Tyler Baze - put the whiskey down, son

[Port Conway Lane]

Originally Posted by GenuineRisk

I don't think anyone here thinks that alcoholism is a reason to not face consequences, especially for actions that are illegal, which includes driving under the influence. I have no problem with people ending up in jail for DUI or losing their licenses. And not because I think it's a deterrent- because alcoholism is a disease, it's not going to respond to punishment. How many people have repeated DUI's? I think they should lose their licenses and serve jail time because they're a menace behind the wheel.

So of course Baze should face consequences. But to assume it's just a character flaw really ignores what alcoholism is.

To me if it is a disease for one it is a disease for all or it is a choice people make. I reacted to my drinking only when the unthinkable happened. As I stated before Others aren't as fortunate. Some people don't give a flying **** and some have a death wish. I have empathy for anyone who has lost a loved one to alchoholism and my belief as to whether I have a disease or a choice is based only on my personal experience and no one elses.

[GenuineRisk]

Originally Posted by Port Conway Lane

To me if it is a disease for one it is a disease for all or it is a choice people make. I reacted to my drinking only when the unthinkable happened. As I stated before Others aren't as fortunate. Some people don't give a flying **** and some have a death wish. I have empathy for anyone who has lost a loved one to alchoholism and my belief as to whether I have a disease or a choice is based only on my personal experience and no one elses.

Drinking is a choice, alcoholism is not. And it manifests in so many different ways that I think it's hard for those of us who are accustomed to diseases being easily identifiable and manifesting pretty much the same way in everyone. The four condition usually used to diagnose a disease are that it be primary (have recognizable symptoms), chronic (continues if not treated), progressive (gets worse over time) and be fatal. I feel alcoholism fits the bill.

The frustrating thing being that it is possible to arrest the disease by stopping drinking, which is the easiest thing in the world for those who don't feel a compulsion to drink.

There are those who would say you're not an alcoholic at all if you're capable of drinking now, and those who would say you're a functional alcoholic, which is to say it's not interfering with your life. As far as I'm concerned, as long as you're not hurting anyone, it's no one's business but yours whether you're drinking or not.

Baze, of course, is actually hurting people, and needs to be held responsible for his actions, but the state of being an alcoholic is not an action. Either way, I do hope he gets help. Bailey said that after he stopped drinking, it was like races were suddenly in slow motion- with a clear head, he felt had all the time in the world to think about what he was going to do during the race. I always thought that was a neat image.