Tuesday, October 6, 2009

To Alcohol!

I am so happy that a doctor has confirmed by belief that it is okay to be a moderate alcoholic. What's more, it may keep me from being anxious or depressed, and in fact that hasn't been much of an issue in my life since I started drinking. I rarely drink more than a few beers, cocktails or glasses of wine, and I have never had a blackout or been too drunk to remember where my bed was. I've never had a hangover, or done something I regretted later. I've puked a few times, but that comes with learning how and what to drink. Note: whiskey and OJ is bad news, and never try and finish the rest of that box of wine by yourself, there's more in there than you think.
Granted, very few can honestly claim the things I have, in an era of binge drinking that has overshadowed the idea of moderation. Quantity over quality, it seems. That's not what drinking should be about. I've agreed for a long time that parents should drink with their kids and teach them how to be responsible. Telling them no and turning your back to them isn't the greatest way to teach a segment of our population that notoriously avoids following shallow rules that aren't actually followed by their creators. Our society is so ill-informed that, as Rassmusen reports, only 51% of them rate alcohol more dangerous than weed.
Alcohol can be dangerous if used improperly, but we need to stop looking at it like an alluring taboo. As a social lubricant and pleasant, nerve-numbing beverage, it can be enjoyed with near impunity, and it has been seen in studies that light to moderate drinkers live longer. As an adult of the proper age, I enjoy alcohol as a meal enhancement, mind relaxer and calming device. I'm aware of the dangers of consuming it, and the walls I face in society for doing such. I am informed, adult and free to make my own decisions, so I believe that I will have another. And another, and another. But that's it, because I know when to say no.

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