Education - Current News and Issues
Heads up people!
The Self appointed 'Global Commission on Drug Policy' recently released their propaganda loaded findings on so called 'drug policy failings' in June 2011. The document, as you would predict, is one dimensional, dealing only in a 'harm reductionist' space, that now has almost nothing to do with prevention or cessation of drug use. However, it has everything to do with minimising the destructive impact of drug use.... which would cease when drug use ceased - but that logical conclusion escapes the pro-drug decriminalisers!
The Institute for Behaviour and Health (IBH) have replied with the following Commentary.... worth a read!
Check this out
IBH_Commentary_on_Global_Commission_Report_7_12_11.pdf
Damage Control: Clinicians speak
(No Brainer 102 DVD trailer)
Critical decisions lack transparency
Author: Tony Brown Date: 21/12/2010 Publication: Newcastle Herald
AS spectators to the death throes of a state government beset by scandal, resignations and last-minute fire sales of public assets, we lose sight of the inexorable erosion and corruption of the core principles of democratic and legal process, honesty and integrity, fairness, openness and transparency.
Little solace is offered by the incoming government of a reversal in this trend where the ordinary people of the state are further disenfranchised from the critical decision-making processes.
The approval process for the self-described "decadent" and "chic" late-trading 550-capacity Kensington hotel, only 100 metres away from the third most violent hotel in NSW, Fannys, illustrates this demise.
The original hotel application for trading hours in excess of those prescribed for the CBD was appropriately rejected by the NSW Casino Liquor and Gaming Authority for the negative social impact.
The second application conformed with the required prevailing late-trading conditions. Coincidentally, the proponent labelled the modest reduction in Newcastle hours as "draconian", forgetting the unprecedented 37 per cent reduction in reported street assaults.
Information released under costly new FOI laws revealed that both the local police and Hunter New England Health still opposed the new hotel for reasons including the recognised adverse cumulative impact of a concentration of late-trading large-scale premises - the CBD had reached saturation level. The police could not simply identify any key factors that had changed in the nature of the application to reduce this negative social impact.
There is nothing inherently wrong with the contest between private interests and those public agencies (and local community groups) charged with the responsibility for protecting the public and property and saving people's lives. One group's profits, jobs, flash cars and entertainment is another group's crime, violence, work injuries, undue disturbance, litter, vandalism, casualty patients and social costs.
One question arising from the above contest is: does the liquor industry fairly reimburse the public for the estimated $36 billion a year national cost of its operations?
The previous liquor act required the former independent tribunal to give primacy to the principle of harm minimisation that culminated in the historic Newcastle conditions. In July 2008 under pressure from the industry, the independent tribunal was abolished and the act watered down to balance the interests of the industry with that of the community as determined by those faceless officers within the bureaucracy.
It is essential that this new statutory "balancing act", particularly for such high-impact applications like the Kensington hotel, be performed and seen to be done with the highest level of impartiality, objectivity and transparency. Rumours abound that the government has already given the application the "nod". We unsuccessfully appealed to the authority on at least two occasions for an open and transparent public hearing into the application and decision-making process. The chairman of the authority is the former Human Rights Commissioner Mr Chris Sidoti. He may never have received these requests.
We understand that in mid-December the authority approved the application subject to minor clarification of a matter with the police, with the announcement to be made possibly just before Christmas as a gift to inner-city residents and small businesses.
So why on this occasion has the authority preferred the assertions and submissions of the hotel's Sydney applicant over the submissions provided by the local police and Hunter Health? Why did the liquor authority condone the applicant's refusal to reply to a number of key concerns raised by local residents and businesses and why was Newcastle University Professor Kyp Kypri's criticism of the quality and accuracy of the applicant's reports apparently ignored? Did the authority members receive this information from the bureaucracy? Perhaps they believe the Newcastle decision that has prevented more than 1000 drunken bashings since March 2008 was "draconian" and an infringement of civil and hotel liberties? We should - but will never - know.
When the dramatic increase in late-trading hotel density in our problematic CBD starts to undo the incredible success of the shorter-hours decision, unfortunately the current state government won't be around. But nothing is likely to change to put public safety ahead of pub profits.
This perpetuating lack of openness, including no published comprehensive and reasoned decisions in such important "public" decision-making processes that impact on public safety, provides the ideal mix for inappropriate influence and the ongoing avoidable perception of favouritism, cronyism and corruption.
Tony Brown represents a coalition of Newcastle inner-city resident groups, small businesses and concerned citizens.
More booze, more teen sex, no increase in safe sex practices
"Rates of alcohol consumption among secondary students have increased markedly, as has the proportion of young people engaging in sex while under the influence of alcohol and drugs…Although consistent condom use remains moderately high, it is of some concern that condom use has not increased since 1997 despite related increases in sexual activity ... and increased rates of sexually transmitted infections." Paul Agius, from Melbourne's La Trobe University.
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/more-booze-more-teen-sex-no-increase-in-safe-sex-practices/story-e6frf7jo-1225934666876 Danny Rose From: AAP October 06, 2010 8:05AM
Drunk Ladettes alarm - Young women black out in soaring numbers!
In 2009, the Victorian Drug and Alcohol Prevention Council (VDAPC) conducted a Victorian Youth and Alcohol and Drug Survey through interviews with 5001 Victorian 16 to 24 year olds to measure their attitudes to and use of drugs.
The report published by the Victorian Department of Health in May 2010** provides comparative data with similar surveys conducted in 2002 and 2004.
Comparing data from 2002, the 2009 survey showed a reduction in use of cannabis (down from 28.2% in 2002 to 20.5% in 2009), ecstasy (down from 10.5% to 9%) and amphetamines (down from 8.3% to 6.6%). There has been a small increase in cocaine use (up from 3.4% to 4.1% in 2009).
While recent use of alcohol is down slightly from 89.5% in 2002 to 87.3% in 2009, there has been a dramatic rise in the number of youth binge drinking (consuming more than 20 standard drinks in one session) – up from 26% to 42% in 2009.
The average age for a first drink remains at 15 years. The survey showed that teenagers taking up drinking before turning 15 often turned out to be more likely to drink to excess and take illegal drugs later.
The fastest growth in binge drinking was among women in the 18 -21 age bracket increasing from only 18% in 2002 to 37% in 2009.
Almost half of 16 to 17 year old girls admitted being served alcohol in a pub or club in the past year, despite the State Government’s crackdown on underage drinking.
The highest frequency of binge drinking was among 18 – 21 year old men with 33% binge drinking at least once a month.
More than one-third (37%) of young people who had recently used alcohol had also tried to cut down their use. By contrast, approximately half of those who had recently used each type of drug had also tried to cut down in the past year.
Slightly less than half (46%) of those who had tried to reduce or stop their alcohol consumption felt they had been ‘very successful’ in their attempt. By contrast, the majority of young people who reported having tried to cut down their use of cannabis (79%), ecstasy (72%), amphetamines (69%), analgesics (65%) or tranquillisers (77%) felt they had been ‘very successful’ in doing so.
(reprinted for eductional purposes only) Herald Sun 4/9/10
** The 2009 Victorian Youth Alcohol and Drug Survey - Final Report can be downloaded as an 82 page document from the VDAPC web site at:
www.health.vic.gov.au/vdapc/downloads/vyads-report-01092010.pdf
Drink driver Jasmin Henley over the (city) limit By Larissa Cummings and Nathan Klein From: The Daily Telegraph August 04, 2010 12:00AM
Reprieve ... drink-driver Jasmin Henley
IT used to be a blood-alcohol reading that determined whether a person was convicted of drink driving - now, it's a postcode.
Sydney woman Jasmin Clair Henley, 27, escaped punishment for driving under the influence yesterday because she lives in an area with no public transport. In a decision that could set a dangerous precedent - and put people who live in remote areas above the law - a magistrate dismissed the charges against Ms Henley, finding she had no viable alternative to get back to her home at Cattai, north of Windsor, after attending a work dinner in the Eastern Suburbs.
"If she lived in any other suburb around Sydney ... like Paddington ... there's no way on earth I would consider dismissing the charge," magistrate Brian Maloney said. Ms Henley recorded a blood-alcohol reading of 0.067 after police stopped her on the Cahill Expressway last month. She told officers she had two glasses of wine over dinner in Paddington with colleagues from about 8.30pm to 10.30pm.
Facing the magistrate in the Downing Centre Local Court yesterday, Ms Henley had her low-range drink driving charge dismissed without conviction.
Mr Maloney said he would treat the case as if he was passing sentence in a country court, because there were not enough public transport options open to people living in the northwest corridor. "It's not like she could jump on a 333 bus to Bondi," he said. He said the former North Sydney TAFE student ought to move closer to the city if she wanted to have a few drinks over dinner, where she could travel home without risking her own safety and that of other drivers.
"Drinking and driving causes fatalities," he said.
He also quipped that as a past employee of Riverside Oaks Golf Course, Ms Henley would've seen first-hand the ill effects of alcohol on many a drunken golfer.
The magistrate noted that Ms Henley claimed to have only had two drinks at the work function, held at the London Hotel, but he warned that alcohol could be "biased" in effecting women more than men due to their generally smaller body mass.
Ms Henley told The Daily Telegraph she was relieved to have kept her licence because she would not able to get to and from her workplace in the Eastern Suburbs by public transport.
She said she was in danger of having her licence suspended for a minimum of three months if Mr Maloney had not taken her remote address into account.
"I really need my licence, especially living out here. "It would be too hard to get anywhere. There are no buses at all that come past my house and the nearest train station is Mulgrave, at least 20 minutes away." Ms Henley said she has never caught a taxi home to Cattai because the fare, about $175, is too costly. "I've never been in trouble before. This is my first offence. I know I'm really lucky."
Dalgarno Response - "We are all but speechless! You couldn't make this stuff up! I mean you got a lame 'punter' who obviously has a drinking problem, because though she had no means to get home, except by taxi or car, she still had to have a drink... couldn't say no! Smells a bit 'addictive' to me! To add to that she risks not only her own life, but the life of the public which even the clueless Judge states, and even with the Taxi option, she still takes her car! If that wasn't insane enough, this clueless Judge let's her off. So here we have two clueless souls tampering yet even more with the lock on Pandora's box... the message is absolutely clear through this precedent! Any lame excuse will do to not merely drink, but drive. If a Policeman let this woman off, he would've lost his job, but a Judge? Will somebody please bounce this dill!
More on the NEWCASTLE Experiment! As you're previously read there has been some brave community action from Tony Brown and others in the heart of the Newcastle 'Nightmare', sorry 'Nightscene'... There have been dozens of articles and actions, And even though the Askew Report completely backs the evidence that... earlier closing, fewer licenses and better regulation of RSA, WILL reduce violence and other anti-social behaviour, the plebs in power are balking... But whilst they all wax philosophical about 'interests', Tony is in the grinder. The following is an excerpt from the Newcastle Herald
"Attacks on Newcastle pub lockout campaigner"
BY DAN PROUDMAN AND MATTHEW KELLY 29 May, 2010 04:00 AM (c) The Herald
He has suffered death threats, had his car damaged, had eggs thrown at his house and reported more than a dozen attacks on his property to police. Now, community activist Tony Brown has had a crude website set up in an attack against his three-year crusade to shut down late-night pubs. More than 160 people joined the Facebook site, "Tony Brown, Your (sic) a f--- head! Leave Our nightlife alone!!!", after it was uploaded on the social networking site on Thursday afternoon.
The page was set up just hours after a hearing of the Office of the Liquor, Gaming and Racing on an appeal against trading restrictions in Hamilton. Although reluctant to speak up about the campaign against him because he did not want to give his tormentors any credit, Mr Brown said he became aware of the website when his teenage daughter told him."It is really appalling that it has come to having my daughter in tears because her dad is being slagged off," Mr Brown said."This sort of stuff has been going on for three years - we are under siege here. You can't sleep, you don't know when the next egg or rock is coming from."
Mr Brown said he has made more than a dozen reports to police about malicious damage to his house and cars. He gets hurled pre-dawn abuse threatening to kill him before burnouts are done outside his house. On Sunday, he received a death threat over the phone, and on Tuesday the hoons were back outside his house. Inner Newcastle resident Professor Rob Clancy said he was appalled at the cyber-attack on Mr Brown.
"The attacks that he has had to endure from vested interests in this town are deeply disturbing," he said. Professor Clancy, who previously researched the relationship between alcohol consumption and liver damage, said the city's leaders appeared reluctant to act on the issue of excess alcohol consumption. "The supply of alcohol at licensed premises is one of the few things that can be controlled but our leaders appear determined to ignore it," he said.
Media Release from a true community champion Tony Brown, who at great personal, financial and material cost, has stood up for embattled residences, against Industry thugs and Government indifference...Media Release: NSW Govt delay in Hamilton hotels decision may have contributed to violent death of man in Newcastle
The residents group that instigated the Hamilton hotels complaint in February this year have expressed profound sadness with the reported violent death of a man (king hit?) in Beaumont Street early this morning.
This occurred near closing time of a number of late trading hotels and within an OLGR declared “hot spot”.
We can’t help but feel that the NSW government’s unacceptable extraordinary delay in the Hamilton hotels case may have been at least, an indirect contributing factor.
It has been over 14 weeks since the final complaint conference (12 August 2009 – 6 hotels) compared with the former independent Tribunal taking less than a week to release the more complex (15 hotels) landmark Newcastle shorter hours decision that has reduced alcohol fuelled violence in the nearby CBD by 30%.
The Police, local OLGR enforcement officers’ and residents’ common calls for tougher measures against Hamilton hotels to reduce alcohol related violence have been totally frustrated and ignored by the NSW government. We may be witnessing the tragic predictable consequences for such wilful and indefensible neglect and the loss of independent and open hotel complaint proceedings.
We believe this unconscionable delay in the Hamilton hotel complaint is politically driven to please and placate the powerful liquor industry lobby that is now the NSW Government’s largest political donor following the Premier’s announcing ban on developer donations.
This death follows on from the Manly Police boss’s recent public criticism of a government decision not to reduce Manly hotel trading hours. http://manly-daily.whereilive.com.au/news/story/early-closing-plea-for-plan/
How many times have OLGR officials been directed to rewrite the Hamilton decision to keep the AHA onside?
Tony Brown
Spokesperson Coalition of Newcastle inner city resident groups, small businesses and concerned citizens Contact: 49252277 0427252860
Global Nightmare
About 1 in 25 deaths and 5% of years lived with disability are attributable to alcohol consumption
Summarised FROM The Lancet Vol 373, Issue 9682, Pages 2223 - 2233, 27 June 2009, Global burden of disease and injury and economic cost attributable to alcohol use and alcohol-use disorders
Q: Alcohol consumption worldwide : What are the negative health impacts and what is the real cost to society in the 21st century?
A: About 1 in 25 deaths and 5% of years lived with disability are attributable to alcohol consumption, and that’s only the tip of the iceberg when exploring the ways in which alcohol either causes or is a contributing factor in hundreds of documented human diseases.
In several countries where data has been analysed in detail, the combined costs of health care, law enforcement, direct and indirect costs associated with alcohol consumption soak up between 1% and 3% of Gross Domestic Product, a significant amount in any economist’s estimation!
While alcohol has been a part of human culture since the beginning of recorded history (1) and almost all societies that consume alcohol show related health and social problems, the industrialisation of production and globalisation of marketing and promotion of alcohol have increased both the amount of worldwide consumption and the harms associated with it.
In response to the significant increase worldwide in harms associated with alcohol consumption, the World Health Assembly has passed several resolutions outlining the public health problems caused by alcohol (2) and a range of proven strategies to reduce the harmful use of alcohol. (3)
In a recent paper published in the UK medical journal, The Lancet, a distinguished team of doctors and researchers have given an insight into how alcohol is acting as a significant risk factor contributing to the global burden of disease and injury. They have shown that the net effect of alcohol consumption on health is detrimental, with an estimated 3·8% of all global deaths and 4·6% of global disability-adjusted life-years attributable to alcohol. (4)
They have also presented strong evidence demonstrating that the disease burden is closely related to average volume of alcohol consumption. Research data has established that there are more than 30 Internationally Classified Diseases (ICDs) which include alcohol in their name or definition, indicating that alcohol consumption is a necessary cause, and there are more than 200 ICDs in which alcohol is part of a component cause. (5)
While alcohol is linked to many disease categories, alcohol-use disorders, cancer, cardiovascular disease, liver cirrhosis, and injury are the most important disease categories for which alcohol has been shown to be a causal factor. Supposed beneficial effects from regular low consumption of alcohol in reducing the incidence of diabetes and ischaemic cardiovascular disease have been controversial. (6) Some research has shown that the benefits are restricted to older people in regions of the world where alcohol is regularly consumed lightly to moderately without heavy drinking occasions. (7) In other regions, where this is not the case, no net protective effect on ischaemic heart disease is expected. Even in regions in which the net effect on cardiovascular disease is beneficial, the overall effect of alcohol on the burden of disease is detrimental. (4)
Globally, the effect of alcohol on burden of disease is about the same size as that of smoking in 2000, but it is greatest in developing countries. (8) Current global data shows that the alcohol-attributable burden has not fallen since then, but probably increased. (4) This finding is not surprising since global consumption is increasing, especially in the most populous countries of India and China. (9)
Based on the evidence of current worldwide social and global marketing trends, the dismal conclusion is that we face a large and increasing alcohol-attributable burden at a time when we know more than ever about which strategies can effectively and cost-effectively control alcohol-related harms. (10,11)
New researchby the Roy Morgan Research group completed in 2009 reveals some concerning realities including...
* Nearly two and half million Aussies had their first sip of alcohol before their 11th birthday
* Over half the population at 12.1 milliion Australians are not aware of the new national guidelines on alcohol which among other data, tell us that the safest option is that children under 18 shouldn't drink at all, and more, to delay their first drink as long as possible.
Read the article (This is a PDF file and requires Adobe Acrobat to view)
Media Snapshots!
Newspaper: Herald Sun Article: “Boozy trip turns into nightmare”
Dowsley, Betts & Roberts (October 29, 2009)
The Dalgarno Response:
‘Footy Trip Shock’ reads the header of the article posted in today’s Herald Sun! Really, shock? Many people reading the malicious accounts of violence, vandalism, public nuisance and ‘hoon behaviour’ are probably in the same boat I’m in... I’m disturbed and wearied by it, but hardly shocked anymore. What is tragic is that these ‘activities’ it seems are standard fare for many (males in particular) in the emerging generation, whose collective psyche’s are being drowned in a lethal cocktail of meaningless, pop-culture veneration of pleasure (at all costs), and of course the ever destructive and easily accessible ingredient of alcohol.
However, this event really is deeply disturbing for another vile component... the alleged pack rape – the absolutely reprehensible violation of two young women - and not by seasoned deviants, but by mere boys! Boys, it would appear who have little means to understand what constitutes real masculinity. Or do they?
Are they merely mimicking the tacit messages spewing out in our current amoral cultural context? I’ve spent nearly three decades working with youth and young adults and watched a progressive decay of any semblance of order in what it means for a boy to transition into ‘manhood’. Of course, the ‘blokey’ clichés have always persisted... you know the ‘beer, the brawl, the bird’. Getting drunk, ‘getting some’ and being able to ‘handle yourself’ have been perpetuated. However, at best they are sad echoes of a dysfunction that simply persisted because the other models, genuine rites of passage, where ignored, until they were lost.
People should be shocked and appalled at the events, but for anyone who cares to look beyond the ‘blame and shame’ mode can see that there are some very real reasons (not excuses) for this – and we as a community have to shoulder much of that responsibility.
The prominent social commentator Richard Eckersley wrote in his book ‘Well and Good” morality, meaning and happiness”, that ... “Young people have a particular vulnerability to the failure of the modern Western Culture to do well what cultures are supposed to do: provide webs of meaning that shape the way people see the world, locate themselves within it and behave in it.”
Our culture, in its pursuit of personal liberty has unwittingly embraced the mantra of “Do what you feel” and with the now seldom heard caveat of – “oh, by the way, as long as that doesn’t hurt anyone else”. We reinforce this with a relativist framework that dictates whatever you, as an individual believes is good, is right and right is true! We don’t look to external elements, patterns, models or institutions as signposts for conduct, as the young are told ‘you do what’s right for you’. ‘Old’ means useless and wisdom is found only in the pop-culture shaped peer solidarity that says ‘this generation knows all needs, to do its ‘thing’’.
Now into this unrestrained melting pot with an unsecured psyche and a developing brain physiology ill equipped to manage sensuality driving stimuli, you throw pornography and Peer pressure. Now you have a testosterone charged weapon ready to fire.... all it needs now is the most insidious of triggers to set it off – alcohol!
Of course the short answer is to remove the booze and the porn (by the way, porn is whatever ‘objectifies’ a human being. Whatever message or medium that reduces a person to being merely a one dimensional sexual object that is to be acquired and ‘used’ - is what constitutes pornography!) There is no doubt that by doing this we will see a real change in our culture, but we need to do much more.
Will these recent shocking events stir us into action? What will be our response? I concur with Peter Schwab’s comment that ‘Violence against anyone, let alone women, is just totally unacceptable”. It most certainly is “TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE”... but what now?
We certainly need to educate! We also need to legislate –to protect! We can and perhaps should introduce another ‘law’. Yet in all our reactions we must not stop there, we must go deeper. We, as a culture need to look beyond the outcome based responses and look into the ‘why’ this is continuing to happen. We all must make some more serious attempts to help this struggling ‘Generation Next’ find if not the best, then at the very least, a less destructive path.
I’ll leave you with a profound exhortation from a since departed elder statesmen Edmund Burke...
"Men are qualified for liberty in exact proportion to their disposition to put moral chains upon their own appetites... Society cannot exist, unless a controlling power upon will and appetite be placed somewhere; and the less of it there is within, the more there must be without. It is ordained in the eternal constitution of things, that men of intemperate minds cannot be free. Their passions forge their fetters.”
Shane Varcoe – Executive Director, Dalgarno Institute.
Research finds many women need alcohol to enjoy sex From: Herald Sun September 24, 2009
MILLIONS of women drink alcohol before having sex because they lack confidence in their bodies, a study reveals.
Almost half of those questioned said they preferred sex while under the influence of alcohol because it helped them lose their inhibitions and be more adventurous.
Researchers, who surveyed 3000 women aged 18-50, found on average they slept with eight men, but were drunk with at least five, and on two occasions couldn't remember the man's name the next day.
Four out of 10 had been tipsy when sleeping with a partner for the first time.
The study found 75 per cent of women liked to drink before getting into bed with their husband or boyfriend, and 6 per cent had never had sex sober. More than half claimed drinking with a prospective partner was "part of the dating process" so were a bit drunk when they had sex
for complete article go to http://www.heraldsun.com.au/lifestyle/the-other-side/research-finds-many-women-need-alcohol-to-enjoy-sex/story-e6frfhk6-1225778898667 (reprinted for eductional purposes only) (c) Herald Sun
Dalgarno Comment!
Wow! No, that's not a 'wow' of shock or surprise at the data, rather a WOW based on the amazement at what is under the veneer of the so called 'sophisticated and liberated culture'. Our organisation has been party to helping, amongst others, women discover that they are more than a mere 'sexual' or 'domestic' function. In fact, as an organisation, we have started with the premise that all human beings are created in the image of God, and as 'Image bearers' have incredible, remarkable worth that goes way beyond the shallowness of our current 'if you look sexy you're worth something' culture. Hey, we get it, if all that you are immersed in tells you that if you 'aint' sexy and prepared to present 'sexual' you're behind the game. What is staggering is after 40 years of so called 'femme liberty' we are back to woman feeling undervalued as a relationship building partner because they believe their 'bodies' or 'sexual prowess' don't rate! Come on people, we are smarter than this, aren't we?
"Grog blame lies with us" by Rebecca Wilson
(c) From: Herald Sun September 18, 2009 12:00AM (reprinted for educational purposes only) http://www.heraldsun.com.au/opinion/grog-blame-lies-with-us/story-e6frfhqf-1225776315542
I WAS invited as a "grown-up" to an 18-year-old's birthday party last weekend. The small group of parents who braved the acceptance of an invitation to such an event was quickly separated from the teenage group by the young hostess, who really did not want her style cramped by a bunch of wine-sipping old fogies.
Most of the young men present were still at the awkward stage I call Transfer To Adulthood. They rarely let down their guard, say very little and are still afraid to mingle with females. Young women of exactly the same age are quite the opposite. They have more front than Myer, talk under wet cement and drink vodka -- lots of it.
Not much has changed about men who drink. Over several generations, their habits appear to have stayed pretty static -- a couple of beers several times a week and a big night on Saturday have been the norm in post-war Australia.
Most of my son's mates fit the mould perfectly. They rarely stray from beer (and that is not saying they always remain sober). Young males binge after a game of footy on Saturday, just like their dads did. They still get into trouble -- like their dads did.
They are far from perfect but they are also not exactly surprising when it comes to their first forays into alcohol.
Young women are different. Their drinking habits have changed so dramatically in three generations that 18-year-old females now regularly out-drink their male counterparts. Their first experiment with alcohol is often earlier than a male's and it is a lot more potent than beer or wine.
It is not unusual for two women to share a bottle of vodka on a night out. I have seen a young woman bring a six-pack of Bacardi Breezers to a party and drink them all herself. Girls know how to pack a punch into a fruit punch -- with copious quantities of vodka and white rum mixed in to ensure they write themselves off pretty early in the night.
At another 18th birthday, I stumbled over an 18-year-old girl in the host's back yard. She was semi-conscious -- her beautiful face covered in vomit and her pretty dress torn. She had been drinking straight vodka.
This is not meant to be a judgment call on the young women of today. Quite the opposite. These are observations that alarm me and confirm what I have suspected for some time. Women of my generation have a lot for which to claim credit. We have paved the way for workplace reform, equal pay and cracking the glass ceiling.
But we have a lot for which we should be ashamed, too. We are the generation that changed the way women use, and abuse, alcohol. Let's cast our minds back to when our mothers were a little younger than us (I am 48). Many were cast in the '50s housewife mould -- stay-at-home women who relished their roles as full-time wives and mothers.
My best friend's mum had four young girls under five, but insisted on bathing, dressing and putting make-up on before her husband arrived home from work. She would be waiting, newly preened, at the front door with a cocktail for Dad. Her treat was a single shot of brandy before donning the apron again to tackle acid hour.
MY own mother, who was forced back to full-time work early because of a marriage break, would never dream of having wine or anything stronger in the house. For her, Saturday was a treat when she would take herself out with a girlfriend for a glass of moselle.
Our generation (late baby boomers) changed all of that. With the onset of equality came the realisation that we, too, could indulge in more than the occasional drink. We quickly adopted the European model, believing a glass or two of wine every night was a sophisticated method of relaxation.
It was a great stress relief, we would tell ourselves. The more we took on -- marriage, full-time work, children, the juggle -- the more we deserved a drink or three at night.
One girlfriend of mine confessed at a girls' dinner a decade ago that her two glasses had become a bottle because her husband was away working so much. My own husband was constantly away, so it was easy to fall into the trap of either drinking alone or doing it with friends in the pub after work. For every one of us, our mother's single glass had become more than half a bottle a night.
We are now raising a whole new generation of modern women. They outsmart boys in their final year of high school, top the state in everything, including maths, and play males off a break in social situations.
Quite simply, there is nothing they can't do -- including drinking blokes under the table.
THEY have watched their mothers drink since they were toddlers. The only difference is their choice of drink. Alcopops are perfect because of their sweetness. When they became too expensive, girls worked out pretty quickly that it was the vodka in these sweet bottles of rocket fuel that was making such a quick impact on their sobriety.
One thing is certain from all of this -- we have a massive problem on our hands that was of our own making.
Nobody can blame these young women for taking what they have seen in their own homes one step further.
It is what we did. Our biggest regret could well be that we did not stop at one like our mums did.
"Drinking at work over, bar the shouting" by Natasha Bita | September 14, 2009 Article from: The Australian (reprinted for educational purposes only) for complete article go to http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,26068695-2702,00.html
"A SHOUT after work may be on the way out, as health authorities try to recruit big-brother bosses to curtail staff drinking habits. A new report on the social aspects of Australians' drinking, commissioned by the federal Department of Health and Ageing, reveals that...
* 6.6 per cent of workers who drink alcohol have showed up to work drunk in a 12-month period.
* One in 10 workers reported that they usually drank alcohol in the workplace
* nearly 9per cent drank at "risky" levels at least once a week..
One in six workers has reported physical abuse at work by a colleague under the influence of alcohol or drugs, the report found, while one in seven suffered verbal abuse. "Due to the impact of alcohol use on workplace safety and productivity, employers are likely to be motivated to support interventions," the report, obtained by The Australian through Freedom of Information, says. "Australia has largely overlooked the potential of the workplace as a setting in which to implement cost-effective strategies to prevent and address risky drinking patterns."
The report says peer-group pressure from colleagues may encourage even teetotaller workers to hit the bottle."While consumption of alcohol at work may be actively discouraged for safety reasons, workers may be pressured to join co-workers in regular 'end of the working day' drinking rituals," it says."In some work settings, workers who do not normally drink in their own leisure time may find it expected of them by their colleagues or workplace."
The report found that 44 per cent of the Australian workforce drinks above the safe level recommended by the National Health and Research Council, "at least occasionally". The report labels Australia's drinking culture as "calculated hedonism". It says 61 per cent of all alcohol purchased is consumed during binge-drinking sessions. The report finds a strong link between alcohol and aggression and warns that alcohol increases the risk of unsafe sex and sexual coercion."
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