CHRIS GEN picks up his pipe and slippers and notes that if we don’t curb Scotland’s teen drinking problem, a lot of parents will be giving their offspring a few weeks at the Betty Ford Centre for Christmas.
The other day during a phone conversation with my dad, I found myself lapse into a fit of manic laughter. My younger sister, who is still at the tender age of 15, had a request for him. She wanted to have “the girls” over for pre-drinks and cocktails before they went out to a party…
….Once again folks: Fifteen.
I’m not deluded nor am I a hypocrite. I used to drink at that age but nowhere near to the extent these quasi-adults do; and when I did, these secret binges were well planned and executed with such stealth that James Bond himself would be utterly flabbergasted that the British Intelligence hadn’t scoped me up.
Binge drinking, particularly amongst under eighteens, is a massive problem in Scotland. You only need to venture out at the weekends to know this is true. Scores of teen’s zigzagging from side-to-side, marching down the street like an intoxicated troupe of little drunken monkeys whilst belching obscenity after obscenity.
What’s worrying is these kids believe it’s the social norm to act like this from such a worryingly young age. They’re devout in the belief that the way they’re acting is acceptable; that they’re able to handle their drink, but the disturbing thing is they aren’t. Quite often alcohol puts people in potential morally compromising situations not to mention blatant danger – situations that children shouldn’t be putting themselves in. They lack the emotional maturity to handle them.
Now I know a lot of parents will protest. They’ll point the finger at someone else’s child whilst living in constant state of ignorance and denial ; but you have to look closer to home or, more accurately, your offspring’s Facebook to Twitter page. There you’ll find dozens of photos of them drunkenly staggering around, looking so messy that the Red Cross wouldn’t even offer them a coffee. Gruelling pictures of drunken teens accompanied by captions like “Two-day hangovers #YOLO” and sporting no shame at all that they’ve put themselves in these situations.
Now I’m sure you’ll have seen this “#Yolo” creeping about Twitter. It’s a phrase that was coined by ‘artist’ Drake and it means ‘You only live once’ and since its conception it’s become a radical excuse for teens to partake in random shenanigans and behave like an absolute fanny. Yesterday I saw this gem of a tweet: “Just peed on someone’s doorstep whilst they were in the house” #YOLO – the perverse mind of someone who’s 14.
How about this: Decided my life was too sheltered and my daily routine lacked the challenges required to become a stronger, well-rounded person, so I’ve decided to study abroad in the hope that’ll help me gain a better insight to foreign cultures and open my eyes to the wonder of the world #YOLO.
Oh, what’s that? It’s more than 140 characters therefore a completely unrealistic and implausible tweet? Well, how about this: Going to take up self-defence classes and embark on a vigilante, superhero adventure and purge the street of crimes and protect innocents! ‘#YOLO. Comic exaggeration aside, I can assure that any parent reading that on their child’s Twitter feed would completely shocked by the language used, pictures uploaded and what they get up to.
It’s certainly a problem that’s not going to sober itself up. We need a nationwide rehabilitation and ice-cold glass of reality poured over our heads. There is absolutely nothing wrong with enjoying yourself every once and a while but these teens need to realise the long-term risks of it. More than 67% of young people who start drinking before the age of 15 will try an illicit drug. They’re likely to form alcohol addictions, get really bad grades at school, and put themselves in risky sexual or violent situations. You aren’t cats. You don’t have nine lives. You only have one, so make the most of it.
I’m aware that I’m sounding old before my time, but I’ve seen the damage alcohol can do when it’s abused and something needs to be done about it. ‘YOLO’ should be doing everything you can do in life so that when you’re older you look back and have no regrets. Parents, you need to wake up and make your child smell the coffee.