Most of the headlines had the word "blame" in them.
It didn’t matter that it was surrounded by quote marks.
It didn’t matter what the rest of the article said.
Most of the Wanaka parents I’ve spoken to got an eye-roll and a rage on and left the news about the results of "Harming Me, Harming You — A community perspective of alcohol use in Wanaka" unread.
Which is a shame.
Last month, the Wanaka Alcohol Group (which, confusingly, shares an acronym with the Wives and Girlfriends of sporting fame) released the results of its study into community drinking habits.
It interviewed 334 pupils in years 9-11 at Mount Aspiring College, as well as a range of industry professionals.
Before we get to the actual results, let’s extrapolate the blame game further with this choice phrase:
"A quarter of Wanaka school students binge-drink alcohol supplied by their parents, a study has revealed." (NZ Herald.)
To be clear, youth binge drinking is consuming more than five units in one evening, or about a jug of beer.
(I worked out that amount using the online tool at alcohol.org.nz, filling and emptying virtual drinks. It was kind of fun.)
And to be even clearer, in the study, that statistic doesn’t come up specifically.
And to be bloody-minded, I’m pretty sure they don’t mean the 5 to 13-year-olds.
If we’re going to play the statistic game, instead of the blame game, with the study, consider this: 78% of Mt Aspiring College pupils feel safe at home all the time; 86% said their family all get on well together.
Both these are higher than the national average.
More pupils than the national average feel like they get enough time with their mothers, 61% of them play in a sports team and more than 87% feel like they are part of their school.
Again, above the average.
Wanaka youth don’t necessarily realise their position is already privileged, as you can tell from this extract from the report: "The students were clear about what was needed to reduce drinking among their population. Their ideas centred on the provision of attractive alternatives to drinking. They want weekend trips and activities that they can sign up for. Rafting, kayaking, horse-riding, motocross, hiking, rock-climbing, biking and other outdoor pursuits; cultural and art activities; and subsidised movies, skifield buses and gym memberships were all suggested."
Let’s be honest.
We’d all like something on that list laid on for us as a weekend option.
Why not?
Though most of the kids here have pretty great social opportunities most of the time.
Way above the national average.
And you’ve got to know how to deal with down times and perceived boredom, since adrenaline and distraction are not always possible.
Sometimes you settle for a beer and a sunset.
Or just a sunset.
Whatever.
Parents, the survey says, drink because we don’t know better.
As the song almost goes, we need a pacifier. "Suggested drivers of adult drinking, based on the populations affected, were boredom among the affluent and stress among others."
The kids say they get enough alcohol education themselves.
They know it’s bad.
Which begs the question: why, then, are they asking for, or taking, their parents’ supplies?
There are people who need to drink.
And people who need not to.
And most of us, who, at a cursory glance over a study like this, will put it on our hand-wringing child-rearing list and forget that no civilisation has yet been destroyed by alcohol and that Real Cookchefs of Westlandia or whatever the latest reality pap is called is reportedly just as bad for our children.
Not to mention sugar.
Though there are obvious divisions — locals vs real locals vs tourists, affluent vs strugglers, Wanaka city vs the outlying hippies — I’ve never lived in a community as strong and connected as this.
Families work together, play together, sport together, create together, party together, talk together.
Have been for years.
The primary schoolers who played with my babies at local parties are now in the "Dad, can I have a couple of beers?" age group.
There are worse things than a scenario in which a kid can go to their parents and negotiate some drinks and safe passage home.
Yes, the survey highlights some of those, too.
The biggest picture/aim of "Harming me, harming you" is finding the juxtaposition of normalcy and harm.
It’s awesome to have pupils stand up and say they’re not so into alcohol.
It’s OK that some of them will sometimes drink.
We did, right?
Perhaps the engaging headlines, the useful questions, would be what is normal?
What is harmful?
Rather than who, again, can we blame?
- Liz Breslin lives in Hawea Flat and works with year 13 pupils at Mt Aspiring College.
