As a non-drinker, it's easy for me to be judgmental about the extraordinarily deep hole Aaron Gilmore MP has dug for himself. I can also get sniffy after reading our story, in yesterday's paper, about the drunken self-righteousness displayed by intoxicated middle-aged businessmen out on the town.
The fact is,complete abstinence, which sounds a worthy and disciplined principle at first glance, is actually an extreme acknowledgement of a lack of discipline in being a moderate drinker. I gave up more than two years ago because I enjoyed drinking and it worried my family. In a sense, I failed to design myself a system of moderation and went for the dramatic option.
Extreme and absolute decisions are easy. You don't have to deal with anything - the product is simply gone. And there are a lot of great benefits. You lose weight. You feel great in the morning. You can sail through police checkpoints with a vague air of superiority. You're always the designated driver. But I admit, I wouldn't wish giving up alcohol on anyone. It's an extremely hard thing to do, especially in my own middle age. When you get to your mid-40s you instantly assume you're a wine expert, and you usually have the time and income for vineyards and restaurants.
Giving up drinking goes against powerfully-ingrained social patterns and habits. You feel like a social pariah. People don't like non-drinkers. They think you're weird, religious, judgmental or a health freak. But we keep having these social problems with alcohol because drinking is a very, very difficult thing to figure out and structure your life around. I know there will be plenty who disagree, who will tell me they live life with one glass of pinot gris every second evening. But if we could all do that, we wouldn't be reading about drunk businessmen on page 3, or car smashes, or fights, or people with their heads bowed in court, contemplating six months of walking to work.
We all do things we regret. The trouble with alcohol regrets is, people will not forgive you for them. If you've managed to work out your drinking, great work. But were you among those drunk local businessmen embarrassing yourselves with Aaron Gilmore-type demands? Losers, the lot of you.
