A few brief additions to my prior column on the UK’s drinking culture:
–In a recent interview, British actor Bill Nighy said, “I used to drink a great deal to an unhealthy degree.” Rightly or wrongly, an American probably wouldn’t have felt the need to add the last four words of that sentence.
–This week’s Time Out London contains a one-page article, as part of the magazine’s “PartySafe” campaign, reporting on the dangers of binge drinking. The article reports that 50% of all hospital admissions in the UK are alcohol related, and young women are particularly at risk. The same issue also contains a 10-page spread on London’s best pubs and bars. Headlines in the 10-page section include “I Drink, Therefore I Am–The Best Drinking To Be Had In Town”; “Everyone’s Drinking: The Top 5 Cocktails And Where To Get Them”; and “Single Malt, Straight Up: Can Whisky Really Work For Women?”
–The Samaritans, a UK charitable organization, are running a campaign
urging Brits to be on the lookout for friends who might be showing warning signs of emotional instability–which, their website says, might include: “losing interest in their appearance,” “taking time off work or leaving the house less and less,” and “drinking and/or smoking or taking more drugs than normal.” According to the Samaritan, you should respond to these signs by taking your mate to the local pub for “a quick half [ie, half pint of beer]; a problem solved. We can all be Samaritans.”
So, remember, folks: alcohol is the recommended treatment for depression.
“warning signs of emotional instability… might include… taking more drugs than normal”
I wonder what the “normal” amount of drugs might be? I’m not sure if they mean medication, but if they’re not, then that makes for an odd conversation:
“Hey, man, I’ve noticed that you’re not keeping up with your usual five joints a week… I’m getting worried about you. Are you depressed?”
I studied abroad in England for 6 months last year at Lancaster University. The dorm room I had was above the bar, every dorm there had a bar. I go to school in Wisconsin, so I know what it’s like to have drinking in the dorms, and it seemed like a lot, until I went to England. The kids there drink EVERY SINGLE NIGHT. There were a lot of girls that would go out to clubs every night of the week. Maybe the difference was that these were Freshman-aged kids who just moved out of the house and are pushing the limits of their new freedoms. How is it that during the whole time I was there, I didn’t see a single campaign to curb alcoholism, which I’m sure was rampant on campus. I’ve never been a prude about alcohol until I went to England, where it clearly is abused by the public. Well, maybe they need to drink because a large percentage of the population isn’t that attractive…