Personally I think there has been a definite increase in alcoholism over about the last 20 years. Life is far more complicated than it was at one time and there are more negative stressors. Employment issues, astronomical divorce rates, uncountable cases of abuse and neglect, poverty, etc. Alcohol can provide a cheap an easy escape from all of those. The media plays a roll as well in glamorizing alcoholism in tv and film. Don't get me wrong. Alcoholism has always been around, as Scott pointed out. But I definitely feel we've seen a surge in the last 20 years or so.