ATTN: Those of you who do not drink.

<p>You guys are never going to get it are you? How many more students have to die for you guys to realize this? You're not invincible. Lucifer obviously thought he could handle it, but sadly, he couldn't. </p>

<p>Education??</p>

<p>Yeah, we watched one of those videos for orientation in college, and everyone blew them off. We laughed because we thought it was a joke. Trust me, if you already drank in high school, the message of drinking "responsibly" is going to fall on deaf ears. You will say "yeah, yeah I know this already", but when something happens, you're going to do something stupid like let someone who's dangerously drunk to "sleep it off".</p>

<p>smurfette,</p>

<p>Are you referring to those of us who enjoy the occasional drink, or just the bingers?</p>

<p>*You guys are never going to get it are you? How many more students have to die for you guys to realize this? You're not invincible. Lucifer obviously thought he could handle it, but sadly, he couldn't. </p>

<p>Education??</p>

<p>Yeah, we watched one of those videos for orientation in college, and everyone blew them off. We laughed because we thought it was a joke. Trust me, if you already drank in high school, the message of drinking "responsibly" is going to fall on deaf ears. You will say "yeah, yeah I know this already", but when something happens, you're going to do something stupid like let someone who's dangerously drunk to "sleep it off".*</p>

<p>Sux for you then. Me and my friends have no problem handling our alcohol, maybe parents should teach their kids how to drink, although I doubt that would happen because it would cause them to step out of their comfort zone.</p>

<p>The 21+ drinking age in the US has actually made no difference to its alcoholism rate btw... its 5.5%, just like everywhere else in the world.</p>

<p>
[quote]
Me and my friends have no problem handling our alcohol

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Why does this sound so familiar? That's right, Lucifer implied the same thing in one of his posts.<br>

[quote]
Me and my friends are all very experienced drinkers, and we all know exactly how we get when we drink too much, so we go by those signs.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>When you're drunk, you have no idea how many drinks you had or what you can handle. </p>

<p>And if you're an occasional drinker, that's fine (like having some champagne with your parents on holidays). What I mean is these kids going to parties and getting drunk almost every weekend. Honestly, IMO, that's a sad way to live life. Instead of wasting your teenage years by drinking, do something fun. Learn something you've never learned before, help someone in need, be a mentor to a little kid. </p>

<p>That's more fulfilling than getting drunk with a bunch of "friends" and possibly risking an MIP or doing something you will regret the next day.</p>

<p>
[quote]
The 21+ drinking age in the US has actually made no difference to its alcoholism rate btw... its 5.5%, just like everywhere else in the world.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Correlation does not imply causation.</p>

<p>
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Instead of wasting your teenage years by drinking, do something fun. Learn something you've never learned before, help someone in need, be a mentor to a little kid.

[/quote]

Is it impossible to do both?</p>

<p>
[quote]
When you're drunk, you have no idea how many drinks you had or what you can handle.

[/quote]

How can I put this...I don't want to say "Don't knock it till you try it", but I don't want to enourage drinking, but I don't think you should make these kind of statements until you've actually been drunk.</p>

<p>All I meant was, just don't make your entire teenage years about drinking. And I basing this off of Lucifer's posts. It seemed like alcohol was the most important thing to him. I'm sure that he has done great things like volunteering, etc. (and he was probably one of the nicest people around) but he never mentioned it in his posts. It just saddened me that all his posts on CC were about getting drunk. :( That's all I meant.</p>

<p>And on the second thing, are you suggesting that your cognitive abilities are not compromised when drunk? If that's what you believe, I feel bad for you. I highly advise you to take a cognitive psychology course of something of the like, and actually learn how memory, perception, and attention works. What you learn may surprise you. </p>

<p>And I told you before I'm not getting drunk
1.) I have a moral compass.
2.) I'm not going to risk getting raped or doing something I will regret. (Don't tell me that it won't happen).
3.) I'm not going to make a fool out of myself.
4.) I'm not going to try to explain to a med school adcom why I got an MIP. You have to outdo everyone else in the competition, and I'm not going to risk losing a spot because of one stupid drunken night.</p>

<p>I remember a line in the John Wayne movie, "True Grit": I will not put a thief in my mouth to steal my brain!"</p>

<p>
[quote]
How can I put this...I don't want to say "Don't knock it till you try it", but I don't want to enourage drinking, but I don't think you should make these kind of statements until you've actually been drunk.

[/quote]

Seeing the little freshmen vomiting in a barrel this weekend after getting disgustingly drunk dampened a lot of my fellow students' spirit for spirits, so to speak. </p>

<p>College drinking kills 1400 students a year. Imagine the entire student body of Swarthmore killed in one year. Add the 500,000 injured in alcohol-related incidents and the 70,000 victims of alcohol-related rape. </p>

<p>Not all students binge drink. To be exact, 36% of females and 50% of males report drinking five or more drinks in a row. Nonetheless, these numbers are way higher than they should be.</p>

<p>Last semester, "only" 22 Duke students were hospitalized for alcohol poisoning. Last year a sophomore at Chapel Hill died after falling from a 4 story window while running around the hall drunk. Drinking to get drunk isn't something to be taken lightly.</p>

<p>Moralistic BS needs to stop being spewed. If people are responsible, and their bodies are wired to allow them to drink a lot/be somewhat rational when drunk, no one has any right to stop them. I drink craploads maybe once every month or two, but my metabolism is so fast I don't really get drunk, please dont judge me.</p>

<p>" drink craploads maybe once every month or two, but my metabolism is so fast I don't really get drunk, please dont judge me."</p>

<p>Being able to drink heavily without feeling the effects is a sign of alcoholism that many misinterpret thinking that their high tolerance means that they can drink heavily with impunity.</p>

<p>While I've been involved in the treatment of more than 1,000 alcoholics and their families, you have no reason to believe me, a stranger on an anonymous message board. Consequently, I'm posting the below from Wellesley's Counseling Center:</p>

<p>"Tolerance means that a drug becomes less and less effective with repeated use. Over time, a greater dosage of the drug becomes necessary to achieve the same effect. A person with a high tolerance for alcohol can drink much more before getting drunk than someone with a lower tolerance. Alcoholics have a much higher tolerance for liquor than non-alcoholics, and often think, that because they have suds a high tolerance, they do not have a problem. In fact, tile high tolerance for alcohol indicates a problem more readily than a low tolerance. In the later states of addiction (not just to alcohol), this trend will reverse itself so that the ingestion of a smaller amount of the drug achieves the same, or more intense, effect. This is a sign of severe and usually permanent physical damage, and indicates a need for prompt medical attention."</p>

<p><a href="http://www.wellesley.edu/Counseling/alcdrug_info.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.wellesley.edu/Counseling/alcdrug_info.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>And, from a federal site about alcohol abuse:
"Warning Signs
The presence of any of the following indicators suggests that an individual may have a serious alcohol problem or be at high risk for developing one. Any one indicator is not conclusive evidence of a serious problem, but it is relevant circumstantial evidence and should be noted. ...</p>

<p>Individual claims a high tolerance for alcohol, for example, makes statements such as: "I can drink a lot without its having any effect on me, so I don't have to worry." High tolerance is an indicator of alcohol dependence -- it takes more and more to have the same effect on the body. " <a href="http://www.usda.gov/da/pdsd/Security%20Guide/Eap/Alcohol.htm%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.usda.gov/da/pdsd/Security%20Guide/Eap/Alcohol.htm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>if a man drinks in moderation and dies (while purely sober) by getting hit by a bus while crossing the street i dont think you can blame the alcohol.</p>

<p>There are risks involved in nearly every aspect of life...some have more than others. If you are responsible, the risk involved in drinking alcohol is signifcantly reduced. I enjoy drinking and occasionally being drunk (I actually think there is a lot that can be learned by drinking...I mean, you learn by experience) and I am willing to "risk" it every now and then.</p>

<p>I drink once every three or four weeks (last time I had anything was NYE), and its purely to have fun when I'm out. And if I'm not drinking to get a buzz (which basically means 10+ different drinks) then why am I drinking?</p>

<p>PS: My high tolerance has nothing to do with how long I've drunk for. I've only been drinking for about a year and a half, and that too at fairly infrequent intervals (maybe 7-8 times since March 06). Maybe this means I'm a binge drinker, but I can handle it so I think its fine.</p>

<p>
[quote]
And if I'm not drinking to get a buzz (which basically means 10+ different drinks) then why am I drinking?

[/quote]
</p>

<p>I never really drink to "get a buzz." I drink because there are some alcoholic drinks that I really enjoy. </p>

<p>
[quote]
Maybe this means I'm a binge drinker, but I can handle it so I think its fine.

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</p>

<p>Just don't let a false sense of security lull you into thinking that alcohol does not have potential dangers, especially when abused. I worked on-campus for many years at UCLA, and saw many students get hurt through alcohol poisoning.</p>

<p>A massive drinking session once every month will not give me alcohol poisoning lol... and I don't really enjoy any alcoholic drink much- I have Coke for that.</p>

<p>Alcohol in moderation isn't that big a deal. It only becomes a problem if you become addicted.
On the other hand, one night of massive alcohol consumption can still kill you. As in get hit by a car or crash one yourself because you were too drunk to drive.</p>

<p>
[quote]
A massive drinking session once every month will not give me alcohol poisoning lol...

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Yes, it can. Alcohol poisoning can happen the very first time you drink. Your "massive drinking sessions" are exactly when alcohol poisoning is likely to happen.</p>

<p>here's a tip for all of you who want to drink in the future:
if you backout of feel drowzy when you have your very first drink - know that drinking is not for you and that small amouts will have dire effects on you.
And I thought that the book on drug and alcohol addiction would never come in handy :)</p>

<p>drinking is okay, if you can control it but not many peole can. I personally have like a sip and get drunk...so if I have like a bottle of beer i'm dead. I know drinking's not good but it can be fun, and as long as it's not a habit(like once a month or less), it really doesn't hurt unless you drive.</p>

<p>what if you are crossing the street drunk and don't see a speeding car coming your way.
You don't have to be in the drivers seat to die of alcohol consumption.</p>