4 ms·

I like a cocktail. I like a glass or two of wine. I like to make my own liquor using recipes that my grandparents have treasured and passed down. I don't like

I like a cocktail. I like a glass or two of wine. I like to make my own liquor using recipes that my grandparents have treasured and passed down. I don't like to get drunk and I stay away from drunk people. The last time I got drunk was 20 years ago. I threw up an awful lot. But I understand the feelings of many people who are sober or curious about being sober. If one had the misfortune to grow up in families in which people started drinking at 8 a.m. and finished at midnight, it is easy to see alcohol as detrimental to one's life, associated with violence and despair, ultimately evil. Anti-alcohol proselytism makes me a little uncomfortable, though, because it seems that people with little control over themselves--through no fault of their own, probably--want others to stop engaging in activities that they find enjoyable, enriching, and well blended into their happy lives. Drunks do not pay attention to that noise. Fortunately, I did not grow up in such environments and tend not to associate with people who like to obliterate their self-awareness. And tonight I will definitely have a glass of wine with a rib-eye steak.

grog454 4y ago
> Anti-alcohol proselytism makes me a little uncomfortable, though, because it seems that people with little control over themselves--through no fault of their own, probably--want others to stop engaging in activities that they find enjoyable, enriching, and well blended into their happy lives. Just to play devil's advocate, I would argue that if I am required or at least expected to interact socially with you, your alcohol consumption effects me whether I am drinking or not. In the same vein but to a much lesser degree as you smoking a cigarette, or a blunt, or a vape pen.
- borroka 4y ago
  Yes, many things I might do could affect you and vice versa. For example, say I show up in a suit and tie rather than in a T-shirt and a pair of jeans. The mood of the evening will probably be a little more formal in the former case. One rule I have is that if we're going out, and I know you've had a problem with alcohol, I will refrain from drinking or ask if you have a problem with me having a glass of wine. If you're sober because, like Tyler Cowen, you want your brain to always run at full speed and for some reason you think alcohol would make it run at half-speed, I won't ask you if you're okay with me drinking, assuming I want to drink—I will just order a Negroni. If we are out, I get a drink, and you start a tirade about the benefits of sobriety, it's unlikely we'll be in touch for very long. A final point is that we need to keep in mind that we tend to claim the beneficial properties of the activities we engage in and to which we are predisposed. Tyler Cowen likes to talk about sobriety and the benefits of giving up alcohol. More than anything, he doesn't like alcohol, so it's easy for him not to consume it. Not surprisingly, he does not evangelize the benefits of moderate eating and physical activity, which, from what we can tell from his appearance, are not particularly congenial to him.
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]

grog454 4y ago

> Anti-alcohol proselytism makes me a little uncomfortable, though, because it seems that people with little control over themselves--through no fault of their own, probably--want others to stop engaging in activities that they find enjoyable, enriching, and well blended into their happy lives. Just to play devil's advocate, I would argue that if I am required or at least expected to interact socially with you, your alcohol consumption effects me whether I am drinking or not. In the same vein but to a much lesser degree as you smoking a cigarette, or a blunt, or a vape pen.

borroka 4y ago
Yes, many things I might do could affect you and vice versa. For example, say I show up in a suit and tie rather than in a T-shirt and a pair of jeans. The mood of the evening will probably be a little more formal in the former case. One rule I have is that if we're going out, and I know you've had a problem with alcohol, I will refrain from drinking or ask if you have a problem with me having a glass of wine. If you're sober because, like Tyler Cowen, you want your brain to always run at full speed and for some reason you think alcohol would make it run at half-speed, I won't ask you if you're okay with me drinking, assuming I want to drink—I will just order a Negroni. If we are out, I get a drink, and you start a tirade about the benefits of sobriety, it's unlikely we'll be in touch for very long. A final point is that we need to keep in mind that we tend to claim the beneficial properties of the activities we engage in and to which we are predisposed. Tyler Cowen likes to talk about sobriety and the benefits of giving up alcohol. More than anything, he doesn't like alcohol, so it's easy for him not to consume it. Not surprisingly, he does not evangelize the benefits of moderate eating and physical activity, which, from what we can tell from his appearance, are not particularly congenial to him.
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]