Poll: Alcohol and your reasons...

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

It tastes good, makes things a little more fun and good for socializing. I'm not an alcoholic but I quite enjoy it. There's a time and a place though.

 

[Raiha]

about a year and a half ago my now ex-wife had an affair with one of my closest friends. i spent about a year after that either blind stinking drunk or miserably hung-over. i make no excuses for my actions and completely recognize that i only drank to escape from my problems. it helped me grieve the loss of my best friend and my marriage. now i have much more control over my drinking, i am back in school working on a second degree, i exercise regularly, and have almost forgiven the two people who betrayed me on the deepest level that a person can feel betrayal. that being said, i still drink on an almost nightly basis. not nearly as much as i used to, but i would be lying if i said that there wasn't a glass of wine next to me as i type this post. the reason i had to vote that the "i am an alcoholic" option was because through all that, alcohol helped me in ways that i couldn't help myself. that others couldn't help me either. i used alcohol as a tool to get over my depression. to lessen the impact that the deep depression had on me. it dulled the pain enough to be bearable until i had dealt with enough of it to cope with it sober. i have seen many others use it as a crutch in order to hide from life. the object itself has no blame. it is merely how we choose to use it that makes it good or evil.

 

[Saelune]

I dont drink. There is no reason for me to as I see it. No good one.
I dont like how it tastes. I am then told to drink fruity ones or something which comes to my next part.
I dont see the appeal of being drunk. If I wanted a fruity drink, I dont need alchohol in it unless I am to get drunk.
I am then told "Its not about getting drunk, its about getting buzzed". It still is not appealing though.

The last reason to drink would be to socalize or something, but I dont want to do bad things to my body just for friends.

Also I hate beer commercials. Dont really affect me not drinking, but they are so full of sexist machismo idiocy.

I also hate though, that because I refuse to drink, some people find me weird.

 

[MercurySteam]

I obviously won't drink alcohol on its own (who the hell does?) and a little bit from time ti time doesn't affect me at all.

 

[subtlefuge]

I drink because I have a love affair with good gin and whiskey. Plain and simple.

 

[ApeShapeDeity]

I can pay that.

Bombay Saphire and Glenlevit... Oh, yeah.

But currently I have a decent glass of red beside me while I'm waiting on a friend...

 

[drisky]

I drink socially in that, when offered one, I take it sometimes. Never been drunk before though, I maybe have 4 drinks a year

 

[Mcupobob]

Welll I live on a vineyard and my grandparents are wine buffs so every now and then I'll have a glass of wine if its good stuff for a little taste. Other than that I don't really drink, sure I've gotten drunk at parties and such but it just wasn't my thing. Plus alcohol is a gateway drug anyways.

 

[LaBarnes]

I view alcohol as ... a variety of things. If it is done for pleasure, to deal with grief, or to fit in socially, then it is a form of escapism, because for whatever reason, you are unable to achieve your goals (fun, peace of mind, social acceptance, etc) as yourself. If you drink for the taste, then that is fine as long as you take care not to drink too much (as long as you stay as yourself), if you drink because society does, then you are just a sheep who is willing to risk the quality of life of yourself and others because society tells you to. If you drink small amounts because you enjoy the sensation, then it is harmless enjoyment.

So alcohol, to me, is anything from the equivalent of eating chocolate, to being unsatisfied with yourself as a person and not having the strength of character to work on what you clearly perceive as flaws in yourself (I have strong views on drug use, even caffeine I only have in small amounts, and then it isn't for the caffeine, it is because I enjoy the taste of chocolate/coffee)

Mostly this, although my reasons have more to do with a focus on preservation of one's reasoning capacities. That, and I'm way okay with caffeine. I'm a teleological ethics sort of guy.

 

[Agayek]

I drink because I'm out with friends and alcohol is floating around. That's about it. I hardly ever am in such situations though. Like 3-4 times a year.

 

[linwolf]

I only drink for the flavour, haven't gotten drunk for years.

 

[Moc]

I would say "never" since drinking one beer or two plus a small glass of booze in like one month is not really drinking. Only when I like to drink alcohol I drink some, I don't care for peer pressure or anything like that. Also I live in Germany and I don't have my driving licence since a long time and they take it away if they EVER find you drunk in your car

 

[cookieXkiller]

I drink socially
and when im sad and have nothing to do on a friday night
then its grab the whisky and halo 3 and abuse anything that speaks back to me ... unless its in my house ... then it gets hugged to death.

 

[erztez]

I drink cause it's fun.
That's pretty much it.
To all ya drinkin' and smokin' haters out there...go **** yourselves, nobody's forcing you to join the fun crowd.

Also, Oxygen is a gateway drug...think about it.

 

[Raikov]

I drink because I enjoy the flavour. I would never drink just to get drunk or to escape reality.

And as a result of that, what I drink is a bit on the expensive side (no cheap beer for me pls!) and that also ensures that I never get too drunk. I simply can't afford it =P

And I kinda like waking up relatively fresh the day after. I probably have some stuff to do anyways... like driving home and start carrying fire wood or something.

 

[Tulks]

Socially, for the flavour, to get drunk. Many of your other options (fun being fun, escapism) fall under 'to get drunk'.

Don't think I've ever been pressured to drink, although there have been plenty of occasions where I've been encouraged to drink more.

I enjoy the taste of smirnoff black and the happiness i feel from about four bottles

Four bottles of neat vodka? That's an unhealthy amount of happiness. Points for dedication.

 

[Atheist.]

I drink for the flavor.

So I don't drink beer obviously.

Wine, mixed spirits and cider are best.

I think beer snobbery has become passe, anyway. People have stopped caring about the different varieties of bitter nastiness it comes in. On that note, Campari on the rocks was probably the drink I had the hardest time finishing. Cleanse the pallet my foot.

Whoa bud, us beer snobs are serious about our hobby. Trying to brew the perfect beer, and trying out EVERY new beer we see is a serious deal to us. It's a fun culture, and there is just such a variety in flavors. Check out beeradvocate.com if you doubt me.

Socially, for the flavour, to get drunk. Many of your other options (fun being fun, escapism) fall under 'to get drunk'.

Don't think I've ever been pressured to drink, although there have been plenty of occasions where I've been encouraged to drink more.

I enjoy the taste of smirnoff black and the happiness i feel from about four bottles

Four bottles of neat vodka? That's an unhealthy amount of happiness. Points for dedication.

Smirnoff Black is like a wine cooler. Similar to something like a Mike's Hard Lemonade.

OT : I put down alcoholic. Because I'm what we call a functional alcoholic. I usually have at least 5 drinks a night, often times quite a few more.

 

[Versuvius]

Depends on my mood. If im in a pub for a meal i will sip a nice scotch or drink Koppaburg. Tastes good and gives you a buzz. Obviously at parties i will get drunk off my ass for the novelty of it, though i only do this 2-3 times a years. Thank god for that mind, a hangover born from a pint of mixed spirits is something to be avoided at all costs.

I need reasons? What the frigging hell has the world come to?

<- and this.