Culture This;Culture That
The word culture gets overused to the point of almost becoming a meaningless word. I was raised to associate the word culture with an ethnic group or perhaps more commonly to the values and mores of a group of people in a particular region irrespective of their skin color.
So, even though words are quite flexible in their usage and meaning, I was disappointed to hear the usage "drinking culture" associated with the northern most region in Canada. I mean, there is SO much more to talk about with respect to the Nanavut province. So called "drinking cultures" exist is various spots all over the world. NFL football fans are a "drinking culture" in that sense of the word. Tailgate parties have become a centerpiece of any NFL football game with fans often becoming inebriated before the game even starts!
So needless to say, I was little more than miffed after reading about one of the results of the Nunavut Liquor Act Review Task Force : The Nunavut’s destructive relationship with alcohol is rooted in culture, specifically “drinking culture.”
Please!, a lot of people enjoy drinking vodka. Now the task force claims that this particular culture engages in harmful binge drinking. I guess that makes frat brothers member of the same culture as literally thousands of United States University fraternity houses.
The task force's goal of changing a drinking culture is misguided partially because the phrase drinking culture is ambiguous and does not get to the heart of the matter. The same thing happens all over the world in remote northern regions where people have to stay indoors a lot of the time. A better recommendation by the Task Force would have been to move to a warmer more hospitable area. Moving is, of course, not a practical choice for many, but it least it might address what the real cause of the drinking problem is.
In defense of the task force, they are using the phrase culture in the sense of any learned behavior. However, when one is bored and out of work and living in a cold remote region, alcohol consumption tends to increase which has nothing to do with the conventional usage of the word culture.
So, even though words are quite flexible in their usage and meaning, I was disappointed to hear the usage "drinking culture" associated with the northern most region in Canada. I mean, there is SO much more to talk about with respect to the Nanavut province. So called "drinking cultures" exist is various spots all over the world. NFL football fans are a "drinking culture" in that sense of the word. Tailgate parties have become a centerpiece of any NFL football game with fans often becoming inebriated before the game even starts!
So needless to say, I was little more than miffed after reading about one of the results of the Nunavut Liquor Act Review Task Force : The Nunavut’s destructive relationship with alcohol is rooted in culture, specifically “drinking culture.”
Please!, a lot of people enjoy drinking vodka. Now the task force claims that this particular culture engages in harmful binge drinking. I guess that makes frat brothers member of the same culture as literally thousands of United States University fraternity houses.
The task force's goal of changing a drinking culture is misguided partially because the phrase drinking culture is ambiguous and does not get to the heart of the matter. The same thing happens all over the world in remote northern regions where people have to stay indoors a lot of the time. A better recommendation by the Task Force would have been to move to a warmer more hospitable area. Moving is, of course, not a practical choice for many, but it least it might address what the real cause of the drinking problem is.
In defense of the task force, they are using the phrase culture in the sense of any learned behavior. However, when one is bored and out of work and living in a cold remote region, alcohol consumption tends to increase which has nothing to do with the conventional usage of the word culture.
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