I’ve seen fights, disputes, grow, fester, erupt into bouts of violence: disagreements become irrevocable, boundaries are crossed, and then, tempers flare. Punches and slaps are thrown, sometimes half-heartedly, sometimes in a desperate flurry, sometimes shirt collars are grabbed as the ‘fight’ turns into an ungainly grappling session with headholds and chokeholds that aim to incapacitate.Continue reading “Have Gun, Will Settle Dispute: The Dangerous, Alluring Temptation”
Tag Archives: alcohol
On Driving Drunk: Bloody Idiot
In the terrible, often carefully hidden, mental category of ‘things I have done in the past that I am not proud of, and indeed ashamed of,’ my driving drunk–on many occasions–must take dubious pride of place. I learned to drive as a teenager, and often drove during my college years–through New Delhi’s even-then chaotic roads–borrowingContinue reading “On Driving Drunk: Bloody Idiot”
Fraternities: The Curse Of The Sylvan Campus
‘Fraternity’ used to be a perfectly good word–remember Liberté, égalité, fraternité? Used to be, when you saw that word in print, you thought of revolutionaries, the brotherhood of man, the formation of political and social bonds that spanned class and caste and creed. But then it was taken over by a bunch of drunken rapists-in-training,Continue reading “Fraternities: The Curse Of The Sylvan Campus”
Maureen Dowd Lays Her Mile-High Bum Trip On Us
It might have been predicted, with probability one, that in the wake of Colorado legalizing marijuana, we would be inundated with tall tales of reefer madness sweeping the state, scouring the slopes and plains of that mountainous land like one of those snowy avalanches that sometimes afflict its more outdoorsy folk. That moment is nowContinue reading “Maureen Dowd Lays Her Mile-High Bum Trip On Us”
Christopher Buckley and Dipsomania: Apparently Hard To Let It Go
The writers of great literature often supply us mere mortals with memorable lines, especially if they serve as the openers for their works. Thus, for instance, Tolstoy‘s Taxonomy of the Family, which kicks off Anna Karenina: All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way. This serves as raw material for endless variationsContinue reading “Christopher Buckley and Dipsomania: Apparently Hard To Let It Go”
Lohocla, The Killer Drug
An extended discussion on Twitter this morning reminded me of a post I once wrote on the Usenet newsgroup alt.drugs. Back in 1990. It’s pretty weak stuff, but I was just having fun then. Here you go: US Government officials are gearing up for might be this country’s worst drug epidemic, rivaling the devastation caused byContinue reading “Lohocla, The Killer Drug”
John Donne’s Paradoxes and Problems
A short while ago, I provided, here, excerpts from Aristotle’s Problems; in particular, I quoted two questions that Aristotle raises about alcohol and sex. Then, I wanted to showcase the colorful framing of the question and the answer; the latter was made especially interesting because of the serious spirit of inquiry visible in it, oneContinue reading “John Donne’s Paradoxes and Problems”
Better Living Through Chemistry, Part Deux: Aristotle on Drunkenness
A couple of weeks ago, I made a note here of my stepping onto the decaffeinated wagon in an attempt to prepare myself for the sleepless nights of fatherhood. That bout of abstinence began shortly after Thanksgiving. Besides the caffeine-free wagon, I have also been riding the alcohol-free wagon for about six weeks now, alsoContinue reading “Better Living Through Chemistry, Part Deux: Aristotle on Drunkenness”
Samir Chopra 