Denormalisation of alcohol

[Sue]

Yes, I think this ties in with the nature of drinking previously mentioned, where Brits deliberately set out to get drunk. If you´re gonna get "proper pissed", driving is out of the question. If you go out in Spain/France and end up having one or two drinks more than you expected with food, you can probably convince yourself you´re not "really" too drunk to drive.

I can't speak for Spain but I don't really agree about France. When I lived there, people certainly did go out to get pissed and did drive despite knowing they were pissed.

I remember being berated by everyone I was with for refusing a lift from a colleague after a night out. When I said he shouldn't be driving because he was drunk and I certainly wasn't getting in a car with him, they pointed out I was drunk too. And when I said yes but I was getting the metro home and not getting behind the wheel of a car, they all thought I was crazy. I saw people do this quite often. It was very normal.

And this despite a work colleague having crashed a few years before when driving while pissed, killing himself and seriously injuring another couple of colleagues.

This was Paris btw so had excellent public transport. I've heard it's even worse in the country.

This idea that the French are sophisticated and drink responsibly doesn't really match my experience .

 

[Chz]

I can't speak for Spain but I don't really agree about France. When I lived there, people certainly did go out to get pissed and did drive despite knowing they were pissed.

I remember being berated by everyone I was with for refusing a lift from a colleague after a night out. When I said he shouldn't be driving because he was drunk and I certainly wasn't getting in a car with him, they pointed out I was drunk too. And when I said yes but I was getting the metro home and not getting behind the wheel of a car, they all thought I was crazy. I saw people do this quite often. It was very normal.

And this despite a work colleague having crashed a few years before when driving while pissed, killing himself and seriously injuring another couple of colleagues.

This was Paris btw so had excellent public transport. I've heard it's even worse in the country.

This idea that the French are sophisticated and drink responsibly doesn't really match my experience .

My in-laws' beach caravan is in cider country. The locals definitely drink to get pissed there. But they sort of shrug it off as something that just happens in cider country. The number of those mini-cars that you don't need a license to drive, being driven by full grown adults, tells you a lot about the number of license suspensions around there.

 

[pbsmooth]

I can't speak for Spain but I don't really agree about France. When I lived there, people certainly did go out to get pissed and did drive despite knowing they were pissed.

I remember being berated by everyone I was with for refusing a lift from a colleague after a night out. When I said he shouldn't be driving because he was drunk and I certainly wasn't getting in a car with him, they pointed out I was drunk too. And when I said yes but I was getting the metro home and not getting behind the wheel of a car, they all thought I was crazy. I saw people do this quite often. It was very normal.

And this despite a work colleague having crashed a few years before when driving while pissed, killing himself and seriously injuring another couple of colleagues.

This was Paris btw so had excellent public transport. I've heard it's even worse in the country.

This idea that the French are sophisticated and drink responsibly doesn't really match my experience .

interesting. was that a recent thing? I am as shocked by the idea of Parisians driving to/from anywhere centrally.

 

[Sue]

interesting. was that a recent thing? I am as shocked by the idea of Parisians driving to/from anywhere centrally.

No, a while ago. But something that has become way more normal is people drinking pints there now rather than halfs.

Yes, madness. Said colleague lived near me and it was v easy to get to work on the metro but for some reason he insisted on driving. (The company was also obliged to pay half your travel costs on public transport. No idea if there was any reimbursement if you drove instead.)

 

[Superdupastupor]

8ball trays we have those, most for export, the defective ones are put in service conveying lovely bowls of tremoços, tripas and moelas

Sue yes there is a strange folk belief that it's not the amount drunk, but the distance to be travelled which determines the risk factor ( I suppose tto be pedantaic it does increase the amount of time of drunk person on the road)

A reminder a minimum 20% of all road involve someone over the limit.

A good mark on the UK wrt alcohol is it's pretty much beyond the pale for a lot of people.

Many many years ago I lost a casual friednship due to their habit of driving home after pub quiz. despite the fact that there was a 1£ bus route from pub to home.

There is just no arguing with " I feel fine"

 

[bellaozzydog]

A bit of nostalgia as well maybe, particularly from those who have family commitments which mean it's not something they can do so often? I've a number of friends like this, who talk about the virtues of not drinking so much these days, but end up on a proper session with me. I mean, I love it, but as the next day isn't as nice as when we were younger and there is geography involved, it also seems like a waste. I remember my cousin coming to see for the first time in years and taking photos of the empties the next morning to proudly send to his wife, and I just felt a bit embarrassed by the whole thing, really. But at least now we try and do a decent trail run or something before hitting the booze.

A friends family still do this. They go on holiday as a family and drink inordinate amounts of wine and spirits collect the corks in a bucket and take pictures of the bottle mountain.
The parents are 50+

 

[PR1Berske]

These seems to be the most recent relevant thread because of the possible significant consequences to the drinks trade:

The rate of closure is lower than the first half of 2023, when 383 pubs vanished, the equivalent to 64 pubs closing every month.

Fifty pubs a month shut in first half of year in England and Wales, figures show

Number of pubs open fell to 39,096 by end of June and experts say tax rises in 2025 could result in more closures

www.theguardian.com