I Heard About and Saw This in London - Now It's Here
Something I once experienced in the UK a while back has now apparently taken root here in the U.S.A. And it's growing exponentially. This is one of those stories that remind us that, despite the threat of correction or even crash of the stock market may be hovering out there, worse things can happen to us; and - in this case - are happening.
About ten years ago I first learned about "binge drinking." Oh, I'd heard the term before that, but always associated with college students. Stupid, sometimes lethal to be sure. But, frankly, I never really gave it much thought.
What I didn't know was that binge drinking wasn't just for college students. Adults indulged as well. I learned this during a business trip to the UK. At a typically genteel English business lunch (that included good food and drink) on the Island of Jersey (a beautiful spot, by the way), the host opined about how alcoholism - more specifically binge drinking - had gotten out of control. The shocking example he used was of his own son - an adult who not infrequently drank to unconsciousness during his social outings. The story he told was more jarring given the calm pastoral surroundings of the picture post card town in which we dined.
A day or so after that, a business associate and I exited a Whiskey Bar in London around 11 PM or so. We were hosted there by dining companions who wanted us to experience these famous, classy, and expensive watering holes. The serving of single malt Scotch our host ordered for us cost the equivalent (at the time) of $75 - more than I'd ever spent in my life for a bottle of anything containing spirits. After two of these indulgent drinks, we left for our hotel, feeling rather rather fancy-free, albeit certainly not drunk. What greeted us outside the Whiskey Bar, though, quickly broke the high-falutin' atmosphere we'd just left. Surrounding us were more than a half dozen men in business suits, most in their twenties and thirties, in various states of disheveled drunkenness, some collapsed on the pavement. I later learned such scenes were not uncommon in London. It was part of the plague of binge drinking that had descended on Old Blighty in recent years. At least that's the explanation I received from our hosts.
Fast-forward ten years and this came across my desk:
To temper this assessment a bit, the article focusing on an increase in alcoholism, rather than emphasizing those who may be binge-drinking. But still!
So now we add another layer to the over-medicated and drug-addled Americans who, among other things, are - get this - likely driving motor vehicles in your neighborhood.
To think I once feared flying!
Add this to the threat of nuclear war with North Korea, and this weekend's anticipated R&R seems more appealing - and needed - than ever. While neither opioids nor binge-drinking will be part of the weekend's mix of respite, an adult beverage or two might.
Hope you enjoy your weekend too, whatever your plans.
About ten years ago I first learned about "binge drinking." Oh, I'd heard the term before that, but always associated with college students. Stupid, sometimes lethal to be sure. But, frankly, I never really gave it much thought.
What I didn't know was that binge drinking wasn't just for college students. Adults indulged as well. I learned this during a business trip to the UK. At a typically genteel English business lunch (that included good food and drink) on the Island of Jersey (a beautiful spot, by the way), the host opined about how alcoholism - more specifically binge drinking - had gotten out of control. The shocking example he used was of his own son - an adult who not infrequently drank to unconsciousness during his social outings. The story he told was more jarring given the calm pastoral surroundings of the picture post card town in which we dined.
A day or so after that, a business associate and I exited a Whiskey Bar in London around 11 PM or so. We were hosted there by dining companions who wanted us to experience these famous, classy, and expensive watering holes. The serving of single malt Scotch our host ordered for us cost the equivalent (at the time) of $75 - more than I'd ever spent in my life for a bottle of anything containing spirits. After two of these indulgent drinks, we left for our hotel, feeling rather rather fancy-free, albeit certainly not drunk. What greeted us outside the Whiskey Bar, though, quickly broke the high-falutin' atmosphere we'd just left. Surrounding us were more than a half dozen men in business suits, most in their twenties and thirties, in various states of disheveled drunkenness, some collapsed on the pavement. I later learned such scenes were not uncommon in London. It was part of the plague of binge drinking that had descended on Old Blighty in recent years. At least that's the explanation I received from our hosts.
Fast-forward ten years and this came across my desk:
The opioid epidemic isn’t the only public-health crisis plaguing the US.The article announcing this then plows through sociodemographic characteristics. The most shocking (at least to me) group were the "over 65s." Imagine geezers binge-drinking? Actually, I'd rather not use my imagination here. It's too depressing.
Americans are hitting the bottle harder than ever, according to a new study published by JAMA Psychiatry, posing new challenges for the US’s strained health-care system as local hospitals and first responders struggle with the spike in substance-abuse related maladies, including overdoses and alcohol poisoning that warrant urgent care.
To temper this assessment a bit, the article focusing on an increase in alcoholism, rather than emphasizing those who may be binge-drinking. But still!
So now we add another layer to the over-medicated and drug-addled Americans who, among other things, are - get this - likely driving motor vehicles in your neighborhood.
To think I once feared flying!
Add this to the threat of nuclear war with North Korea, and this weekend's anticipated R&R seems more appealing - and needed - than ever. While neither opioids nor binge-drinking will be part of the weekend's mix of respite, an adult beverage or two might.
Hope you enjoy your weekend too, whatever your plans.
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