What are your thoughts on the New Zealand drinking culture? I think it's excessive, sad, and, frankly, repulsive. BUT that's just my opinion. Any further thoughts on the matter?
Meh, I think the media get their knickers so tightly knotted about this issue that they cant see that it's maybe not the utter crisis they think it is. yes, NZers do drink to excess sometimes. That probably goes back to the days of the 5 o clock swill, when all pubs had to be closed at 6 and so people would get horsed at home. But still - i think it is sometimes blown out of proportion - for instance there was this documentary on tv about the student drinking culture in Otago (where I'm from). It was possibly the worst piece of journalism I have seen - that sort of biased bullshit belongs on Fox. for instance One of my friends was interviewed. She talked to the cameras for maybe an houre and half, explaining why she wasn't drunk and why she doesn't drink. then the interviwer asked her why she thought drinkign was stupid and she replied 'well, you see people and they are all like 'it's so funny when you drink, then spew, then drink again' and i think that's so pathetic." In the documentary the ONLY piece of that hour and a half long intgerview that they used was "it's so funny when you drink, then spew, then drink again". That sort of thing is just lies frankly. it's a storm in a ....shot glass?
THAT is journalism though. It is taking the truth and making it into a story that people want to hear. but meh, the drinking culture down here doesnt seem to be nearly as bad as it could be. At least dunedin is pretty compact so idiots arent driving around drunk all the time. And its college, jesus. You drink yourself stupid and wake up at 23(or 30 for some idiots) and realize how lame it really all is. live a little!
xactly. And with journalism - meh, yes you expect the stories to a little spin on them but taking someone so blatantly out of context is unbelievable.
You raise some good points, but aren't there better things to do with one's weekend? I know people who look forward to the weekend, simply because it means 48 hours of drunkenness. It's not just the mentality I don't like, but the way they binge, then act like complete morons while they're drunk out of their minds. Agree? Disagree?
I don't think that 'media hype' is an excuse for the high road toll that is related to drink driving.
who decides what is better? is it better to watch sports? Probably. But then, isnt it better to write poetry than waste your time watching sports? individuals need to decide how to live
You can't really relate writing poetry and watching sport to drinking excessively. No-one has died from poems or sport-watching? (Well, people have died from watching sports, but not at the same frequeny as people die from drinking/drunk behaviour) Not that i'm taking sides. I'm all for drinking, but not the excessive drinking that some groups out there seem to enjoy.
Exactly. It's the irresponsibility that sometimes goes with it. Some (a great many) people seem to think that if they get drunk, that entitles them to do anything they want.
If people want to get pissed, it's fine by me. Drinking and driving is another matter entirely. not everyone who drinks is that retarded - in fact i don't know ANYBODY who does so - either they drink and they don't drive, they don't even bring their car out, or they stick to lemonade and they drive. Pubs and bars support this - they will give you free soft drinks if you say you are the sober driver. I'm not saying that no one drinks and drives, or that no acts irresponsibly from time to time, but i just don't see anything fundamentally wrong with having a few wines and a few laughs with your mates.
I agree, if your drinking to excess but not hurting anyone else or putting them at risk then the only person your hurting is yourself and thats your buisness and no one elses.
And hey, we could be like Russia. Anyone see the news last night? Sooooo much alcholism there. I think NZ is actually ok, as long as people enjoy themselves when they go out for a tipple without HAVING to have a tipple to function or to enjoy themselves then it's fine.
i don't think it is the crisis that it's been made out to be, but it is a problem. i come from christchurch, where the centre of town on a weekend night is packed with drunken morons. not that i don't like to drink, and occasionally get smashed, but i know people who do it regularly every weekend. one such individual seems to be escaping from personal issues and has alienated those around him in the process. even being hit by a car and breaking a bone didn't change his behaviour. the chch situation is depressing in a way because it feels like people struggle through the working week just to make it to the weekend when they can get fucked up and forget everything. then it starts over again... meanwhile, less harmful substances like marijuana are illegal. what bothers me is that polititians talk about changing our drinking culture but do nothing about the advertising of alcohol which, at its worst, perpetuates the stereotype. instead of telling young people they aren't mature enough to drink, we need to allow venues where they can drink responsibly in the presence of adults. although, the stereotype that it is only youths who are problem drinkers is completely wrong. almost everyone i've seen abusing alcohol recently has been an adult.
I <3 booze. In fact, I pay my rent by selling it to other people. And I enjoy that. However, I do my part in stopping people from being idiots and hurting themselves or other people by drinking to excess by cutting them off when they're too drunk. Despite what the media may say, there are a lot of measures in place to combat the "must drink everything all the time" culture that can develop. Besides, alcohol gets boring after a while. There are way more fun drugs out there that are not nearly as bad for you as booze.
When I was in NZ a few months ago the Kiwis looked like nondrinkers compared to the English tourists, most of whom were so drunk I suspect an Englishman's blood cells must be held together by a web of alcohol molecules. If you want to see the grotesque absolute of alcoholism, it's jolly old England, not New Zealand. Even in the States our drunks are louder, stupider, nastier and more violent than a Kiwi drunk could be even if they tried. You don't have that touch of American/English savagery necessary to produce truly asshole drunks. So your problem could be much, much worse.
Yes... those poor couches never knew what hit (or burnt) them. Just think, if only we didn't drink so much, there would still be hundreds of complete lounge suits all around the country. Instead, the armchairs are left to mourn their incinerated cousins.
before they are burned, too. Really, it's all the couches' fault. If they don't want to be set alight then why do they stuff themselves with such highly flammable materials and base it all on a wooden frame?
