What you're suggesting, then, is that the reason kids turn to mind-altering substances is the same reason that adults do in the culture at large -- as coping mechanisms. So the problem isn't that teens are drinking, because essentially they're practicing being like the adults they see around them -- the problem is with the adults not modelling better coping skills.
When I was a teen, I indulged in this same behavior. There was less information about teen drinking and using drugs back then, and the world was at least as scary as it is now -- the Vietnam War, and knowing people who were getting drafted and killed was no picnic. Meanwhile, the adult world looked like a big cocktail party full of overstressed, frustrated, unhappy people. The president was lying, members of my church were mad because the minister preached against the war and tried to integrate the church. It seemed that no one had a clue.
Looking back, I think it would have been nice to have strong role models who had a sense of direction and purpose and vision. My parents tried hard, but I think they were often as confused as everyone else.
I think that American culture needs to find more spiritual depth.