Alcoholism

Prosperity Over Addiction Alcohol has been a significant part of society for thousands of years. In recent years, alcoholism has become a serious issue within America. Today, millions of Americans struggle with an addiction to alcohol. Alcoholism is a rising problem within America causing great damage to the overall well being of families, birth defects, and lasting social and psychological problems among individuals. Unless ways to avoid the problem, solutions, and current treatments of alcoholism in America are dramatically altered, the average of 105,000 alcohol related deaths per year will only increase.1 Alcohol abuse began when drinking became a social and economic trend within America. “The discovery of late Stone Age beer jugs has established the fact that intentionally fermented beverages existed at least as early as the Neolithic period and it has been suggested that beer may have preceded bread as a staple; wine clearly appeared as a finished product in Egyptian pictographs around 4,000 B.C.” 2 Alcohol began as both a religious and social practice throughout many parts of the world. When alcohol reached America it quickly transferred from an aspect of some religions and became a more social practice within society. The social and economic trends that have shaped America were closely paralleled by the legal history of alcohol. Events such as the Temperance “The Impact of Alcohol Abuse on American Society.” Alcoholics Victorious: Christian 12-Step Support Groups. http://www.alcoholicsvictorious. 2 Hanson, David J., and Ph.D.. “History of Alcohol and Drinking around the World.” WWW2 Webserver. http://www2.potsdam.edu/hans

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Hartley 2 Movement, “which was an organized effort to encourage moderation in the consumption of intoxicating liquors or press for complete abstinence” 3, as well as prohibition, were inspired by the arising concerns for morality and family harmony due to the negative affects that alcohol was having on America. In 1919 the...