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> Alcohol was fine until hard liquor was invented If I catch your drift correctly you might want to read up on the history of distillation, and in particular t

> Alcohol was fine until hard liquor was invented If I catch your drift correctly you might want to read up on the history of distillation, and in particular the chronology thereof.

coenhyde 4y ago
I didn't interpret the OP's comment to suggest a specific order of invention, but an order of adoption / influence in a society.
- kevviiinn 4y ago
  And the order of adoption was hard liquor came after prohibition
legitster 4y ago
I know distilling goes back to antiquity but I was only thinking of the emergence of consumer drinks in the 1600-1700s. Specifically era of the London Gin laws. I think in particular it's fascinating because this was before people really measured or understood alcohol content and they really had trouble figuring out why some drinks needed no real restrictions and yet others could destroy lives.
- mrguyorama 4y ago
  Nearly all the time, those specific alcohol restrictions were based in classism or racism, ie, "the poors drink that so it must be the cause of all of society's ills, but expensive wine is obviously good for me!"
  - legitster 4y ago
    Well, except hard alcohol is an order of magnitude more dangerous than wine or beer. And before public drunkenness became a problem, gin was actually the preferred drink amongst the elite for a time.
    - hirvi74 4y ago
      Does the danger not lie in the dosage? Is the actual chemical make-up of hard liquors more dangerous? I understand that it's easier to consume greater amounts of alcohol when it is in higher concentrations. Surely a person drinking a mix drink containing 2 shots in an two hours cannot be more dangerous than someone gassing 6 beers in an two hours, right?
- telotortium 4y ago
  Islam bans "Khamr"[1] in the Quran, and the restriction has been widely, if not universally, understood to ban all (non-medicinal) alcoholic drinks since very early on in Islamic history. Even in the Old Testament, Noah gets drunk and naked. So I think people have understood that alcohol can cause significant social and personal problems for a long time. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khamr https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khamr

> Alcohol was fine until hard liquor was invented If I catch your drift correctly you might want to read up on the history of distillation, and in particular the chronology thereof.

coenhyde 4y ago

I didn't interpret the OP's comment to suggest a specific order of invention, but an order of adoption / influence in a society.

kevviiinn 4y ago
And the order of adoption was hard liquor came after prohibition

legitster 4y ago

I know distilling goes back to antiquity but I was only thinking of the emergence of consumer drinks in the 1600-1700s. Specifically era of the London Gin laws. I think in particular it's fascinating because this was before people really measured or understood alcohol content and they really had trouble figuring out why some drinks needed no real restrictions and yet others could destroy lives.

mrguyorama 4y ago
Nearly all the time, those specific alcohol restrictions were based in classism or racism, ie, "the poors drink that so it must be the cause of all of society's ills, but expensive wine is obviously good for me!"
- legitster 4y ago
  Well, except hard alcohol is an order of magnitude more dangerous than wine or beer. And before public drunkenness became a problem, gin was actually the preferred drink amongst the elite for a time.
  - hirvi74 4y ago
    Does the danger not lie in the dosage? Is the actual chemical make-up of hard liquors more dangerous? I understand that it's easier to consume greater amounts of alcohol when it is in higher concentrations. Surely a person drinking a mix drink containing 2 shots in an two hours cannot be more dangerous than someone gassing 6 beers in an two hours, right?
telotortium 4y ago
Islam bans "Khamr"[1] in the Quran, and the restriction has been widely, if not universally, understood to ban all (non-medicinal) alcoholic drinks since very early on in Islamic history. Even in the Old Testament, Noah gets drunk and naked. So I think people have understood that alcohol can cause significant social and personal problems for a long time. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khamr https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khamr