Shocker: Letting kids experiment with drinking early, reduces binging

[SlowwHand]

How old are your children? I don't remember.

[Wezil]

Originally posted by SlowwHand
How old are your children? I don't remember.

Not a good argument.

You can exclude most people from most debates that way.

[Sirotnikov]

Originally posted by SlowwHand
I don't even know why I'm attempting a debate, again, with people who have no point of reference.
Come tell me all about it when you guys have your kids raised.

I have an excellent point of reference. Myself.

My parents never forbid me to drink, smoke or have sex.

As a result I started drinking late (on my own) and I do not binge.

I don't smoke cigarettes (I do a very rare hooka or cigar)

And I don't exploit every opportunity I have to get laid.
Nor will I be drunk / unprotected.


Same with my brother, and every one of my friend's who had similar minded parents.


On the contrary, a girl I know and her sister, whose parents were really uptight about sex and abstinense, are known to be the sluttiest girls I know.

Same with folks who prevented their children from drinking etc.

[Sirotnikov]

Originally posted by DinoDoc
How do you explain the culture of binging in a place like Europe where drinking is more accepted and the age at which it can legally be done is far lower Ozzy?

Eastern Europe has a totally different alcohol problem, that has to do with different social norms. In Eastern Europe, many mature people and old folks are very serious drunkards, so the kids have no positive figures to learn from.

Also, I doubt you can make any more generalization out of western europe than you can do with the states.

It mostly has to do with
a) whether one's parents are binge drinkers
b) whether one's parents taught a person to drink responsible or whether they tried to chase away the problem.

[SlowwHand]

Originally posted by Wezil


Not a good argument.

You can exclude most people from most debates that way.

I disagree. I'm being lectured on how to do something by someone who's never done it. Bull****.

I like Ozzy fine, but he needs to be very careful of the perception he might create by saying it's ok to give children alcohol, especially if he has no children.
I "know" him, so I don't particularly have a misconception of his intent.
There are fathers out there that don't realize his intent.
One might end up kicking his ass for him.

Watch what you say, and watch out for who you say it to.

Siro, you haven't done crap. Your parents did, and the outcome could be argued.

[Sirotnikov]

Siro, you haven't done crap. Your parents did, and the outcome could be argued.

You can lose the attitude.

I am describing my life experience based on how my folks raised me, and according people I know. Ozzy is well learned in the matter due to his professional work.

The fact you're old and have children does not make you a super authority on child-raising. Most old folks are parents, and a good portion of them are really crappy, and their kids turn out losers.

No doubt you're the best parent there ever was - but I have no way of knowing that, and I don't share your experience.

I do happen to know several people who are parents besides yourself, who hold a view contrary to yours, and who have done a great job. So you can get off the "I'm a parent" high-horse. And you should reconsider your tactless remark about my parents' job.

If you've got parenting experience that can illustrate and convince anyone of your convictions - great. I'll be happy to hear. But other than that, your out-of-character cowboy attitude really doesn't impress.

I like Ozzy fine, but he needs to be very careful of the perception he might create by saying it's ok to give children alcohol, [...]
There are fathers out there that don't realize his intent.
One might end up kicking his ass for him.
Watch what you say, and watch out for who you say it to.

Both Ozzy and myself are free to claim what ever we want about what we think are good ways to raise children, based on our experience and world view.
Just as organized self-proclaimed expert anti-drug, anti-alcohol and anti-sex lobbies are.

If some vigilante father wants to threaten me or kick my ass over an opinion I voice, then he'll have an F16i on his tail, asserting my right of free speech.

[Dauphin]

Originally posted by DinoDoc
How do you explain the culture of binging in a place like Europe where drinking is more accepted and the age at which it can legally be done is far lower Ozzy?

Please educate me on the European culture of binging in Western Europe. Outside of Britain and Ireland I appear blissfully unaware of such extreme.

Anecdotal comment:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/1182233.stm

The binge drinking and public drunkness which plagues the UK is virtually unknown in some other parts of Europe.

In particular, Mediterranean countries such as Italy, France & Portugal have far fewer teenagers who get drunk frequently.

[Dr Strangelove]

Exposing children to alcohol at a young age does indeed reduce the likelihood that they will become problem drinkers in the future................ if you remember to add a little Syrup of Ipecac to the drink.

There's no better teacher than the judicious application of the principles of behavioral psychology.

[Blake]

Well actually that can be explained by Britain being a depressingly dull place .

[Victor Galis]

Yeah, I've been of the opinion that schools should force 14 year olds to drink a cheap poor-quality bear once in awhile. That would make alcohol massively uncool.

[Wezil]

It would also make school much easier to tolerate.

[Jaguar]

The silly thing about the US drinking age is that 21-year-olds are more responsible drinkers than teenagers, which would seem to justify the drinking age - but they are more responsible only because they have had years of experience drinking illegally.

The justification for the law's existence is valid only because the law is so commonly broken.

[Jon Miller]

Actually, people who don't start drinking until after they are 21 have much lower chances of alcoholism compared to those who start drinking before they are 21.

JM

[Sirotnikov]

Actually, people who don't start drinking until after they are 21 have much lower chances of alcoholism compared to those who start drinking before they are 21.

a) how come / based on what?

b) are there really people that don't drink before they are 21? at all?

[Apocalypse]

Not at all, but there are a lot of people who did not drink regularly until college (19/20). Even then, many people in college can't afford to drink all that often.