Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Dutch Courage

I do not know how the Dutch got the reputation for alcohol fueled derring do but this article, on one of the greatest wastes of scientific expenditure ever, appears to confirm it. Where else could we get data points? Let me think... Let me think..... How about from any Friday or Saturday Night at any non-fern bar in the country? How about from the popular term, used by Toby Keith in the excellant "I Ain't as Good as I Once Was..." -"feeling bullet proof." How about from the police blotter?

If you find a person has attempted to pick up a rattler with his bare hands-check alcohol level. When a man insults a biker gang-check alcohol level. When a man momentarily allows a brief affirmative thought to form in his mind when a women asks him 'does this outfit make me look fat."-check alcohol. Yes, alcohol reduces one's ability to detect threats-bravo for science!

7 comments:

Dave S. said...

News flash: "Dutch courage" is a pejorative term. As I have no Dutch in my family background, feel free to use it.

Score another triumph for the Institute of I Could Have Told You That.

Soldiers and sailors often drank (extra) before going into battle, usually on orders from higher up, but I do not know if that custom persists. (One of Wellington's lesser-known quotes from Waterloo is "Yesh, I could take the lot of 'em.")

Regarding the rattlesnake, you may also want to check religious affiliation.

Finally, I am reminded of the traditional epitaph of Southern men: "Hold my beer and watch this."

Anonymous said...

Of course, the point of the research was not to demonstrate that alcohol does affect threat judgment, but to determine mechanically how the alcohol impacts the brain with a view to developing therapies for alcoholism. I'm not quite ready to send this research in for the Golden Fleece Award.

You'd think JJV, with his appreciation for the inaccuracies of the media, might have done a little digging here.

JCC

Dave S. said...

I believe this entry and subsequent comments fall under the category of Superficial Snark and are thus exempt from, and indeed actively hostile to, facts. Plus I was really loaded when I wrote that comment and did not recognize the threat posed by reality.

Anonymous said...

You boys should not be casting aspersions on alcohol-fueled daring do as that is probably the number one reason why (most) women have anything to do with (most) men socially or physically. (Btw, if you want to see feats of Wilma Derring or Deering do-ing some butt kicking, check this out, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WI137IRsPaI. You're welcome, JJV. ; )

Dave S. said...

I believe that JJV and I would be the last people on earth to cast aspersions on alcohol-fueled derring-do. JJV's original point was that 1) the study told us nothing we didn't know (I personally concede JCC's point on this) and 2) nobody ever calls us when these studies are going on.

jjv said...

and j, your link didn't work but I put in wilma deering on youtube and found what you must have posted. Ah to live in the 25th century.

Dave S. said...

WIL-MAAAAA !!!