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Svalbard's Alcohol Quotas

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Re: Svalbard's Alcohol Quotas

#71

Post by nextlevelwizard »

iso1210 wrote: post #68
nextlevelwizard wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maybe you are confusing the word "guideline" here with actual recommendation. You are not suppose to be drinking 14 units per week. You are not suppose to even be drinking every week. In any case you still as much light wine as you can reasonably consume. 2 bottles of liquor and half a bottle of fortified wine on top of your beer. If you consume even that much everyone month I'd be calling you an alcoholic.

Someone drinking an average of 6x 33ml cans of 4.3% beer a week would not be called an alcoholic in any normal conversation. That's 4.4 litres of alcohol a year - less than half the US intake (9.8l), less than Norway (7.5l) and would fit well in the bottom half of countries by alcohol intake. The ability to drink other things (scotch, wine, etc) is irrelevant if you only drink beer.

If only there was people who only drank one beer everyday and never more, however it is these same people who have the need to drink one beer every day that drink most at parties and get togethers or just in general over the week end.

Maybe it is just the lives I've seen ruined by alcohol that as made me grumpy about alcohol consumpsion, but I would be concerned if someone is drinking enough to have a hangover every weekend.

Re: Svalbard's Alcohol Quotas

#72

Post by ceejayoz »

thrower123 wrote: post #39
iso1210 wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In which countries?

Nearly all of them, at least up through the end of the Napoleonic Wars. I believe it became less popular with the popular revolutions of 1848 and the advent of universal conscription.

I'm not a historian, but this doesn't match my understanding; that true weapons like swords and crossbows tended to be restricted, and peasants used scythes, clubs, etc. instead.

https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/268dmc/how_w...

Re: Svalbard's Alcohol Quotas

#73

Post by dahart »

pmiller2 wrote: post #60
killtimeatwork wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Interestingly, XIX century Poland has exactly the "minimum amount consumed" kind of quotas of alcohol... It was legislated by nobles who were producing alcohol from their grain and figured they'd force peasants to but it from them, to periodically extract whatever monetary surplus the peasants (serfs) managed to build up. One of the result was of course rampant alcoholism, since the peasants now owned buckets of vodk…

Considering how the only other thing I can think of to do with buckets of vodka in 19th century Poland is burn it, I'd probably go with drinking it, too. I'm not even sure burning it would work out well, either.

Vodka is great for washing clothes!

Re: Svalbard's Alcohol Quotas

#74

Post by dahart »

Quarrelsome wrote: post #58
kzrdude wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Iceland has their own breweries and i think you can get very reasonable beer, for example domestic ones

ye but you have to buy them from the government shop don't you? They don't sell alcohol in corner shops like the rest of the anglosphere.

I guess that’s just for hard alcohol? Iceland has beer in tourist shops at least, if not grocery stores. But in tourist shops it’s expensive enough that you wouldn’t want to stock up there. I saw individual bottles for $10 (cheap beer) and $20 US (nice beer), for example, at the Gullfoss store.

Re: Svalbard's Alcohol Quotas

#75

Post by C19is20 »

AdrianB1 wrote: post #59
Quarrelsome wrote: post #32

Anyone know the reasoning? I'm assuming its attempting to prevent alcoholism? I know Greenland and Iceland (to a lesser extent) suffer somewhat perhaps due to the light and isolation being contributing factors.

You are mostly right, it is to prevent alcoholism like other attempts are still made in different countries to limit or ban soda and sweet drinks, cigarettes, some drugs, some or all guns. It is in general good for public health and bad for average IQ.

Why would preventing alcoholism be bad for average iq?

Re: Svalbard's Alcohol Quotas

#76

Post by fulafel »

Quarrelsome wrote: post #32

Anyone know the reasoning? I'm assuming its attempting to prevent alcoholism? I know Greenland and Iceland (to a lesser extent) suffer somewhat perhaps due to the light and isolation being contributing factors.

Norway seems to have the lowest consumption per capital among the Nordics: https://www.statista.com/statistics/693505/per-capita-consum...

Re: Svalbard's Alcohol Quotas

#77

Post by RocketSyntax »

Quarrelsome wrote: post #32

Anyone know the reasoning? I'm assuming its attempting to prevent alcoholism? I know Greenland and Iceland (to a lesser extent) suffer somewhat perhaps due to the light and isolation being contributing factors.

iceland taxes the heck out of it, and there are only a few stores where you can buy

Re: Svalbard's Alcohol Quotas

#78

Post by cat199 »

pmiller2 wrote: post #60
killtimeatwork wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Interestingly, XIX century Poland has exactly the "minimum amount consumed" kind of quotas of alcohol... It was legislated by nobles who were producing alcohol from their grain and figured they'd force peasants to but it from them, to periodically extract whatever monetary surplus the peasants (serfs) managed to build up. One of the result was of course rampant alcoholism, since the peasants now owned buckets of vodk…

Considering how the only other thing I can think of to do with buckets of vodka in 19th century Poland is burn it, I'd probably go with drinking it, too. I'm not even sure burning it would work out well, either.

high proof alcohol works great in a lamp

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcohol_burner

Re: Svalbard's Alcohol Quotas

#79

Post by progre »

jhugo wrote: post #34
progre wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Transport costs might put a damper on that. Also, it sounds like it would also be subjected to import restrictions, even if it's the same country.

Smuggling is a thing, though. And transport costs tend to reduce as volume increases, and alcohol is a popular product...

Well, if we are talking illegal activities, Norway shares a long, marginally patrolled border with Sweden where alcohol is significantly cheaper. So if you are into smuggeling, I would try that first, before trying to arrange something up in the arctic sea.

Re: Svalbard's Alcohol Quotas

#80

Post by owenversteeg »

pcl wrote: post #55
qwerty456127 wrote: post #27

> Private individuals resident in Svalbard must purchase their alcohol quota in Svalbard and are not able to import tax-free alcohol from the mainland to Svalbard. I doubt local shops have particularly good assortment to choose from, do they?

Throughout Norway, pretty much all sales of alcoholic beverages over 4.7% happens through state-run liquor stores (Vinmonopolet). Their selection is pretty great, but obviously imposes limits vs. a totally open import arrangement. And if a local store doesn't have something in stock, you can order it for later pickup, much like at a library with multiple branches. I don't know how that works in Svalbard, since it's s…

Interesting! Do you have any examples of wines like that? I tried to search and found nothing.
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