In Praise of Drinking (A Little)

I’m ba-a-ack. Did you miss me?

As much as I love you all, I need to actually work at my real job now. This means less time for Speak Now Regret Later, which is why this newsletter is now biweekly. It’s also why, at least till the new year, I’ll be republishing older essays.

For today, I’m republishing last year’s most controversial piece: my essay on drinking culture in academia. Some of my colleagues were mad about it. But at least one person liked it—the editor at Theory and Society who invited me to submit and accepted the article. Alas, I now wonder if the editor regrets the decision, as the response online has been… mixed. Responses ranged from, “Wow this is wrong on so many levels” to “This is a fascinating article,” from “it’s shit like this that’s gonna drive me right over the edge” to “A sentiment I agree with.” One unhinged poster even demanded a retraction.

When I posted last year, it was behind a paywall, so very few of you read it. I’ve removed the paywall this time and curi…