Reader's Blog: We Irish are intoxicated by our own stereotype
The notion of ‘ah, yeah, we will just go for the one drink’ could not be any more of a lie than me telling my parents the report cards haven’t been sent out yet.
St Patrick’s Day having passed, we all know what that means, living up to the most inherent characteristic of our culture: Drinking. As a nation, our love of drink manifests all social aspects of our lives: In sport, culture, traditional music, weddings, confirmations and communions.
The Irish belief that “it’s just a bit of craic” has stood as a justification for a bibulous relationship with drink for too long. Should we accept falling victim to something that is so deeply embedded in our culture that we fail to even recognise it? No, of course not.
As a teenager, there is nothing worse than being an outlier among your peers. The only thing that is worse is not drinking when your friends do.
Being labelled as a sap, you quickly conform, crack open a can, and become one of the lads.
Well, unless you have never drunk alcohol before, not doing so in a pub, or at some other social gathering, is viewed with great suspicion by those around you and is heavily stigmatised. People question why you are out socialising if you are not drinking.
It’s almost as if being born Irish assumes you must drink.
Unfortunately, there is nobody to blame for a collective flaw, so we must ask: What’s the solution?
Well, unlike other countries and cultures, we do not drink in moderation. More than 54% of adult Irish drinkers claim to be binge drinkers. This statistic reflects the attitude many people in our society harbour towards alcohol.
Excessive drinking is normalised, whereas drinking in moderation is stigmatised.
I, of course, do not hold the answers and am certainly not one to lecture on something I might myself fall victim to, but, remember: moderation is key.
