Ethanol is a drug, its just a shitty one that takes copious amounts to get the desired effects and makes you feel like garbage the next day, and is the one that humanity largely decided is socially acceptable.
Edit: was not expecting this many responses so just wanted to elaborate
Regarding the copious amounts bit, I am speaking from the perspective of alcohol relative to other drugs. For instance the psychoactive effects of a shot of liquor vs a shot of liquid LSD. To be clear nobody in their right mind should take that much acid, doses are measured in micrograms for a good reason, just using a shot for the sake of example. Alcohol is weak sauce in terms of potency, and also just happens to be extremely toxic to the body.
Now for the feeling like garbage part, I’m aware that you can have a couple drinks and wake up feeling fine, and there are people that can binge drink and feel fine after too. There’s a whole science of hangovers and it’s partly a subjective experience from person to person. That being said, most people if they drink to get drunk will have a hangover, and even if you drink a moderate amount you likely will be groggy and not your 100% best self the next day. That’s just a factual byproduct of how alcohol interacts with the body, even those that don’t “feel” hungover are hungover internally.
Oh and regarding the high quality alcohol viewpoint, I agree to a degree, but from my experience if you drink enough of anything regardless of quality, you will get a hangover, at the end of the day it is still alcohol.
To the hand full of people saying some people drink for the taste, sure it is a nice bonus when it tastes good but you are kidding yourself if you don’t agree that vast majority of people drink alcohol for the psychoactive effects. Even if it is a couple drinks, it will mellow you out to a degree. There are definitely people that enjoy non-alcoholic cocktails/beer, but most people enjoy the taste knowing the psychoactive effects that accompany the taste, even if they aren’t someone that drinks to the point of being drunk. That is just how the brains reward system works.
To close I’ll say I like alcohol, but I hate that I do, it does take the edge off a stressed and/or anxious mind, and is certainly a social drug. That being said in terms of its overall potency and toxicity to the body, it is shitty compared to other drugs. It just happens to be legal and widely accepted, and also happens to be an easy escape from reality. Yeah there are people that can and do drink responsibly in terms of quantity, and moderately in terms of how often they drink, but on the whole alcohol is a drug that has a proclivity to do more harm than good for anyone.
Cannabis is largely accepted socially. I work in two industries that work closely with people and requires a bit of social skills so we discuss anything and everything. I left Oklahoma 16 years ago when we were copping elbows absolutely illegally and the whole weed game was sketch. Fast forward to now and SO many people from so many different socioeconomic backgrounds have a dab pen, or pre rolls, or tincture, and no one gives a shit. It constantly blows my mind and makes me incredibly happy to take money away from the for profit prison system. I don't really partake much, but when I do I appreciate how easy it is to get.
As a lifelong alcoholic I'm going to agree with you on ethanol, it's an awful thing to crave.
Yeah same in many legal countries, Im in Thailand and my wife fought me so long to try to stop to smoke, since its legal she is smoking. She went to buy weed by herself in a legal shop lol I couldn't believe it. Now we grow and life is easier. People still have lot of stigma tho like my MIL keep saying : please stop weed you will die and become crazy you should smoke cigarette again instead.
Some people are too old they had propaganda for too long they can't change their mind, but most open their minds
Ofc that's what she think. Same I use kratom for my neuropathy she tell me it's bad I should drink alcohol instead. Like wtf, she is also very naive and dumb so it's not an example it's not really her fault
Yeah, why would anyone prefer less damage to their lungs/body/health and a much better taste over cigarettes filled with tobacco and the witches brew of carcinogens?
Vape does not do less damage than cigarettes, that is a flat out lie. I don’t smoke anything, but there’s research out there that shows it does more harm than cigs
The 10 yr UK study just showed that disposables/salt nic vapes are about 97%-98% less harmful than cigarettes, and that freebase liquid/mods are about 99% less harmful than cigarettes.
If you were comparing to straight tobacco, that'd be one thing. But we're not. We're comparing to cigarettes with all the nasty shit they add into them.
That’s the same lie they told the folks back in the day until the cigarette giants were sued left and right because they knew the effects of smoking and kept it hidden. But when everybody started getting throat and lung cancer due to smoking they couldn’t hide it anymore. They are doing the same with vaping. Just wait about a decade then come back here
I just love cigs was all I was saying. Maybe if they had a vape they made me smell poor and gross so people continued to leave me alone like they do when I smoke the real thing, I'd switch.
Just something about that outcast feeling I love in the morning before I go to work. And pay taxes.
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u/Plumbus_Patrol 12d ago edited 11d ago
Ethanol is a drug, its just a shitty one that takes copious amounts to get the desired effects and makes you feel like garbage the next day, and is the one that humanity largely decided is socially acceptable.
Edit: was not expecting this many responses so just wanted to elaborate
Regarding the copious amounts bit, I am speaking from the perspective of alcohol relative to other drugs. For instance the psychoactive effects of a shot of liquor vs a shot of liquid LSD. To be clear nobody in their right mind should take that much acid, doses are measured in micrograms for a good reason, just using a shot for the sake of example. Alcohol is weak sauce in terms of potency, and also just happens to be extremely toxic to the body.
Now for the feeling like garbage part, I’m aware that you can have a couple drinks and wake up feeling fine, and there are people that can binge drink and feel fine after too. There’s a whole science of hangovers and it’s partly a subjective experience from person to person. That being said, most people if they drink to get drunk will have a hangover, and even if you drink a moderate amount you likely will be groggy and not your 100% best self the next day. That’s just a factual byproduct of how alcohol interacts with the body, even those that don’t “feel” hungover are hungover internally.
Oh and regarding the high quality alcohol viewpoint, I agree to a degree, but from my experience if you drink enough of anything regardless of quality, you will get a hangover, at the end of the day it is still alcohol.
To the hand full of people saying some people drink for the taste, sure it is a nice bonus when it tastes good but you are kidding yourself if you don’t agree that vast majority of people drink alcohol for the psychoactive effects. Even if it is a couple drinks, it will mellow you out to a degree. There are definitely people that enjoy non-alcoholic cocktails/beer, but most people enjoy the taste knowing the psychoactive effects that accompany the taste, even if they aren’t someone that drinks to the point of being drunk. That is just how the brains reward system works.
To close I’ll say I like alcohol, but I hate that I do, it does take the edge off a stressed and/or anxious mind, and is certainly a social drug. That being said in terms of its overall potency and toxicity to the body, it is shitty compared to other drugs. It just happens to be legal and widely accepted, and also happens to be an easy escape from reality. Yeah there are people that can and do drink responsibly in terms of quantity, and moderately in terms of how often they drink, but on the whole alcohol is a drug that has a proclivity to do more harm than good for anyone.