Synthehol, anyone?

[denny]

http://jscms.jrn.columbia.edu/cns/2006-05-02/brumback-gooddrunk

Interesting. Booze that doesn't destroy your liver, doesn't give you hangovers, and that you can take a pill to sober up from before you drive home.

What's really interesting is the way that it's probably going to be treated as a hardcore drug by lawmakers - just shows how much alcohol gets away with due to having been around so long.


(yoinked from samoth)

Comments

[libellum.livejournal.com]

I find it hard to believe that a drug would have no side effects if used excessively. I share your cynicism about the probably legal stance though. There's an idea in that article that fun shouldn't be free - that drugs with no side-effects are somehow cheating, and therefore dangerous. I'm not entirely sure I agree. It's not like the negative consequences of alcohol consumption do dissuade people from abusing it. The social problems of alcohol - drink driving and the other results of lowered inhibitions - are social problems and should be tackled seperately from the health risks to the individual. Or am I missing something?

[dennyd.livejournal.com]

... that drugs with no side-effects are somehow cheating ...

Hah, yes.

drink driving and the other results of lowered inhibitions - are social problems and should be tackled separately

Aye. We're discussing this on IRC (work? what work?), and I'm finding it hard to judge whether people would be likely to take the antidote and sober up so they could have the convenience of driving home after a night out, given that I already choose to stay sober for that reason (amongst others).

If people did choose to do so, then it would seem to me that the societal problems (drunken stabbings outside clubs, etc) might be diminished due to the lower numbers of drunkards on the streets after hours.

[bluecassandra.livejournal.com]

"that drugs with no side-effects are somehow cheating"

Like sex with no risk of pregnancy, which we also know from anti abortionists is Bad and Evil.

[dennyd.livejournal.com]

Are anti-abortionists necessarily anti-contraception too?

[(Anonymous)]

There's a significant chunk of the pro lifers, mostly the religious rightwingers, who when presented with women getting pregnant because of contraception failure or accidents ro whatever, harrump alot and say that if you are going to have sex you should be damn sure you can deal with the consequences, and that anyway you should only be having sex in a marriage that is happy to support children . . .it's all a bit catholic.

Be very happy that you have never run across these people. Why anyone would think making someone have a child as a punishment for enjoying themselves is a good thing for said child is beyond me.

[bluecassandra.livejournal.com]

Oops, that was me. Oh, and by catholic I mean traditional fire and brimstone original sin guilt catholicism, not dave-style catholicism :)

[ciphergoth.livejournal.com]

What do religions that prohibit alcohol make of it, I wonder?

[hythloday.livejournal.com]

Islam generally considers all intoxicants haraam, so they probably wouldn't be any happier about this than alcohol.