Back in the old days when I was young, the drinking age here was 21.
That meant that you couldn't go into a hotel bar area unless you were over 21.
They weren't the sort of places nice girls frequented anyhow as women were only allowed in what was called "Lounge Bars ".
None of that really bothered me as I didn't drink alcohol - the reason being that I didn't like the taste, not from any anti-alcohol principles.
At home my parents liked an occasional alcoholic beverage and Dad, at 92, still downs his two stubbies of beer every night before dinner.
Throughout those younger years I continued to pass when offered alcohol and when I met Tony he also didn't like alcoholic drinks ( I'm sure there was the odd trial episode - perhaps to excess- in his past !)
BUT,
it wasn't easy !
The pressure to conform was huge.
An Aussie man,
a football player
who didn't like a beer ????
An Aussie woman who didn't like a wine or a shandy - was I some sort of pious wowser ?
We were just NOT COOL !!
We almost felt apologetic as we turned down an alcoholic drink and asked for a soft drink option.
Over the last 15 to 20 years we have slowly developed a taste for wine and now enjoy a red or white in social situations so we fit in much better but left alone at home it's usually a Diet Coke that is our drink of choice - a dash of Bacardi is often added to Tony's but I prefer mine straight !
These days the drinking age is 18 with many young people drinking to excess on a regular basis, often well under the drinking age.
Peer Pressure seems to be stronger these days - in fact everything seems to be more these days !
So now we have a huge problem with binge drinking and the anti-social problems that spin off from that.
Young men in drunken brawls on our streets are a regular event every weekend with some horrific results where a young life is ended and another ruined.
Young women staggering down the late night streets as they try to find their way home.
What I don't understand is how the young people can afford to PAY for the huge amounts of alcohol that they consume on a weekly basis. Buying drinks at nightclubs is hugely expensive and to get to the inebriated states they attain must cost a fortune.
The need to fit in seems to get stronger and stronger and these days that seems to mean you need to go out and get drunk every weekend.
It should not be the government's responsibility to step in once again and become the NANNY to try to minimise this anti-social, social problem that seems to stem from social pressure !!!
Rant ended !
Cheers.
I know exactly what you mean about being the odd one out as I rarely drink alcohol either since I don't much like the taste and having seen what it can do in excess I am not keen to try to like it either! We have the same problem here where the age is 18 but many much younger manage to get hold of the stuff. It's so sad to see lovely young girls in the state you describe and the lads of course are likely to end up in fights etc. It makes going into town centres where there are bars and clubs somewhere any sane person avoids after dark. We are usually at home with our cocoa by then though of course!!!!
ReplyDeleteDid you understand the term " wowser " Jane I wonder. I didn't realise it was an Aussie term?
DeleteThere have been so many cases of young men dying from being punched and hitting their heads on the ground as they fall lately here. It is really awful
I had never heard the term "wowser" before so I looked it up. "...a derogatory word denoting a person who saps all the fun out of any given situation. Derived from the temperance movement in Australia and New Zealand at the turn of the C20th, when it was hurled as an accusation towards conservative teetotallers who were too prim and proper to relax and socialise, it has become a more generic term that can be assigned to any straight bore lacking a sense of humour". I hope this will be helpful to other visitors from the northern hemisphere. Regarding consumption of alcohol - although it has often been a friend to me - a lubricant in social situations and nights out, I have to admit that when I was much younger it could be like a devil. Bad stuff happened that was very much out of character. Nowadays, "moderation" is the watchword.
ReplyDeleteAs a parent I know how glad I was when my kids got past this stage without harm. I hated it and was sick with worry. It was definitely the worst stage of their development by far. I have no argument with alcohol per se, just with the awful drinking culture affecting our teenagers
DeleteI had no idea drinking in Australia had become a problem. It is certainly fast becoming a problem here. One reason I think is TV shows. Even the "family" shows, show people drinking. This is a huge change from when I was young.
ReplyDeleteI don't have a problem with drinking in a family situation though David though I understand where you are going with this. This binge drinking however is becoming a real killer.
DeleteHaving a 20 year old son, unfortunately I know only too well how those kids get into that inebriated state.... they go to a mate's house with alcohol they have bought at a bottle shop and they drink it all up as quickly as they can (no food of course!). They don't even care if it's cold or warm, it's the end result that matters to them. THEN they all pile in a maxi taxi and head for the nightclub. I don't know how they actually get IN to the club, as they certainly are well and truly stupid by that stage but as there is a cover charge to get in to these clubs, maybe the dollars speak more loudly than the rules. Please don't say that we Mother's should put a stop to this, as my answer is "good luck with that!" I cannot hover over my 20 year old like he's a two year old, although I wish I could.
ReplyDeleteI've had girls here at my home at birthday parties for my son (ages 17 - 19) who have even given false names to me when I say I'm calling their parents to collect them because they can't stand on their own two legs (they usually arrive at parties already drunk off their faces! so it's not the party parents supplying this amount of alcohol!) The few times my son has had the "pre" drinks here at my home, I fill the boys up with burgers, chips, ANYTHING that will help soak up those drinks! I don't allow anyone to leave here in their own vehicle (so my place can sometimes look like a carpark!) and if they end up back at my place and any one of them is dangerously drunk, I insist on calling a parent or sister or someone to collect him and take him home to his own bed and his family can watch over him. Okay, that's my rant over too......
I feel for you Helen. I was soooo glad when my kids got past this stage in their lives and survived ! I hate the way this drinking culture has developed and as for night clubs ! They are an absolute scourge ! Sounds to me like you are doing all that you can to keep them safe. Let's hope they get past this stage quickly.
DeleteI think the violence that seems to come with total inebriation is a massive worry too.
ReplyDeleteIts not just the alcohol with many young people its the other things they take at the same time. Not that all young people are doing that but a percentage do. Im not sure what the answer is.
Alcohol and Steroids....bad bad mixture.
ReplyDelete