Can we talk about alcoholism and Anthony Bourdain?
Jo Ann Towle wrote in the Chicago Tribune and I agree with the article. Alcoholism is a problem that one view only as a thing that you push under the rug. I would also put mental health in the same boat. I think we need to tackle with them. It will only get bigger as we move forward.
I didn't know Anthony Bourdain, but felt like I did in one small important way. In him, I saw a drinking alcoholic with a front-stage vigorous attempt to do it successfully. His was a fantastic life-embracing show, with drinking taking a prominent role in the joie de vivre, and sometimes that made it hard for me to watch.
When he threw back shots, indeed got wasted, I saw a fellow alcoholic living dangerously whereas most viewers, I imagine, saw “a man who knew how to drink, knew how to live.” His state of mind will be called depression, and who can argue with that in the wake of his suicide. But can we please, people, start connecting the dots to alcoholism (also a disease of the mind), at least when it is screamingly evident?