alcohol/drug stance

[jrod1986]

Well, for me, the the choice on whether or not to drink/do drugs/etc. was made a long time ago due to a physical condition I was born with.

Having said all that, of course I have friends who do drink and do pretty much whatever they want. On more than once occasion I've asked them if I'm missing out on the finer things or life--or whatever you want to call it. Every single one of my friends has told me that I'm not missing out, and that they wish they hadn't started the habits they have to this day. Take that for what it's worth, I guess.

Bottom line, just be true to yourself--I think that's the way to being happy in life, really. </deep thought>

[Niode]

@Niode - I know all kinds of people who spat at beer and rave about 'real ale' and the sort. I don't know, the only 'ale' I ever had was my grandfathers ale and the hell if I remember what the hell it was. I personally get the reaction from some people though when I tell them I don't drink beer, "OH, your one of those ale drinkers... ugh"

::scratches head::

"ummm, no, I'm not." Personally I prefer liquor. I'm a Vodka/Gin kinda man... gentleman's drink I call it. But I always wondered what is up with all the ale!? and especially the strong stigma between those who drink it, and those who don't.

And you won't believe the eyes I get when I say I hate beer. They look at me like I just spat on Christ while he hung from the cross.

I guess real ale in the USA is different to what it is over here. I do like some American real ales though. Anchor's various porters are gorgeous, quite hard to get in this country though, and they're always pretty expensive. I live in West Yorkshire and there is quite a huge Real Ale following here there's 4 pubs and bars in Huddersfield town centre alone that cater specifically for ale. The surrounding towns and cities have their fair share as well.

I don't like drinking spirits. I don't get the appeal. I like to taste something in the drink I am consuming. I won't drink any old Ale though. It has to have a nice taste to it. However I am more tolerant as to what tastes good than somebody who has drunk lager all their life. It's a widening of the palette kind of thing.

One of the greatest things about Real Ale is the massive amounts of choice you have. If you drink lager, what is there that's available in your run of the mill pub? Stella Artois (awful stuff, yet stupidly expensive, so naturally morons with more money than sense drink it), Fosters, Grolsch (if you're lucky!), Becks (again, if you're lucky!). Whereas, in a real ale pub they will have 4 or 5 guest beers that always rotate, often several times a week, 2/3 permanent beers and then a wide variety of bottled continental beers (Budweiser - Budvar, the real stuff, not the cheap shitty American imitation, Hoegarden, Chimay, and those are the more popular ones off the top of my head, there's usually many more.). And then there's usually a couple of continental Pilsners on as well, like Beck's Vier, Veltins or Franziskaner.

That's one of the reasons I drink Real Ale, purely for the vast amounts of choice you have. I don't want to drink the same old crappy lager that is so common and tastes like nothing.

Having said that, if I had more exposer to gin/whiskey etc I would probably develop a palette for that and might prefer that, but for now I'm happy with drinking Real Ale, and don't see what's wrong with that. I enjoy drinking it, it's better for you (because it's brewed naturally, most beers these days are organic anyway because the hops/wheat/yeast etc is grown naturally), It doesn't contain chemicals and additives to keep it artificially fresher, it's cheaper, and it tastes better than lager.

If anybody has a problem with it, then it's purely because they are uneducated/scared of change/idiotic consumers. It's that simple.

[ZeroAX]

What I find strange though is the drugs part..... who the fuck starts drugs for fun? Here I only see very disturbed kids doing drugs, but most of them have started before university. I find it strange that your friends just do it in front of you and think it's something normal to do because they are at college. The only thing people pick up at uni over here is sex

[Hatta]

Why else would you start using drugs? They're fun! Of course, fun is fun, and work is work. As long as you keep the two separate, you'll have no problems.

Like I said, I smoke pot every day. I drink coffee every day. My GF and I go through about a 12 pack of nice beer (usually Boulevard, maybe Shiner) in a week. We take LSD or mushrooms maybe 4 times a year.

None of this causes me problems. I graduated college on time with decent grades, and have a decent job in a technical field. I'm able to rent a nice house. I pay my bills on time. And I have a stable long term relationship with a wonderful woman.

If you really think drugs are for "very disturbed kids", you're just ignorant. Far more people than you'd ever guess use drugs, but we are persecuted in this society, so the responsible people keep quiet.

The fact is the legal drugs, caffeine, alcohol, and nicotine are more powerful and more dangerous than many of the illegal drugs. You owe it to yourself to do some research and learn the truth instead of just believing the propaganda. Besides, you haven't really lived until you've had sex on LSD.

[disorderlyvision]

Why else would you start using drugs? They're fun! Of course, fun is fun, and work is work. As long as you keep the two separate, you'll have no problems.

Like I said, I smoke pot every day. I drink coffee every day. My GF and I go through about a 12 pack of nice beer (usually Boulevard, maybe Shiner) in a week. We take LSD or mushrooms maybe 4 times a year.

None of this causes me problems. I graduated college on time with decent grades, and have a decent job in a technical field. I'm able to rent a nice house. I pay my bills on time. And I have a stable long term relationship with a wonderful woman.

If you really think drugs are for "very disturbed kids", you're just ignorant. Far more people than you'd ever guess use drugs, but we are persecuted in this society, so the responsible people keep quiet.

The fact is the legal drugs, caffeine, alcohol, and nicotine are more powerful and more dangerous than many of the illegal drugs. You owe it to yourself to do some research and learn the truth instead of just believing the propaganda. Besides, you haven't really lived until you've had sex on LSD.

Amen!

[lordofduct]

What I find strange though is the drugs part..... who the fuck starts drugs for fun? Here I only see very disturbed kids doing drugs, but most of them have started before university. I find it strange that your friends just do it in front of you and think it's something normal to do because they are at college. The only thing people pick up at uni over here is sex

Come here to South Florida. We all start because it was fun. Not saying it was the best choice, and definitely not the right choice. But it certainly was fun. No matter how much I screwed myself up from ages 12 to 22, I would never turn back the clock and change it. It was fun!

Some of us were disturbed or a little screwed up. Others turned screwed up and disturbed because of drugs. But the majority of my friends were regular joes, and still are regular joes.

[ZeroAX]

I guess that's the cultural differences around the world. And really mate I don't like it when stupid people think they are smart. And if you are proud of doing drugs (or drinking a lot or smoking for that matter, which I don't do any of that) you are one heck of an idiot. Sorry for the flame mods but what I'm reading is sick. All the drug addicts I've known tell me it's the worst mistake of their lives.

[Harvey]

Yeah I couldn't agree with the people who say drugs are no big deal. As a former pot smoker, I can say that it did nothing good for me. Pot pushed me to making poor decisions that I normally wouldn't make while I was on it, and even when I wasn't on it I became forgetful. All of the friends I smoked with at the time except for one (out of 10 or so) went on to use harder drugs like cocaine and mushrooms, and last I heard, still use them to this day. I'm so thankful that I quit before I got in too deep.

[PharmaceuticalCowboy]

Yeah I couldn't agree with the people who say drugs are no big deal. As a former pot smoker, I can say that it did nothing good for me. Pot pushed me to making poor decisions that I normally wouldn't make while I was on it, and even when I wasn't on it I became forgetful. All of the friends I smoked with at the time except for one (out of 10 or so) went on to use harder drugs like cocaine and mushrooms, and last I heard, still use them to this day. I'm so thankful that I quit before I got in too deep.

Your friends sound like they have deep psychological issues.

[ZeroAX]

No they are sick people that can't or don't want to get help.