Girl, 16, drinks to the death

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Tefhel

It pains me to say it, but I completely agree with you.
I feel sorry she died, as I would for anyone, but it was 100% her fault - she acted stupid, abused alcohol and she paid the ultimate price.

I think there should be more articles like this in the paper, that way teens will see what can come of abusing alcohol in such a way.

I agree with this completely. Too many people think that alcohol isn't bad for them, that it won't kill them. The reality is it can and it will if you abuse it.

Reply 81

ledleyking123

It's a ******* joke to see all uni students drink regularly, liver damage will happen to them soon it seems.

Reply 82

kultist

WiBurn

It needs to be taxed into oblivion in my opinion.

They tried doing the same to cigarettes in canada. They reversed their decision within half a month when the tobacco grey market simply exploded, smuggling boomed, lorries with cigs in were being hijacked and the usage rates stayed exactly the same.

Keep in mind this would be even worse with alcohol, which can be brewed in ones own home. Also keep in mind that sometimes idiots selling homemade alcohol with think it wise to add methylated spirits or antifreeze to lower the cost, and in poorer countries a batch of that will kill 50-60 people.

I'd rather a few people tragically OD'd because they hadn't been taught to drink than a lot of people die of meths poisoning.

somethingbeautiful

Controversial but imo alcohol should be made illegal. I've seen it wreck too many lives.

Wow. I take it you didn't study history past year nine then?

I have seen and heard a good few people my age advocating for the criminalization of alcohol. It pains me that people my age, intelligent enough to get decent A levels and often go to decent institutions of higher learning will espouse ideas which are as wrongheaded, naive and simply dumb as that.

I could explain exactly why that is such a terminally stupid idea, but for now I will simply say that we (well, the Yanks) tried your stupid dumb idea and it didn't frigging work.

I don't think saying that it simply 'didn't frigging work' quite does how badly it didn't frigging work justice. It was a failure of epic proportions. It set a benchmark that future failures of social policy and law enforcement would be judged against. The whole episode of prohibition, those long fourteen years were a titanic failboat filled with AIDS, butthurt and clusterf**k.

Criminal orginizations such as the mafia were previously small affairs, of whom most members were not doing much better than the average working stiff. Prohibition was to the Mafia what the ninetees were to technology companies. They had a business boom. The gigantic influx of money that prohibition related industries like bootlegging caused made organised crime into a veritible giant. The massive amounts of money that made men possessed made joining the mafia hugely attractive, giving families the manpower and funding required for things like extortion, protection rackets, insurance scams, bribery, murder, prostitution and all manner of activities detrimental to society as a whole.

Deaths from alcohol, previously relegated only to winos and those who slept on their backs skyrocketed. Spirits and fortified wines were about the only drinks you could get, due to the ease of smuggling a bottle of vodka instead of a keg of beer. These spirits tended to be ridiculously over proof, and were sometimes adultered with lethal fillers like meths and such.

But let's leave all the peripheral issues aside. Let's ignore the mafia, the public corruption, the poisoning, the unfair treatment of people who only wanted a drink or two, lets leave all that aside.

The number of bars in San Francisco pre-prohibition was about 150000, give or take. I may have added a zero there, but that is not the point. At the tail end of prohibition, the number of speakeasies was an estimated 340000. The number doubled. The drinking rate went insanely high during prohibition. I'll let that sink in.

Prohibition increased the drinking rate. Not 'didn't eliminate drinking', or 'didn't reduce it as much as we would have liked'. It increased it, quite possibly doubled it. On top of all the other terrible things that prohibition did, it failed entirely at the one thing it was supposed to do.

somethingbeautiful

There are also people who are able to take class A/B drugs and not kill themselves - it doesn't mean they should be legalised because of that.
If alcohol had been discovered today it would surely be banned.

This is what i refer to when i lament for my co-teenagers. You have managed to entirely miss, or willfully ignore, the 800lb gorilla in the room. The fact that A/B/C class drugs are all illegal, and loads of people use them, and a good few people die. Be realistic here. Do you really think there are a great number of people who really, really, really want to do drugs but won't because they are illegal? If you're silly enough to think that, you're wrong anyway. Countries like Portugal have decriminalized many drugs, and have found reductions in usage rates and deaths following doing so.

wintersunset

"It doesn't matter who you are, how big you are or if you drink regularly or infrequently - the levels of alcohol found in Rhona's body are recognised to be fatal in people."

half a liter of vodka is fatal? i better start being careful then.

No, learn to read. The levels of alcohol were lethal, not the volume. 0.480 BAC is insane. People generally die at .35.

Peachesishere

I can never have sympathy when it's to do with alcohol and the likes.
I hate it when somone becomes paralytic or is sick all over the place, and everyone else is like 'omgg! poor thing, you alright?' It's their bloody fault, let them clean up the mess themselves ¬_¬

People generally give them help and put them to sleep on their sides and such, because otherwise they do stupid things like sleep on their backs, and die.

warrenpenalver

What is it with this generation and binge drinking??? Why cant these stupid teens understand you dont need to be paraletic to have a good night out.

Is the world these days really that bad you have to be totally out of it on drugs or unconcious due to booze to relax and cope with daily stressors?? is this generation really that psychologically weak???

Pathetic.

As a friend of mine once remarked: "This is somerset. What else is there to do but drink and screw?"

Hal Emmerich

wow, that's why I don't drink cause **** can happen!

I take it you also don't drive or cross the road?

Reply 83

mc_watson87

****** hell, didn't take much to kill her, standard night outs amount, if that.

Reply 84

ledleyking123

I am sorry guys but what is so good about getting drunk. This country is messed up.

Reply 85

kultist

conroe-killed-the-k8-star

Not a popular viewpoint but one I actually agree with.I find it hard to believe someone with the intelligence to get 9 or 10 A* grades wouldn't know better than to drink that much neat vodka unless she was coerced into doing that - which would be a different matter entirely.I'd accept peer pressure to an extent might have happened but she really should have known better.

I agree with the taxation idea but only apply it to off-licences and supermarkets - I'd much rather have people drunk in a bar rather than perhaps at home which would be a less controlled environment.

She wasn't just drinking vodka, she was trying to cadge alcohol from her mates too. You get ridiculously drunk doing that, because you drink too much of whatever you get your hand on, and you immediately go to try find more because the booze might run out. You don't realise you're about to go special olympics until your friends tell you they can't understand what you're saying because you're slurring too much.

Reply 86

somethingbeautiful

kultist

.....

I would have actually read your post and tried to understand your reasoning if you hadn't insulted me.

Reply 87

Ministerdonut

While it would be silly to ban orn make alcohol much more expensive because some people can't control themselves that doesn't mean we can't get tough on those who cause problems. Why should a working man not be able to have a few pints after work with his mates or share a bottle of wine with his missus?

We should stop the stupid licencing laws this Europe obsessed Government brought in across the board. We are not continental Europe and they are stupid to think we are. And the Police should start taking people to cells who are drunk in the street and be up before the judge the next day.There should be zero tolerance. People who are treated in a hospital due to drunkeness should have to pay their medical bills if they can't pay it should come out their benefits. This money should go into the NHS. Any bad behaviour towards staff will mean them being arrested as soon as they are pronounced fit. Taken before a magistrate and heavily punished.

People who drunkenly vandalise peoples property should be birched.

Reply 88

caffee

This article broke my heart a little bit. Only because that could so easily have been me or one of my friends when we were 16... definately have tried to drink half a bottle of neat vodka straight before.
It doesn't matter how many times people tell you about alcohol it isn't until your first couple of times drunk that you realise how horrific being absolutely smashed is. I feel awful for her more then anyone else, she would have had no idea that what she was doing was so stupid, she'd probably had a few and thought everyone else was doing the same. Instead of just warning people about the dangers of drinks, there comes an age where i think it would be better to teach teenagers about drinks. I.e, downing half a bottle of vodka is bad, mix it with a soft drink and have a glass of water in between.

Reply 89

kultist

somethingbeautiful

I would have actually read your post and tried to understand your reasoning if you hadn't insulted me.

If you want to be deliberately myopic, no skin off my back.

But I will say that I didn't exactly insult you. I never claimed you and your ilk were stupid; in fact I said that your type are generally intelligent, perceptive and normal.

I claimed that your ideas were terrible. When it comes to prohibition and related matters, suddenly you lot have the economic wits of the Underpants Gnomes and a level of pragmatism to make General Jack D. Ripper seem downright reasonable.

Huh, lightweight.

... how do you die from half a litre of vodka?

got to be some other factors that contributed to her death? oO

Reply 92

kultist

dzeh

... how do you die from half a litre of vodka?

got to be some other factors that contributed to her death? oO

She didn't just drink a half litre of vodka. She had a half litre of vodka after nicking bits of her mates' drinks all night long.

Reply 93

GlamCanyon

sandeep90

Dumb bitch.

You're so cool with your cutting remarks.

How old are you OP?

Reply 94

Joseph90

Bubbles*de*Milo

You're so idiotic, or a troll. I'm leaning towards the latter.

You're an intelligent person. Provide an argument to prove what your saying rather than making an insult.

Reply 95

Kreuzuerk

Joseph90

You're an intelligent person. Provide an argument to prove what your saying rather than making an insult.

I'm not sure if you're an intelligent person but nevertheless, provide an argument saying that she needs to provide one.

Then maybe I'll provide one saying why you need to provide one.

Reply 96

Leviathon

Taxing it further just means the rich can buy it but makes it harder for the poor, now if your aim is some sort of subversive class warfare to get all rich kids hammered while making it too expensive for the poor then you're on to a winner. If you actually want to stop this kind of thing happening, or at least reduce its prevelance, a massive social change is needed and some serious consideration about how communities can tackle this problem is a must, because quite frankly government intervention will have very little effect on under-age alcohol abuse. Whether that intervention is through taxation, stricter licensing laws or some other ill conceived measure.

Reply 97

Joseph90

moreiniho

I'm not sure if you're an intelligent person but nevertheless, provide an argument saying that she needs to provide one.

Then maybe I'll provide one saying why you need to provide one.

Okay I was about to but I wanted to read the whole thread first. I'm not very intelligent but I'm still going to give my shout.

In my opinion if you are a responsible enough to drink alcohol, which this girl accepted she was by doing so then you are responsible for the consequences and death it may cause. So, that means and this will sound controversial that the death of this girl was her own responsibility.

It's just a shame that peer groups seem to promote drinking as a form of status and respect. It is a shame that drinking is seen as a way of socialising.

The government rely on alcohol as the tax brings in a lot of money. Though this means it is easy for anyone to get their hands on it. Unfortunately, this young ladies' gravestone will have "preventable inevitability" written all over it. :frown:

It's sad but it's because of the way Britain sees alcohol. The attitude towards alcohol needs to change.

The party was held by millionaires and it was middle class kids involved. This problem is amongst all young people. None of us are invincible. No no no.

Reply 98

Joseph90

Leviathon

The Subversive class war is irrelevant to the problem at heart. This was a bunch of middle class kids having a drinking session. It wasn't a council estate piss up with Lambrini and Stella :wink:

.

The heart of the problem is the attitude Britain has to alcohol. Getting drunk is a way to get respect, kudos and popularity for some people.

Reply 99

Jelkin

I've been thinking about it quite a bit recently and I really don't think there's enough for teenagers to do in the UK ... and most of adult society have a really contemptuous attitude towards them. No wonder they want to rebel and drink and have lots of baby-making sex.

In my home town there used to be a regular gig night where local bands would play. It was REALLY popular with teenagers and a great event, and there was a bar but they were VERY strict with ID (when I was 19 I got ID'ed when buying a Diet Coke!) and bags would be checked at the entrance. Then some girl who had brought her own alcohol to drink outside the venue had too much and had to go to hospital, so the whole thing got shut down. So now there is NOTHING to do in the town and the teenagers have all gone back to drinking on street corners. Nice one, authorities.