Question - "In the Wealth of Nations on pages 525-526,
Adam Smith states '... the cheapness of wine seems to be a cause, not of
drunkenness, but of sobriety.' Why is
this a common vice in countries/societal classes where liquor is expensive and
not a problem with countries that produce or classes that can easily afford it?
I've read this a few times. Smith seems to give good
examples but not so much as to why it is so."
Response - Adam Smith identifies the justification for his
observation of relative drunkenness when he states on page 525 (1994 Modern
Library Edition), "People are seldom guilty of excess in what is their
daily fare."
He wasn't so much making a statistically supported statement as he was voicing a general observation of human nature.
A similar example could be the way many Americans treat food during the holidays of Thanksgiving and Christmas. Many I personally know (and, I'd wager, many you personally know as well) have even stated vocally that, since it is Thanksgiving (or Christmas) after all, they can be excused for eating more than usual. The fact that many foods are more available during these times than others (egg nog, pumpkin pie, etc.) may also contribute.
Not many (if any) 'overconsume' peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, for example, or other comparably pedestrian meal options that are relatively cheap to create, easy to obtain and possess no significant ties to any kind of holiday emotions.
Oh okay. So not so much in reference to addiction but more to isolated incidents of excess?
ReplyDeletePretty much. We all are tempted to overconsume that which we may not obtain again for some extended period of time. However, this is markedly different from someone who possesses a physical and/or psychological addiction to the consumption of some good or service.
DeleteIn undergrad, I knew quite a few people who would binge drink on weekends but rarely, if ever, drank during the school week. They weren't addicted to alcohol, obviously. They were simply tempted to overconsume when the product they could not legally obtain themselves was presented to them free of charge at weekend parties.
In this example, the 'expensiveness' of the good (alcohol) isn't so much the price (since it was free at the parties) as much as the risk of being caught drinking underage and the incredible difficulty in obtaining alcoholic beverages oneself while underage.