New Canadian drinking guidelines … Seriously?

It seems the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction has come out with its suggestions regarding alcohol consumption. I must admit this revelation caught me by surprise.  Not that I was naive enough to think something positive could possibly come out of such an announcement; even I realize that no recognized body was going to suggest that a wee bit of the demon may be good for one, as the Guinness ads used to state. But cancer?

Let me come clean. I’m an imbiber. As a Montreal downtowner, from the Cock ‘n’ Bull through the Irish Embassy to Hurley’s, I can, to this day, often be found enjoying a pint, perhaps two, in a local establishment.  As is the case with many others, my hours have changed over the years. Once a late-night denizen, I now find myself enjoying a few daytime pints.

Regardless, when I was a lad cutting my beer teeth during the seventies, information regarding the dangers of smoking was everywhere.  Irrefutable scientific evidence that smoking was a killer.  While drinking seemed to be alright (assuming one didn’t drive)

Regardless, when I was a lad cutting my beer teeth during the seventies, information regarding the dangers of smoking was everywhere.  Irrefutable scientific evidence that smoking was a killer.  Although a light smoker, it still took me until twenty years ago to quit once and for all.  While drinking seemed to be alright (assuming one didn’t drive).  No one ever suggested, as far as I can recall, a link between hooch and cancer. Sure, if you went bonkers and drank all day every day for years, your liver may well give out. But cancer? 

Somewhere Toe Blake is rolling over in his grave, not because of the state of his Montreal Canadiens (although … ), but rather because he was a longtime tavern owner.  

Now all of a sudden we have a cancer-booze tie-in. I’m calling ‘not fair’.  If it took many of us a long time to stop smoking, how are we supposed to deal with this overnight revelation? Was it the brewers keeping this secret? Did distillers sit on this knowledge for decades? Is there a class action suit in the works? Man, it used to be so simple going for a pint.

Somewhere Toe Blake is rolling over in his grave, not because of the state of his Montreal Canadiens (although … ), but rather because he was a longtime tavern owner.