NYT article about "Arthur's Day" (re Guinness)

[sydnie7]

A reasonably thoughtful article IMHO. The Big G is far from my favorite anyway -- as taste evolved, I find it more like a "black Coors" than a proper stout!

Day Devoted to Hoisting Guinness Starts to Leave a Bitter Taste

[Scout]

I saw a few similar articles and read the original piece in the Belfast Telegraph as well. I'm not nearly so down on "Arthur's Day." A lot of people get together and have some fun and that's not a bad thing. I had a couple of pints with some friends and listened to some good music. If that means I was "scammed" ... oh well, I can live with it.

Yes I know all about the problems related to excess alcohol consumption (which nobody is advocating by the way) and all the real world problems that need to be addressed, etc., etc. But I look at Arthur's Day just as an opportunity to have a bit of fun regardless that the "celebration" is just a marketing ploy.

[Laird_M]

Yes, alcoholism is a worldwide problem, but not everyone wants to get bladdered. And I've never heard it said that to be cultural, you need to be drunk whilst enjoying music.
I've never been to an Arthur's Day event, but have been to a number of parties/pubs where there has been live music, often with people just turning up with instruments, and whilst we all had a drink, we were too busy enjoying the music to drink that much.
Ok, so this is an attempt to commercialise a chance to enjoy yourself. Is Christmas really any different these days?