If you complain you're lacking friends, are single and want to meet new people, you'll be advised to 'get out more' which usually means hitting the bars. Bars are ****, but have merits which need to be transferred to sober situations.
Characteristics of good social opportunities- It's something regular
- there's things to break the ice over
- there's a core of regulars
- people are open to talking to new people
- New people come and go
- You have opportunity to talk to new people
There are plenty of things that have these characteristics that are not bars.
Bars both share & lack in and have these characteristics. Meetings for recovery also have these characteristics, though some might be reluctant to attend due to being excessively formal, there isn't the 'drop-in' dynamic you get with coffee sops and bars. Solution; unstructured meet points that don't revolve around drinking, coffee shops, dance classes with social dancing (teenagers and skate parks, not suggesting such, but on 'drop-in' able dynamic).
Pubs and bars were not originally about alcohol, but about a meeting place for people to drop in, bump into the neighbours, alcohol being secondary not primary (unlike modern bars).
Why modern clubby style bars SUCK
They're focused on drinking and shifting pints as quickly as a possible, there's lack of places to sit, you can't go to them alone and bump into t people you know. They know high perentage of people standing=more alcohol sales. They don't give a ****.
They're fuelling alcoholism through their 'vertical drinking' business models.
Stop all this 'straight and narrow' nonsense. Think about how we can create better communities. The bar was not about alcohol it was about connection, an informal meeting place. Lets have a brainstorm as to how to improve Anglo-America.