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-- Meriah Doty, USC Adjunct Professor

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"This is a pull quote" Meriah

Thursday, April 17, 2008

Beer Drinkin', Whisky Swiggin'

"Drink, drink, drink, drink!"

It's a common song sung among college kids - guys looking to prove their manhood and girls getting sloshed and sloppy. We look like marathon runners pining for their first cup of water after running through the desert for miles - we slam the cup back, chug down the frothy liquid, and wipe our mouths off of the foamy debris. If us college kids drink even half as much as we do now once we get into the real world, Alcoholics Annoymous will have to build a thousand more mega-churches to house us all.

"Live it up," so the saying goes. "...because once your out of college it's called alcoholism."

Let's face it. Alcohol is an intergral part of the college experience. We earn respect from our peers when we let loose and let the liquid pour.

Out in the real world, where people work nine-to-fives and can't afford late Thursday night bingers, alcohol is not such a staple. It does, however, hold similar objectives. It lets people relax, let go of nervous inhibitions and feel comfortable around one another. Having a beer once and while shows you're a normal person who likes to let go of the stress of every-day life and kick back with a cold one.

Hilary Clinton must have gotten this memo. She decided to head over to the local bar and enjoy some shots of crown royal and chug some beer with the common people.

Obama sees this as a publicity stunt - one to make her look like a regular, fun-loving gal who can relate to even the dive-bar crowd, when in all actuality, she's just a manipulative, cunning candidate.

Clinton could say the same thing about Obama, who was seen drinking a beer while bowling.

I don't exactly know what the intentions of either candidate was when they decided to get on camera with their beverages of choice, but I don't think the footage will scare voters away from either of them - especially young voters.

While discussing the hours of time CNN devoted to talking about the beer drinkin', whisky swiggin' candidates, several of my peers commented that not only did they think it wasn't a big deal, but it made them like the candidates even more. It showed them the more human side of the bickering duo. I'm not sure staunch republicans will feel the same way, although if their truthful with themselves, they like a good scotch as much as any democrat.

I'm not saying that voters should vote for their candidate based on the brand of liquor they enjoy (although Hilary's choice of Crown Royal wasn't a bad one), I'm just saying that it is sometimes nice, especially for young voters, to feel they can relate to the candidates. I think we all want to know that the candidates aren't political robots programmed to manipulate. I hope that neither Clinton or Obama's drinking stunts were calculated to misrepresent their humanness, but it is possible. We all know politicians can by calculating!

Take a look at this YouTube Video and decide for yourself. At the very least, you'll be entertained.


1 comment:

Meriah said...

This is insightful. I like how you expanded on one idea/story that was in the news. 10pts