Fruit of the Vine

Jeff and I just had an interesting conversation over dinner about alcohol and Australia.

No, not their respected wine industry. I'm talking about alcohol consumption and the social response to it, which can be summed up as "well, hell yeah you drink too much. We all do!".

I'm not saying all of Australia is drunk and/or alcoholic. I'm saying there's a tolerance for alcohol consumption and alcohol abuse here that we haven't had in the US for probably 25 or 30 years.

Example 1:

On a recent episode of a popular police drama, "Cops LAC", a senior sargeant leaves his retirement party (about a month ahead of actually retiring) drunk. One or two co-workers ask if he's "OK" to drive home but no one actually tries to stop him. He hits a girl. When he takes her into the hospital, he allows everyone to believe she was the victim of a hit-and-run and that he came across her on his way home.

In subsequent episodes, he's clearly feeling very guilty about his ruse but he's keeping it up since it would get him fired and (I think) lose his pension.

In the US, that storyline would have played out very differently. I can't imagine them not presenting his co-workers as being more "responsible" about taking his keys away, or him getting caught in his lie, or something terrible happening to him (beyond the guilt) because now he's a "bad guy" -- he drove drunk.

Example 2:

On a morning women's TV show today, the panelists were discussing a phenomenon that is sort of a "senior prank/skip day" for high schoolers. It happens throughout Australia and is a huge headache for teachers and administrators.

One of the panelists -- a former teacher and expecting a child -- talked about her experience of the day as a 16-year-old. She casually talked about how they all went to a friend's house and got blind drunk. And everyone on the panel sorta said, in effect, "oh, yeah, me too". And then they traded stories about how bad the cheap alcohol was they bought as (underage) teenagers and how sick it all made them.

All in the vein of "oh, ha-ha, the hijinks we got up to as (underage) teenagers!".

Example 3:

From talking to guys here -- adults -- it is a given (particularly among the 18-30 year old set) that you will drink as much as you can till the pub closes, then you will get into a fist fight ("to blow off all that excess energy" as one friend put it), body parts will be bloodied/broken, and then you'll go home. And do it again tomorrow or at least next weekend. And you will do it every time you go out. It's "just the way it is".

Seriously? Getting the shit kicked out of you every weekend is both "the way it is" and ... a good time???

Example 4:

Jeff has noted that in his office it's not unusual for a group of guys to go out for lunch together and have a beer. Except that, according to very strong social custom, each guy has to buy a round (a "shout"). If there's 3 guys, you drink 3 beers. If there's 5 guys, you drink 5 beers.

So, every few weeks, a group of guys go get drunk at lunch and then go back to the office and don't get much done for the rest of the day. I don't have the impression that's so very unusual.



There is no way I can write this and not be judgmental. Because...

I'm an American woman of the 21st century and my life has coincided with a major shift in my culture's attitude towards alcohol.

* Drinking and driving.
* Drinking at work.
* Binge drinking.
* Drinking and rape. (One Australian friend was stunned at my explanation of how the problem of date/party rape -- usually tied to drinking -- is gaining such visibility on US campuses. He assumed it rarely happened here. I suggested it's more likely grossly under-reported here.).

I also come from a long line of alcoholics. Not my dad (thank God) but his father and his uncle and his grandfather and his great-grandfather (and possibly back further than that but the records are unavailable). I've seen what it does to a person and to every single relationship they touch.

I am not amused. I don't think it's funny. I don't think it makes a great TV comedy. I think it just makes a hell of a lot of money for therapists.

I don't drink much. What I think I inherited from that long line of alcoholics is a low tolerance for booze. I get drunk quickly. Since I don't like being drunk, I don't drink much.

I'm married to a guy who drinks much more than I do (though that's not setting the bar very high, admittedly). We have to talk with each other about that from time to time, checking that I'm still OK with his alcohol consumption. And he's promised to listen to me if I ever say "enough". I trust him.

I've known more than one woman who's been the victim of date rape. In one friend's case, she's been raped twice and alcohol was a factor both times.

That's all by way of saying I'm coming into this culture with my own biases and lenses. I know that. But daaaaaaaaaaaaaamn these people drink a lot! And they think it's OK and I'm not sure I agree.