Science Lesson
 

I sometimes wonder at comments or threads that inquire as to "why we invented alcohol," or "Who invented alcohol?," or "what purpose" alcohol serves in the first place.

I've rarely if ever responded to those threads, in part because the answers to those questions greatly supersede the scope of the questions asked. The answers involve a working knowledge of -- or a willingness to learn or appreciate -- the basics of evolutionary science, human history, zoology, and both general history and general science.

This might help:

Editor's Note: The following is the introduction to the March 2015 issue of Scientific American Classics: Intoxicating: The Science of Alcohol

Alcohol: An Astonishing Molecule - Scientific American

Interesting article EndGame.

As I understand things now, alcohol is not my problem, alcoholism is...

but I gotta say I remember being pretty angry at alcohol when I first got here.
I've peeled back a few layers of the onion since then :)

D

Yes, I agree.

There was an earlier thread about alcohol being "everywhere," with some suggestion that people were keeping track of how much others were drinking. I agree with your comments on that thread as well...a thread that I'm sure you've seen thousands of times since you've been here.

I'm now pretty much indifferent to alcohol. As is true of many people, my priorities have changed over the course of my sobriety, and that's a good thing. Now that I type this, maybe that's the answer to another thread I'm sure you've seen thousands of times as well, "How do you know when you're really sober?"

alcohol is part of culture, all cultures, therefore it is in our blood. IMO

Hmmm. No, sorry, not buying that.

If you really believe that, you're making a hard road to hoe for yourself Jeff.

D

Thanks Dee,I cannot disagree with you, but alcohol is woven into our lives. Crap, look at all the Tv shows where they go shopping for underwear and are handed a glass of champagne, really? Oh and if you race cars on Sunday, its beer commercials all day long. its ridiculous.

'Woven into our lives' is a statement I can agree with a lot more than 'it's in our blood', Jeff :)

We can 'unweave' ourselves :)
D

Dee you are long time sober and think much more clearly than A guy like me. Therefore, I trust your judgement.

Personally, struggling with addiction I find it frustrating that I'm offered alcohol almost daily by someone. It makes it that much harder to stop for me. Now maybe it's the job I have or the subculture I live in, but this is a very real experience for me. Do I blame others for my addiction, no. However, I can express being frustrated that it is in my face daily, can't I?

Thanks, but y'know it's ok to disagree with me too, Jeff ;)

I don't think anyone's trying to stop you Tang :)

I had to get to a point when I fully accepted drinking was bad for me.
Accepting an alcoholic drink would be as unwise & self destructive as drinking Drano for me now.

You have to believe in at least the possibility you'll feel the same way one day :)

D

That's what I mean. In order to get enough mental fortitude to stay stopped, I feel it necessary for me to demonize alcohol. Otherwise my AV tells me it's OK to drink because everyone around me does.

Great thread Thanks Endgame

If that's part of your process, then that's part of your process. It's perfectly natural to "demonize" alcohol, or anything else that causes so much pain and suffering, when we first rid ourselves of the offending substance, people, or places. In my experience, anger is present following any major loss, and yes, expressing it does seem to lend itself to getting to a better place in our lives.

I did comment earlier that it took time and a great deal of work for me to become indifferent to alcohol. I can't know that this happens with everyone else, but I believe that the more we work on our sobriety, particularly early on, the better the chances to arrive at indifference.

Even were I capable of doing so, I have no motivation to censor anyone's frustrations.