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America has a drinking problem

theatlantic.com

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Re: America has a drinking problem

#451

Post by kbenson »

throwaway0a5e wrote: post #336
netflixandkill wrote: post #319

America has problems with drinking, opioids, meth, prescription abuse, vaping bizarre things, health care, mental health, domestic violence, domestic terrorism and violent crime, school shootings and suicides because America has a misery problem. A few decades of bootstrap vs welfare paint don't fix the rotted and failing structure of a culture, if it can even be called that anymore, that had replaced well being with…

Was that supposed to be a backhanded way to call some large chunks of Europe "undeveloped" or did you just forget about Eastern Europe and all the economically less stable countries on the Mediteranean? Alcoholism, poor mental health care, domestic violence, suicide, etc. etc. are all alive and well on the other side of the pond too. Just not in the "scandanavia plus rich parts of western Europe" parts that HN likes…

I'm not sure I understand your interpretation. I read it as mainly "the things people point out as problems are really just symptoms of a country in misery because all the things providing a stable base for people have been systematically removed or destroyed".

> a complete failure to crib off the results of developed nations across the world that simply don't have constant ongoing crises about everything.

And this I took to mean "there exist countries of a similar level to the United States that don't quite have this problem. Look at what they did and steal what works." I'm not sure how that implies anything about some countries being undeveloped.

Re: America has a drinking problem

#452

Post by Waterluvian »

Something tangential and somewhat hard to quantify or even describe:

Are Americans on average in shields up / high alert / guarded / adversarial mode more often?

Every time I visit I always notice two things:

Americans are far more generous and polite than their reputation suggests.

Everyone always seems stressed and guarded and defensive.

Everyone seems to have security cameras everywhere. Fences. Locked everything. Guns. This general feel that everything is zero sum and you've got to guard your hoard, save your seat, not let drivers in, race to be first.

I just feel so exhausted being in high alert mode perpetually after a visit.

Now that I write all this I feel like it's probably confirmation bias or whatnot. But maybe others have thoughts.

Re: America has a drinking problem

#453

Post by sqqqqrly »

dylan604 wrote: post #299
quadyeast wrote: post #249

Earlier quoted context omitted.

that chart does not make sense to me unless >10% of Americans are AA. I can't think of anyone, besides non-drinking Alcoholics, that have less than 1 drink/wk

Hi! Nice to meet you. There are weeks when I have 0 drinks per week, and then others where I have lots more. It all depends on mood and activities. Specifically if the smoker is running.

I'm with you brother. Life is too short.

My neighbors and I have been doing Friday night happy hours for almost a year, always outside. Many with a fire going and outside movies shown on the side of my RV. The 6 of us look forward to these.

Personally, I couldn't care less what others think of this or how "sustainable" this is.

Re: America has a drinking problem

#454

Post by throwaway93626 »

cylde_frog wrote: post #448
throwaway93626 wrote: post #445

I think a lot of people don’t realize how much alcohol they actually consume because their bodies are accustomed to it. As a non-drinker apart from rare occasions (1-2x per year), here’s my anecdotal experience. Over the course of an evening: - 5-6oz of a 7% IPA and I’m feeling good. This is around my personal cutoff if I do happen to have a drink. - 1 16oz IPA and I’d be feeling borderline drunk. - 2 16oz IPAs would…

Would you recommend it? I'm considering giving up drinking entirely and just smoking/vaping weed. A small amount of weed gives me the same sort of social buzz that the sweet spot of alchol (3-6 drinks) gives me, with no hangover and excess calories.

I do still partake in a small amount of weed, I find it to be a much more enjoyable and seemingly healthier experience (I mostly use edibles/oils to avoid lung effects). The worst thing about weed for me is the social stigma, especially among older people.

The primary reason I stopped drinking was that my partner had a habit of drinking too much and eventually it got excessive to the point we both decided to cut it out. We stopped associating with the people who we regularly drank around. Once the social pressure was gone, it was actually very easy for me to stop because I personally never really cared for it in the first place.

I think weed, in moderation, is a great replacement for alcohol if you want to continue socializing with others in “intoxicated scenarios”, but ideally I think it’s best to try associating with people who can have fun without drugs. I think conversations and bonding are so much richer and more meaningful when sober.

My 2¢, for what it’s worth.

Re: America has a drinking problem

#455

Post by myrandomcomment »

Barrin92 wrote: post #135

Article mirrors my experience. For context I'm German, my wife's French and we've got family in Croatia who own a vineyard so I'm used to being around alcohol and people drinking. My first impression when I spent time was in the US was indeed how bipolar drinking is compared to Europe. We probably drink a hell of a lot more in raw terms than the average American does.Two glasses of wine for dinner, another one in the…

I am an American. I drink 2 glasses at wine at dinner, maybe a cocktail before, and a whiskey or the like after. Dinner is an event for the family. We talk about the day. We take time to cook it for the most part. The other day we had the new neighbors over, cheese, meat and fish board, and lots of wine. Eating and drinking with friends and family is joy and happiness.

Re: America has a drinking problem

#456

Post by nomy99 »

qeternity wrote: post #146

As an American who’s spent most of their adult life working outside the US (Europe and Asia) I find this pretty hilarious. I mean, it may be true…drinking damage is absolute, not relative. But if America has a drinking problem, a huge chunk of the rest of the world are outright alcoholics. Of course I think all of this is alarmist. Alcohol is one of those great traditions that has transcended centuries and generation…

Absolutely. With the pandemic and the social isolation, alcohol has kept me going. I know the judgemental people will label me, but honestly nothing else has helped. In the pandemic I tried many other coping mechanisms, exercise, social media, etc… but alcohol, strangely enough kept me grounded through this mayhem. I am pretty sure I’ll wean off it when the world gets it’s shit together.. pardon my French

Re: America has a drinking problem

#457

Post by rkk3 »

galaxyLogic wrote: post #359
quickthrowman wrote: post #303

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Alcohol is more dangerous than all other drugs, in my experience (been addicted to alcohol and heroin in the past, and have abused every common drug) and in my opinion. The addiction rate for cocaine/heroin/meth may be higher, but the negative effects of those drugs mostly stem from the high cost (theft) and insane profit margins (murder). If a heroin addict could get their supply for $5/day (and have it be pure hero…

Isn't meth just plain destructive, what it does to your body, and brain?

I remember seeing a study a few years ago that showed a lot of the negatives from Meth weren't inherent in the drug but from behaviors it encourages; like not sleeping.

Re: America has a drinking problem

#458

Post by kbenson »

plandis wrote: post #441
Sophistifunk wrote: post #423

People have the cause and effect backwards in my opinion. You know why "binge drinking" isn't a problem in Germany, except for when the Australians turn up for Oktoberfest? It's because you can just buy a beer on the side of the road with your currywurst, and drink it without being hassled. If you act up, you get arrested for acting up. Try openly having a few beers in the park in Australia or the US, you'll be run o…

I regularly go out and have picnics with my wife and have never once been harassed about sharing a bottle of wine with our meal. My family goes camping over Memorial Day weekend to state parks all over Ohio and it’s pretty common to have alcoholic drinks but, as long as you’re not bothering anyone, nobody cares. We’ve been doing this for as long as I’ve been alive and not once has anyone cared in 30+ years. The US ha…

There's a whole different side of this your comment isn't really addressing, which is how these laws apply to poor communities.

Most places I know of in the U.S. if you're walking down the street and a cop sees you with a beer, they'll make an issue about it. The thing is, it's not always super obvious, and they don't bother to look too close usually if they don't have a reason to. I don't think this is the case in poorer communities. Not only are the police more likely to be looking closer, but the situation of the people involved sometimes means they're more likely to be outside in a shared location instead of inside (smaller dwellings, shared living, etc), and open container laws are used to exert control over this populace.

Put in much simpler terms, I wouldn't be too afraid of walking down my street with an open beer if I felt like it, because police driving down the street are rare and unlikely to decide I'm an issue. I neither of those things are true to the same degree just 4-5 blocks away from me though, and I wouldn't want to risk my luck doing the same thing on a street there.

Re: America has a drinking problem

#459

Post by LocalH »

jmcdl wrote: post #295
maya24 wrote: post #260

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Alcohol is a harmful drug much worse than some of the other banned drugs on the market.

This is a common refrain but at the same time it seems to be the one substance commonly used across most of the world since ancient times. None of the other supposedly less harmful, banned drugs are so ubiquitous. Perhaps there's a good reason for this (besides varying availability of other substances)?

What are you talking about? Cannabis, psilocybin, and mescaline consumption have a very old history as well.

Re: America has a drinking problem

#460

Post by myrandomcomment »

bradleyjg wrote: post #389
notdeadofdrink wrote: post #384

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm in the top decile of that posted chart. Some weeks I'll be higher, some weeks I'll be lower. Usually lower, but always above the ninth. Posting on a throwaway for what should be pretty obvious reasons. In the past week I've had about three bottles of gin in various cocktails, assorted craft beers of the IPA or imperial stout variety, a couple of whiskeys, and an aperitif most days. I've been drinking mostly while…

I appreciate the response. Mostly I hate throwaways but this is an appropriate use. As I’ve gotten older (I’m 40ish) hangovers have gotten worse and worse. It’s now to the point if I have 4-5 medium beers on Friday night I can write off Saturday. Has your subjective experience of hangovers gotten easier over time?

In my 20s-30s, a few beers or cocktails before dinner. Then a few bottles of wine (with friend, co-workers). Then scotch, or the like. At late 40s, I could write off the next day.

Now, a cocktail (lockdown has turned my wife in to master bartender). Glass of wine with dinner. Maybe a whiskey after. All good.

Have friends over, turns into a bit to much and write off next morning.

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