[lit-ideas] Re: Is alcoholism a disease or a life-style choice?
- From: Omar Kusturica <omarkusto@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Mon, 29 Mar 2004 20:45:45 -0800 (PST)
There is always the other side of the case. (Though I
am not big on whisky.) O.K.
http://www.maltmadness.com/
--- Judith Evans <judithevans001@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
wrote:
> One point. Some drugs (e.g.) are more addictive than
> others. Some
> benzodiazepines (to be more specific) are more
> addictve than others. albeit
> prescribing practices and directions for use also
> play a part.
>
> Judy Evans
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: lit-ideas-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> [mailto:lit-ideas-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]On Behalf Of
> Donal McEvoy
> Sent: 28 March 2004 08:14
> To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: [lit-ideas] Re: Is alcoholism a disease or
> a life-style choice?
>
>
> Thank you and to 'phatic' [are you Greek with a
> weight problem? if so, Oprah
> has the perfect thing]: both posts were interesting.
> It is perhaps no
> surprise that where I disagree is perhaps that I
> think this topic interests
> me more than bothers me.
>
> For example, a handle on so-called 'addictive
> behaviours' like alcoholism
> might provide interesting insights into other
> behaviours less addictive [eg.
> voting for Bush].
>
>
> --- BOROWIK LUCIENE <luborowik@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> wrote: >
> >
> > > my understanding was that there is no evidence
> that alcoholics [itself a
> > > loaded term] have any greater psychopathology
> than the average *once
> they
> > > stop drinking*. This indicates the causal arrow
> points the other way:
> > > excessive drinking causes psychopathology.
> >
> > --------------
> > Many physicians are prone to simply quote
> statistics as evidences.
> > Surprisingly, even these physicians know that
> statistics are not
> evidences;
> > methods can vary, and results can be used to
> justify bias, etc. Of course
> > physicians have their own opinion on the issue,
> but quoting statistics is
> > just a simple way to keep us on a safe ground.
>
> I agree except for the point "statistics are not
> evidences": they are, and
> they can be highly significant, though they need to
> be handled with care. Of
> course, they can be abused so they are little more
> than damned lies. But
> what
> we want is them to be better used than this.
>
> I have had a number of interesting conversations
> with psychiatrists on this
> issue [one while he was intermittently snoking coke;
> but I wasn't offended -
> he did offer me some]. Er...lest you get the wrong
> idea, these were
> 'ordinary' conversations.
>
> Re statistics one told me: 'They never tell you
> about the ten percent'.
>
> What?
>
> 'There's always about ten percent in any study of
> this kind that buck the
> trend'.
>
> What's the significance of that?
>
> Lighting his umpteenth cigarette and downing his
> pint, he whispered: 'I
> believe I am in the ten percent'.
>
> Donal
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
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