[Alura]

Many years ago I lived in a London apartment with about eight other singles who were trying to be able to afford living in the city.

One Saturday night there was a party. A big, burly, guest (not a resident) got drunk and beat the shit out of our resident non-violent hippy because he looked at the burly guy's girlfriend's ass. He then threatened the guy with the broken end of a wine bottle, which he smashed on the coffee table. The lug's girlfriend managed to get him to put down the bottle and leave just before the constables arrived.

The next day the brute was full of apologies as was his girlfriend (who seemed to shoulder more of the blame than he did.) :rollseyes

Both he and his girlfriend maintained we should understand and forgive him because "he was drunk" and his mother had died some weeks before. He was still angry with me (because I called the authorities) and was "looking for" me. I was easy for anybody else to find, but he never did...

Sorry, but the fact is that anyone who drinks enough not to remember or to pass out is at least partially responsible for what happens while in that state of dimished capacity. Nobody forced the guy to drink and noone urged him to beat the hippy up.

On the other hand, a man who would have sex with a woman while she's in such a state is scum of a lower order, in my opinion.

"Should-a-dones" don't count and the best action to take, for all involved, is to control the alcohol intake.

Mr. Alura