Thread: Low IQ + Alcohol =

Originally Posted by Paulie

perhaps the difference is between going out to have a good time, and gee I've ended up a little/lot drunk, vs, going out to get drunk??

Currently in the UK/Europe, where it seems there is much more drinking yet the streets feel much safer...

me thinks it might be the culture, not the booze.

Agree absolutely. Add booze plus steroids/drugs and you have a recipe for disaster.

People who are ****ed and spoiling for a fight aren't thinking about the length of sentence they might get if they hurt someone. So the effect of long sentences will be to temporarily take someone off the street which might give the community a brief respite. Eventually they'll return to the street with the same attitudes and habits (or probably even worse ones) that they had when they went in.
If you are going to put people into jail then you have to do something with them while they are there to instill better attitudes and habits. Otherwise it's just a waste of taxpayer's money- and the jails in most of our states are already full- and chewing up a lot of our dollars that we could better spend elsewhere.
It's a lot less expensive to tackle this particular problem at the other end- by shutting off the supply of alcohol a bit earlier and getting people out of the pubs and clubs. The price we pay for that is a reduction in profitability of the pubs and clubs (they'll adjust) and a few people will whinge because they can't drink in a pub or club all night (boo hoo). The taxpayer savings will come from reduced hospital, police, court, and jail costs. Do the sums, the costs every time someone gets badly assaulted and injured, and where the police make an arrest are huge. (And that's not including the cost to the individuals involved- whether victim or perpetrator).
As for blaming the parents- well, there's an enormous industry out there telling us all its OK to drink on any occasion; that if you don't own a <insert favourite consumer items here> you're a loser, so you better work some extra hours to get one- don't bother spending that time with the kids they can look after themselves; and meanwhile the kids are being told that if they don't look like <insert favourite female pin-up or male body builder here> then they are losers... so the boys go to the gym and find that work-outs take time so some go for the quick jab approach, forgetting that steroids (among other side effects, such as sterility) can make you nasty and violent, especially if you are coming down off ice and you have a skinful of booze. (Meanwhile the girls are getting botoxed so they all look the same, and some are having boob jobs and being told that they have to give the guys head or they'll get dropped....)
Is it any wonder things are getting a bit screwed up? Pity the poor parents, some of whom know little better themselves anyway, trying to compete with that barrage of information.....
Sorry, rants getting a bit longer in my old age...

Coop