naturalplastic wrote:
I think that the muslims smoke more of their own traditional intoxicant-hash- to mellow out.
Trouble is that Europe has only been a 'peaceful place' since 1945. And even since then there has been sectarian strife in Northern Ireland, genocidal wars in former Yugoslavia. But europe in the main has been peaceful since 1945. But Europeans have been drinking less per capita since 1945 than anytime in the last 2000 plus years. And the have been smoking more hash in those years than any other time history as well.
During the rest of history when europeans were heavy drinkers, but rarely smoked marajuana, they were atleast as warlike as middle easterners, if not more so. So you could just as easily argue the opposites: the reduced drinking causes reduced violence, or that increase use of the favored intoxicant of muslims (hashish) decreases violence.
That Europeans are drinking less than historically, is that really the case? I know people during the Middle Ages usually drank beer instead of water because the water was not safe, but that was usually beer with very low alcohol concent. And it was mostly the nobility who could afford wine or cider. The Romans often watered down their wine.
I agree that Europeans probably smoke more weed than any other time in history. Though the Victorians experimented with all kinds of things before drug prohibition.
And I don't really think alcohol somehow leads to peace. But I found it interesting that in a continent that is quite succesful (peaceful, high standard of living) people drink so much more than in many other places.
I've also heard it said that the discovery of tea and coffee by Europeans helped their society because people now had a healthy drink (because it was boiled) that was not beer or wine.