.....after that third glass of wine or fourth glass of beer, unless you want to be classified a binge drinker under the new national drinking guidelines to be introduced next month.
With binge drinking rising, this is the latest weapon in the Rudd government's war on excessive alcohol consumption, following a 70 per cent rise in the excise on so-called alcopops.
Of course, the opposition government are whining that the Rudd government are blowing the binge drinking problem out of proportion. The effects of excessive alcohol use are well-documented. We're yet to see what the impact will be down the track.
Will the new guidelines have any impact? I'm not sure. It may give people pause for thought. However, it probably doesn't have as much of an effect as a financial slog that increases the cost of drinking. The downside of that approach is that it also impacts on people who do use alcohol sensibly and that seems a little unfair.
Note: "Bottoms up!" is a Brit equivalent of "Cheers!" when drinking, just in case you thought I'd completely lost it.
