when?

15: you can own and ride a small motorcycle, limited criminal liability applies [penal code charges are divided by two], you can have sex [all kinds you enjoy ], you can enter clubs but you should stick to Coke or mineral water

18: legally adult, you can get married, you can purchase and drink alcohol, you can drive a passenger car and  trucks [with certain size limitations], you can vote

21: you can be elected to the Chamber of Deputies [lower house], you can drive an 18-wheeler

40: you can be elected to the Senate [upper house]

I will think of more examples and how they interact in real life….

Example one: Kids here do not make fake ID’s. It is practically impossible, to begin with. And then, they can go to clubs if they want, sometimes they can mix vodka and juice and hope cops won’t show up, and if they want to have access to alcohol, it is relatively easy. Which means we have no teen drunk drivers. In the U.S. you are a legal driver when you are 16, but you are illegally drunk and DWI. In the Czech Republic kids can get wasted but there is no way they can get behind the wheel.