Is the stereotype of the hard-drinkin' moonshine-brewing, Jack Daniels-swillin Scots-irish Southerner all wrong? (weddings, movies)

[scottyr]

I was looking at this map

http://thepanhandlersguide.com/wp-co...nsumption.jpeg

I noticed that the Appalachian states of TN, WV, and KY have the lowest levels of alcohol consumption. That shocked me.. (and yes, i do realize there are many evangelicals who live there and that Christianity frowns upon drunkeness)

I understand that the Southern Appalachian region is

a) Primarally inhabited by people of Scots-Irish descent, an ethnic group that is traditionally stereotyped as having rowdy, boisterous whiskey-swillin' ways.

b) economically distressed and geographically isolated from major urban centers. People who live in such areas, especially youth often turn to substance abuse to cope with poor living conditions, boredom and stress. Also, the cold winter weather in the mountains must make a lot of people long to get some alcohol in their bloodstream.

c) The area is known through movies, books, and word of mouth as a place where moonshiners brew strong drinks and big manly men drink weaker folks under the table. Many a southern country-folk song praises the joys of the old watering hole and giving "beer for the horses"

d) The area where world famous liqour such as Jack daniels and Kentucky Bourbon is produced.

So, taking all this into consideration, do you not find it odd that this area of the USA is supposed to have the least amount of drinking? Maybe is it because alot of the Christians (while they may drink a lot), are ashamed to admit what they see as a moral flaw/sin within their lives to the telephone pollsters. (but then again, doing that would be lying...which is against the 10 commandments themselves)

[John Shaft]

I tells you I will use my many shotguns against any Yankee what tries to tell me that the stereotypes ain't akkerate. If they warn't akkerate, how'd they git to be stereotypes anyways?

[Raivere]

Originally Posted by scottyr

I was looking at this map

http://thepanhandlersguide.com/wp-co...nsumption.jpeg


I understand that the Southern Appalachian region is

a) Primarally inhabited by people of Scots-Irish descent, an ethnic group that is traditionally stereotyped as having rowdy, boisterous whiskey-swillin' ways.

b) economically distressed and geographically isolated from major urban centers. People who live in such areas, especially youth often turn to substance abuse to cope with poor living conditions, boredom and stress. Also, the cold winter weather in the mountains must make a lot of people long to get some alcohol in their bloodstream.

c) The area is known through movies, books, and word of mouth as a place where moonshiners brew strong drinks and big manly men drink weaker folks under the table. Many a southern country-folk song praises the joys of the old watering hole and giving "beer for the horses"

d) The area where world famous liqour such as Jack daniels and Kentucky Bourbon is produced.

So, taking all this into consideration, do you not find it odd that this area of the USA is supposed to have the least amount of drinking? Maybe is it because alot of the Christians (while they may drink a lot), are ashamed to admit what they see as a moral flaw/sin within their lives to the telephone pollsters. (but then again, doing that would be lying...which is against the 10 commandments themselves)

What the heck? Obviously you do not know about the region or the religion As far as having scots-irish ancestors, that could be something completely different and maybe you should look into it. People change and it's not uncommon.

[le roi]

Originally Posted by scottyr

a) Primarally inhabited by people of Scots-Irish descent, an ethnic group that is traditionally stereotyped as having rowdy, boisterous whiskey-swillin' ways.

There is a misconception about who the Scotch-irish were. The Scotch-Irish were French, German, Swiss, Scottish, and English.

You may be thinking of the Irish, who are stereotyped as such.

So, taking all this into consideration, do you not find it odd that this area of the USA is supposed to have the least amount of drinking?

i think you are misinterpreting that map.

you posted it wrong,

http://thepanhandlersguide.com/wp-co...nsumption.jpeg

but I looked it up on the website, and took a look -

it measures the percentage of people who have had 1 alcoholic drink in the past 30 days. In an area with a high percentage of evangelical protestants, you will have a higher number of people who abstain completely. Other regions will have higher numbers of catholics and athiests, who I suspect will be more likely to drink casually (at least 1 drink a month). So really you are just measuring the prevalence of casual, minor alcohol consumption - while your conclusion is that of severe alcohol consumption.

It sounds like what you need to do is find a dataset that shows alcoholism rates, and how likely people are to have multiple drinks in shorter periods of time.


For what it is worth, I think you are correct - I am betting that the Scots-Irish south is going to have high rates of liquor consumption, as well as high rates of alcoholism, considering their climate. The biggest factor in alcohol consumption seems to be climate. People in cold climates drink far more.

[le roi]

Moderator cut: link removed, linking to competitors sites is not allowed
^ This chart is from the same source, and measures binge drinking. It appears that Scotch Irish ancestry is not correlated statistically with binge drinking. Looks like those mild-mannered scandinavians..

[Deezus]

Originally Posted by rubber_factory

Moderator cut: link removed, linking to competitors sites is not allowed

^ This chart is from the same source, and measures binge drinking. It appears that Scotch Irish ancestry is not correlated statistically with binge drinking. Looks like those mild-mannered scandinavians..

Alright! Wisconsin is finally #1 at something!

But it figures that a state with such a high proportion of Germans and Poles would rank so high for binge drinking...The Germans have never been known as the types to pass up a pint of lager.

Oh wait, five or more drinks is considered binge drinking? I had five drinks over the course of the last night, and I was barely tipsy--not even close to drunk. At the Polish-American weddings I've been to when I visit my relatives in Wisconsin, it seemed customary to have at least five drinks before you even sit down for dinner.

[BayAreaHillbilly]

The SBC has its influence for sure. Granted in the hills there are fewer Baptists, but still, compared with places like the Upper Midwest, there are definitely more teetotalers "in them thar hills" (I suppose I trend in that direction compared with many who live around me here in the Bay Area ... but I'm not a teetotaler... although my wife is).

[Thomas R.]

This was one stereotype of Appalachian or Ozark type people that totally went against my own life experience so it's interesting to see it actually is wrong. The people I knew back in the mountains were pretty strict Baptists and Pentecostals. Seeing drunk people was rare as if they did do it they went into the city to do it.

When we moved up North to the Plains seeing people drunk was no longer unusual. In High School kids would come to class drunk. People in the Midwest/Plains drink a great deal. Although I'd say they go more for beer than whiskey. This might be the only element of truth in the Appalachian/Hillbilly stereotype. The people down there who did drink I think did prefer hard liquor more than those I know here. It's just that most people didn't drink.

[Irishtom29]

Now the intoxicant of choice in southern Appalachia is often meth.

[Mike1306]

There are many dry counties in the areas mentioned also which has a big influence on it.

The county where Jack Daniels distillery is has been dry since prohibition.