Alcohol is a Hard Drug

[Haiku's Knife]

In most societies, we have this misconception that it's acceptable to consume alcohol as long as it's in "moderation". Except, alcohol has actually been proven to not be safe "in moderation". Even a single beverage is harmful and damages your brain. This is because alcohol is what's referred to as a neurotoxin. It destroys brain matter, even in small amounts:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8625009/
"Taken together, these studies highlight that there is no protective effect of light drinking (e.g., 1–<7 drinks per week) over abstinence and in fact show, similar to alcohol dependence though to a lesser degree, that any level of alcohol consumption can affect brain volume and white matter microstructure."

People regularly make a spectacle of opiates and fentanyl, yet alcohol has caused far more damage cumulatively over human history and will continue to because it is socially acceptable and thus the majority turns a blind eye to it. Alcohol plays a significant role in a significant portion of crimes and accidents and yet the perpetrators are always held in a state of total responsibility while those that produce, distribute and encourage the garbage are free of any blame when they are the ones significantly at fault.

Consuming alcohol is a degenerative activity. It's not classy and it's not cultured. A bar is little better than a crack house or an opium den. Just as nobody says it's OK to hit the crack pipe "in moderation", it should be that we view any amount of recreational alcohol consumption as a crime against the self. I'm not saying alcohol should be illegalized, but it should be viewed at the very least as a hard drug and its usage as unwelcome and degenerative.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/wellness/2023/03/31/moderate-drinking-alcohol-wine-risks/
https://www.healthline.com/health/does-alcohol-kill-brain-cells
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3860462/
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2802963?utm_source=For_The_Media&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=ftm_links&utm_term=033123

[SvarogX]

Postat inițial de Mod_Abuse_victim#488:

Postat inițial de FutureAmerican:

This whole " anti drug " AGENDA is so useless.

SURE, awareness does not hurt anyone, but substances such as tobacco and alcohol have been used by humans since thousands and thousands of years, basically since dawn of time.

But now, out of nowhere, we are supposed to completely drop these substances to " survive " ? While we already live much much longer than our ancestors ?

Tbh, each their own, but I think a human enjoying his life, smoking a pipe or drinking a good old vodka once in a while, is not a crime, my great great great grandparents did so, so do I.

As long as it does not become excessive, who cares. Not everyone enjoys living completely in abstinence.

I mean, if you ask me when it was determined that these things are "harmful" all attempts to make them less harmful just went out the window thereby making them even more harmful...

like, where are all the native americans who died from smoking tobacco? that was never a big issue until it was industrialised.

You know what is hilarious?

That tobacco and alcohol also have a healthy effect.

Cigarettes can indeed calm people down in the long run and ease stress, decreasing stress hormones, keeping certain people more " calm " throughout life.

Alcohol such as wine has health effects in small amounts.

Each individual has to decide for themselves... I mean I met people that are 90+ years old, healthy and smoke and drink DAILY since 70 years.

We are humans....Humans are prone to consume addictive substances, this is how we are. We need to control it but to remove it from our lives completely is not necessary nor relevant.

[Haiku's Knife]

Postat inițial de Mod_Abuse_victim#488:

soo you're telling me...

an apple is healthy right?

but then if the apple ferments into cider it's poison that causes brain damage!!

but then if you leave it a little bit longer and it turns into apple cider vinegar it's healthy again?!
idk m8...

Alcoholic beverages are bad for you. That's all there is to it. I don't understand all these cute gymnastics you're doing.

Postat inițial de FutureAmerican:

This whole " anti drug " AGENDA is so useless.

SURE, awareness does not hurt anyone, but substances such as tobacco and alcohol have been used by humans since thousands and thousands of years, basically since dawn of time.

But now, out of nowhere, we are supposed to completely drop these substances to " survive " ? While we already live much much longer than our ancestors ?

Tbh, each their own, but I think a human enjoying his life, smoking a pipe or drinking a good old vodka once in a while, is not a crime, my great great great grandparents did so, so do I.

As long as it does not become excessive, who cares. Not everyone enjoys living completely in abstinence.

Any amount of recreational alcohol consumption is excessive. We could have a far, far better society if people did not use alcohol and this is indisputable.

[Birds]

DID YOU KNOW:

Methanol and Ethanol are antigens. Like a toxin and its anti-toxin. The cure for either is eachother.

The industry has purposefully prohibited selling ethanol-methanol mixtures in order to maximize addiction and negative bodily effects. Also, the mixture is subject to spontaneous cancer generation due to god's wrath. Despite the science pretty clearly proving it should and does normally do the opposite.

Postat inițial de Mod_Abuse_victim#488:

your inability to provide a more reasonable counter-point only serves to re-enforce it.

I think you're entering fantasy-land right now.

[SvarogX]

Postat inițial de Haiku's Knife:

Postat inițial de Mod_Abuse_victim#488:

soo you're telling me...

an apple is healthy right?

but then if the apple ferments into cider it's poison that causes brain damage!!

but then if you leave it a little bit longer and it turns into apple cider vinegar it's healthy again?!
idk m8...

Alcoholic beverages are bad for you. That's all there is to it. I don't understand all these cute gymnastics you're doing.

Postat inițial de FutureAmerican:

This whole " anti drug " AGENDA is so useless.

SURE, awareness does not hurt anyone, but substances such as tobacco and alcohol have been used by humans since thousands and thousands of years, basically since dawn of time.

But now, out of nowhere, we are supposed to completely drop these substances to " survive " ? While we already live much much longer than our ancestors ?

Tbh, each their own, but I think a human enjoying his life, smoking a pipe or drinking a good old vodka once in a while, is not a crime, my great great great grandparents did so, so do I.

As long as it does not become excessive, who cares. Not everyone enjoys living completely in abstinence.

Any amount of recreational alcohol consumption is excessive. We could have a far, far better society if people did not use alcohol and this is indisputable.

Who decides what excessive is ? What does that even mean?

Also no, wrong. We could have a far better society if people stop ABUSING such substances and if others would stop interferring in people's personal lives.

In countries like Saudi-Arabia, these drugs are all banned, yet society is pretty messed up in many other aspects.

Just because you did not manage to handle alcohol and lost grip on life, does not mean everyone should stop drinking right now and it should be banned lol.

[Haiku's Knife]

Postat inițial de Birds:

DID YOU KNOW:

Methanol and Ethanol are antigens. Like a toxin and its anti-toxin. The cure for either is eachother.

The industry has purposefully prohibited selling ethanol-methanol mixtures in order to maximize addiction and negative bodily effects. Also, the mixture is subject to spontaneous cancer generation due to god's wrath. Despite the science pretty clearly proving it should and does normally do the opposite.

That's interesting. I'm going to research that.

[kingjames488]

Postat inițial de Haiku's Knife:

Postat inițial de Birds:

DID YOU KNOW:

Methanol and Ethanol are antigens. Like a toxin and its anti-toxin. The cure for either is eachother.

The industry has purposefully prohibited selling ethanol-methanol mixtures in order to maximize addiction and negative bodily effects. Also, the mixture is subject to spontaneous cancer generation due to god's wrath. Despite the science pretty clearly proving it should and does normally do the opposite.

That's interesting. I'm going to research that.

it's true that the cure for methanol poisoning is ehtanol anyways... they bind to the same receptors but I guess ethanols binds stronger so can counter the methanol.

I always found it interesting hearing about the african view of "medicine" and "poison" being more of a grey area depending on various factors... but then you need medicine men and well that's just weird to most westerners.

[SvarogX]

Postat inițial de Mod_Abuse_victim#488:

Postat inițial de Haiku's Knife:

That's interesting. I'm going to research that.

it's true that the cure for methanol poisoning is ehtanol anyways... they bind to the same receptors but I guess ethanols binds stronger so can counter the methanol.

This is a common practice in Russia btw.

[the vampire of time and memory]

it is a hard drug, in like a cool way

[Ni-Neith]

Wine, especially red wine, is very beneficial.

[Haiku's Knife]

Postat inițial de FutureAmerican:

Who decides what excessive is ? What does that even mean?

A single drink causes cognitive impairment and brain damage. Don't you think anyone in their right mind would describe such avoidable damage as excessive? That's like saying "I only smash my head into the wall once a year to feel good; it's not excessive". No, that's excessive. It's inherently degenerative.

Also no, wrong. We could have a far better society if people stop ABUSING such substances and if others would stop interferring in people's personal lives.

"Moderate" alcohol consumption is light abuse and we live in a society, we are all connected. It's ridiculous how people think they should have a right to vote, hold office and dictate each other's lives while they walk around with brain damage and willfully do it to themselves. If we take your conclusion to its logical end, we would just end up with anarchy.

In countries like Saudi-Arabia, these drugs are all banned, yet society is pretty messed up in many other aspects.

Yes and if they were heavier drinkers, it'd be even worse (Many Muslims still consume alcohol because many people are hypocrites).

Just because you did not manage to handle alcohol and lost grip on life, does not mean everyone should stop drinking right now and it should be banned lol.

I never said it should be banned. I explicitly stated that in my opening. However, giving yourself brain damage "in moderation" is inherently degenerate. Whether you think you're being that affected or not, you are. It's fundamentally unhealthy and we would be significantly better off it most people abstained.

[kingjames488]

Postat inițial de PC director:

Wine, especially red wine, is very beneficial.

tho acording to recent "studies" it's all "fake news" and any alcohol is dangerous... to heck with history XD

[Haiku's Knife]

Postat inițial de PC director:

Wine, especially red wine, is very beneficial.

Completely untrue. A single glass of wine causes brain damage.

[Haiku's Knife]

Postat inițial de Mod_Abuse_victim#488:

Postat inițial de PC director:

Wine, especially red wine, is very beneficial.

tho acording to recent "studies" it's all "fake news" and any alcohol is dangerous... to heck with history XD

Those studies primarily looked at death rates and disease. They also conflated alcohol usage with health, when it is actually more due to the fact that the French have a healthier diet and get more exercise than the average American.

They also don't address the brain damage.

[SvarogX]

Postat inițial de Haiku's Knife:

Postat inițial de FutureAmerican:

Who decides what excessive is ? What does that even mean?

A single drink causes cognitive impairment and brain damage. Don't you think anyone in their right mind would describe such avoidable damage as excessive? That's like saying "I only smash my head into the wall once a year to feel good; it's not excessive". No, that's excessive. It's inherently degenerative.

Also no, wrong. We could have a far better society if people stop ABUSING such substances and if others would stop interferring in people's personal lives.

"Moderate" alcohol consumption is light abuse and we live in a society, we are all connected. It's ridiculous how people think they should have a right to vote, hold office and dictate each other's lives while they walk around with brain damage and willfully do it to themselves. If we take your conclusion to its logical end, we would just end up with anarchy.

In countries like Saudi-Arabia, these drugs are all banned, yet society is pretty messed up in many other aspects.

Yes and if they were heavier drinkers, it'd be even worse (Many Muslims still consume alcohol because many people are hypocrites).

Just because you did not manage to handle alcohol and lost grip on life, does not mean everyone should stop drinking right now and it should be banned lol.

I never said it should be banned. I explicitly stated that in my opening. However, giving yourself brain damage "in moderation" is inherently degenerate. Whether you think you're being that affected or not, you are. It's fundamentally unhealthy and we would be significantly better off it most people abstained.

Stop reflecting from your own mistakes on others.

[kingjames488]

Postat inițial de Haiku's Knife:

Postat inițial de Mod_Abuse_victim#488:

tho acording to recent "studies" it's all "fake news" and any alcohol is dangerous... to heck with history XD

Those studies primarily looked at death rates and disease. They also conflated alcohol usage with health, when it is actually more due to the fact that the French have a healthier diet and get more exercise than the average American.

They also don't address the brain damage.

tho from what I hear recent statistics show the french are now eating more Mc donalds than americans XD