Is alcoholism and excessive drinking a problem where you live?

[MisterTinkles]

Here in the Southern USA, alcoholism is still frowned upon, and you are thought badly of if you are in AA or any such bullshit. Alcoholism is not a disease, it is a chosen lifestyle.

As much as I despise the lazy and corrupt police here.......they all do really keep the drunks off the roads as best they can.

Fines, penalties, and consequences are EXTREMELY harsh for drunks and drunk drivers here in the south.

That all being said, yes, there is quite a bit of alcoholism, but most keep it behind closed doors, at home or at a friends house.

Yes, people do go out and get shit faced at the bars and clubs, but they usually stay at a hotel, friends house, or have a designated driver. The laws are so fierce regarding this subject, that nobody can afford to lose their license, lose their jobs, and get fined thousands of dollars, as well as spend time in jail, and possibly losing their friends and family......just for the sake of a few drinks.

So, most people here, keep the drunkenness and alcoholism at home.

There ARE more lenient times........The Texas/OU football weekend, New Years, and city celebrations. But laws are still enforced, but given leeway.

[nullnaught]

I am an alcoholic. When i came out of the closet i lost my need for alcohol.

[Tulloni]

Well when I was bothered in Cheltenham by those 'ladies of the night' if you want to give them the polite name, I was surprised. Cheltenham is a pretty posh English market town, there are far rougher places in the UK like Birmingham which really does become hellish Saturday night, yet even in little towns like Cheltenham you get people getting drunk getting into fights, shouting, etc. It really is endemic.

And in London it takes a brave man to stay up very late and take the night bus home from the gay clubs - which can be hives of sin of their own. You have to walk to the bus stops, watching out for the vomit and broken glass on the ground, dodging angry drunks and then waiting among the revelers for the bus to arrive which when it does is crowded full of totally wasted people from just about every corner of the globe. And then on the night bus you can bet the odds will be 95/5 in favour of some kind of conflict breaking out. It's horrible

Sadly in London it feels sometimes that things haven't changed too much since 'Gin Lane'. Well done on finding that picture btw. It's quite an interesting painting!

So yeah alcohol culture in the UK sucks but I don't think it's likely to change any time soon. J'accuse laissez-faire capitalisme!

let's be honest - all these 2 for 1 deals and cheap supermarket booze don't help not to mention all the relentless advertising aimed at young people from alcohol exacerbate the problem. Alcohol is big business and I am guessing alcohol manufacturers like Heineken, Bulmers, Kopparberg, Reckordelig, and yes maybe even pretty French wines like Saint-Emillion, pour a lot of money into the coffers of politicians and media executives which allow them to promote their poison uninhibited.

I've gotten drunk before, only a few times, socially. But I've never committed a crime or behaved like an aggressive bully whilst drunk and that is the one thing I can't stand, but it's true lots of British drunk youths are like that. It's not unheard of for drunk people over here to randomly murder someone under the influence sadly. You go out Friday, Saturday night at your peril. I don't go out anymore because if I do I am risking my health and possibly life.

Oh and speaking of politicians there have been quite a few stories of British MPs getting drunk and starting fights in bars and pubs in London and elsewhere. the bar in the House of Commons sells subsidised alcohol to MPs who get totally wasted on it and there was one case where a male MP in Blackpool, or somewhere in the North-West of England, got drunk and started sexually harassing and groping young men. so shameful!!

having said that I was reading a story in Denmark from an intern at the Danish parliament who said that sometimes Danish parliamentarians like to let their hair down with lots of beer late at night. I guess MPs in many places know how to partay!!!

I've heard that binge drinking can be a problem in Ireland and some parts of Scandinavia as well. I've come across a few very drunken Irish people in London but not many in Ireland though! I wonder if this is more of a problem in some European countries more than others? I think it might be. Some countries just don't have that culture of drinking till you drop. They may have alcoholics and some issues but they at least are spared from this kind of behavior being an epidemic.

[sillyboy86]

It seems that Italy has a fame similar to UK about alchohol, but I don't think is the same. There's some people who drinks even in the first morning, especially in the older generations but I don't think alcoholism is a very common problem here. Yeah, maybe is more common than it seems, but not like in the UK, where if you go out everyday you will be drunk everyday...

In my small, very small town we have something like 20 bars/pubs (which is a crazy-high-number). And another one will open soon... So every weekend many youths are drunk, here.

I can say alcoholism is not a huge problem, but excessive drinking, maybe...

[Chimpy]

It's not so much people getting drunk, it's the terrible behaviour in the streets afterwards.

[partis]

You're not part of the Empire any more? Jeez I'm behind the times, I need to catch up ;-)

On a serious note, the British were complete bastards in the past. I feel quite ashamed about some of our past exploits abroad

Oh come off it, we had the biggest empire in the world… off with your head.. we did it all through peacefull negotions and i,ll hear nothing less.

hmm

[Tulloni]

It seems our MPs champagne bill has soared even during austerity!

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2014/04/...ostpopular

So it looks like subsidised drinking shows no sign of ending.... I mean these people are meant to be setting an example! I wonder if this happens elsewhere?

I've seen drunken Brits behaving badly abroad too. I was bothered in Berlin by some drunk Brits and saw more of them at Tegal Airport. And don't even get me started on Ibiza and Tenerife!