[gmac]

Sitting on the deck, perusing the AHA forum and enjoying a wheat beer.  Saw my 10 year old in the window, held up my empty glass and he came out, got the glass went down to the keg and brought me a refill without a word.  What a great kid!

[Pinski]

Canadian instinct runs deep

[majorvices]

Both my kids can work the taps and bring me a beer (9 and 14). The oldest one has been doing it for several years. I tell both of them if nothing else pans out they have a career as a bartender. OTOH it may be getting time to invest in tap locks.

[tonyp]

Not to be a debbie downer but my wife showed me an article a few years ago about children that "get their parents a beer" and how statistically they are over 40% more likely to become alcoholics. Since reading it i never asked my son (now 14) to bring me any kind of alcohol for fear that i would somehow encourage him to drink.

Ironically, when i was young (from 8-9yrs old) my grandfather taught me how to make his mixed drinks for him, my uncles and his buddies (tom collins, old fashioneds, screwdrivers, manhattans, gin & tonics, etc) and I turned out ok...

I tried looking for the article but I couldn't find it so i guess take this with a grain of salt. If i find it i'll edit and add the url.

Just something to think about

Tony

[majorvices]

Not to be a debbie downer but my wife showed me an article a few years ago about children that "get their parents a beer" and how statistically they are over 40% more likely to become alcoholics. Since reading it i never asked my son (now 14) to bring me any kind of alcohol for fear that i would somehow encourage him to drink.

That sounds like a load of crap to me. Too many of those "articles" aren't really based on very sound science.

[gmac]

OK, now I feel guilty.  Not guilty enough to get my own beer but sort of guilty.

I think a genetic pre-disposition is one of the biggest factors as well as parents and societal attitudes towards  drinking.
I did a quick google search and I'm not gonna say it's correct but apparently 4% of Canadians have a problem with alcohol versus 10 to 30% in the US (which I think is total BS).  Depends on how you define it. 

[majorvices]

The thing about these studies is they fail to take into account way too many factors. Sure, Bubba sittin' on his porch telling his son to bring him his 12th natural light could cause a problem. A well educated person who teaches values and moderation, maybe not. I do have a problem with people who hide their alcohol use from their children. If you feel the need to do that you probably shouldn't be drinking, period.

[brewmichigan]

In America there is too much negativity towards alcohol. I believe that if kids are raised around alcohol, and responsible adults who drink alcohol, they would be much less likely to drink early and often. By hiding alcohol from our children we teach them it's okay to hide alcohol. It's not fair to read an article that someone wrote about a study they did and immediately relate it to themselves. By all the articles I've read about health, I should be dead by now from salt, sugar, HFCS, fake sugar, alcohol, fat, trans fats, not enough omega 3, to much grain, gluten (don't get me started on gluten), and 50 other things I may have consumed in my lifetime.

[tonyp]

That sounds like a load of crap to me. Too many of those "articles" aren't really based on very sound science.

It very well could be! I'll defer to your extensive knowledge of the subject since I can't seem to produce the original reference and you seem to have a firmer grasp on the science than I do. You know what they say about statistics!

I really wish I could find it, it was an interesting read and even if the science wasn't sound, at the very least it got me to think about how my wife and I handle the subject about alcohol around our son.

[majorvices]

I think the way you should handle alcohol depends on the  individual child. I dont believe asking your eight year old to work the taps on your keggerator puts him at any heightened risk whatsoever.

[Pinski]

I wouldn't worry too much unless you catch them sneaking off to cut a hole in the lake and go ice fishing with a case of LaBatt's.

[pyrite]

That sounds like a load of crap to me. Too many of those "articles" aren't really based on very sound science.

It very well could be! I'll defer to your extensive knowledge of the subject since I can't seem to produce the original reference and you seem to have a firmer grasp on the science than I do. You know what they say about statistics!

I really wish I could find it, it was an interesting read and even if the science wasn't sound, at the very least it got me to think about how my wife and I handle the subject about alcohol around our son.

Not to be a debbie downer but my wife showed me an article a few years ago about children that "get their parents a beer" and how statistically they are over 40% more likely to become alcoholics. Since reading it i never asked my son (now 14) to bring me any kind of alcohol for fear that i would somehow
encourage him to drink.

So in other words this study says "The probability of becoming a statistic is 60% against the odds". 

[bo]

Not to be a debbie downer but my wife showed me an article a few years ago about children that "get their parents a beer" and how statistically they are over 40% more likely to become alcoholics. Since reading it i never asked my son (now 14) to bring me any kind of alcohol for fear that i would somehow encourage him to drink.

Ironically, when i was young (from 8-9yrs old) my grandfather taught me how to make his mixed drinks for him, my uncles and his buddies (tom collins, old fashioneds, screwdrivers, manhattans, gin & tonics, etc) and I turned out ok...

I tried looking for the article but I couldn't find it so i guess take this with a grain of salt. If i find it i'll edit and add the url.

Just something to think about

Tony

I have to be Debbie Downer II. We need to be responsible and very careful with our kids when it comes to alcohol.

[phillamb168]

I dunno, for me if I was in the middle of, say, mowing the lawn, or brewing, or otherwise occupied, I would have no problem with asking one of the kids to get me a beer. Now if I was drunk, that would be an entirely different thing, but I will never be drunk around my kids (with the exception of major holidays) so it seems more like it's similar to asking them to get me a glass of water, except they get to play with the special daddies-only machine.

[punatic]

If my dad had subscribed to the "don't" bulls*** I would never have had the opportunity to try Ballantine IPA.

Could we PLEASE have more PC bulls*** in our lives...  Please?