Frank,
I grew up amid alcoholism. It is an ugly, insidious business that destroys the sufferers an inch at a time and permanently scars those around them. Like Kendall, I have avoided the curse although I live in constant wariness of my own drinking patterns.
Unlike most here, I still have a hard time forgiving alcoholics. It is the years of embarrassment and fear, of a child forced to be the adult while hiding the "secret" from the neighbors. I wish I had known 50 years ago that it was a disease. I wish that the adults in my life had recognized that it was a disease and taken steps to heal it.
It took courage to rethink and restate your opinion. Thanks.