Thursday, January 05, 2006

Canadian Rum Rationing

Via Rhodey:
The way to get free liquor? Answer: Turn homeless.

Via Reuters: "Giving homeless alcoholics a regular supply of booze may improve their health and their behavior, the Canadian Medical Association Journal said in a study published on Tuesday."

Rumor has it that many college students plan on "becoming regular homeless" on weekends.
True, there is good cause for cynicism about this sort of thing. Just giving out liquor is stupid. On the other hand liquor is a drug that you can't go without once you have formed the addiction. It will kill you. You have to come down slowly or your nervous system can't cope. This may be why so many homeless people are on the edge of sanity.

The military has had a lot of trouble with this in the past, especially in reserve units. Sarge leads his men into the wilderness on extended recon, then one develops the DTs when his liquor supply runs out. If they can't get him alcohol or back to civilization in time, he won't make it.

Now I'm not saying that we should start handing out liquor to homeless people. But there is a controlled setting wheere giving them liquor (in order to ween them off it) might be a very good idea.

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