"Oh, good grief"

That's what my husband said when I told him that tonight in clubs in Reading police will be doing random drug testing. They'll use a high tech device that costs £40,000 to detect traces of drugs on one's hands. If you're caught drug-handed, as it were, you won't be arrested but will be banned from the club -- for one night. Ohh, scary, that'll convince people to stop using drugs!

Seriously, all that will happen is people who get busted will move on to another club. I doubt there are many of the testing machines, and there may only be one. It will be used in several clubs, but I'm guessing the cops will move from place to place -- so once you've been caught at one club, move on to another club before the police get there (as it sounds like they will be testing before you get in the club). Or it will just convince those who lack the imagination to have a good night without using drugs to wait until they get in the club to take drugs and fry more of their precious few remaining brain cells.

And so what if you don't use drugs and you get into the club? Why, then you'll drink a dozen pints or alcopops and act stupid! You'll throw up, fall down, bust your head, get in a fight or have sex with someone that would normally repulse you. Thank goodness your traditional fun night out won't be affected by that silly drug machine! Thank goodness you still don't have to be smart enough to be able to have fun without obliterating your senses! And thank goodness you won't have to be bothered by those idiots who act stupid because of drugs. You can party in the assurance that all the stupid behavior around you is due to excessive alcohol consumption, and you'll know all is right with the world.

Of course not everyone drinks themselves senseless when they go out, but I think a problem remains with those who do, even when you take drugs out of the equation. With all the problems of excessive drinking, from health to crime, you'd think there'd be more campaigns encouraging people to drink moderately. That seems to be a sacred cow no one wants to butcher.

Excessive drinking is bad. Who knew?

The British like to drink. A lot. Or at least that's what people say. It's just one of those stereotypes that came about because it was like, true, or something. As one British friend told me, the Brits who don't like to drink went to America centuries ago. It's not as though Americans don't drink, it's just not as widely accepted that the only way to have a good night out is to drink enough to forget where you are, who you are, and how to make your legs work.

So today a lot of UK papers ran stories about how it's not just lower-income people who pound back the pints, but the middle-class do it too (gasp!). They do it with wine, but they're still tipping a bottle back a bit more than experts recommend is wise.

Is this really shocking news? The heavy drinking culture seems like a source of national pride more than a cause for concern to some people. Seriously, commentaries scoffed at any warnings about excessive alcohol consumption. What, tell us alcohol is bad? How dare you! There are other problems out there, so just ignore this one, OK?

Some said it was just another case of the government telling you what to do. I don't agree. The government would be telling you what to do if they banned alcohol or if they sent people to your door to get all up in your business and see what you're drinking and chastising you for it. But merely warning the public of a problem is more of an obligation than an intrusion.

People don't want to hear that what they like is harmful, but they need to know so they can at least try to make informed decisions. Americans may not want to hear that they should eat a healthy diet and exercise more, but it's important that they know, even if too many fail to act on that knowledge (a problem Britain is sharing more and more).

If you want to ignore the warnings, go ahead and do what you want. It's just a guide, a bit of advice. Few of us make the perfect, healthy choice all the time. Do what you will; I'm just saying burying your head in the sand doesn't make everything all better. Although, ironically, a few glasses of wine might make it seem all better ... hmm, there's a dilemma.