Is Milwaukee America's Drunkest City?

I can admit it. In a town that at one time was known for having a bar or tavern on ever corner, with a baseball team named the Brewers, and the home of past and present brewing giants Miller, Pabst, Schlitz, and Blatz, we like to drink.

Milwaukee enjoys a good party. If you're here in the summer, there are colorful ethnic festivals that take place along Lake Michigan, church picnics, and a myriad of other festivals and community celebrations taking place every weekend that almost certainly will involve alcohol.

In winter, nothing beats a brand old-fashioned sweet to chase away the chill after digging your car out of a snowbank.

An article published on August 22 by Forbes magazine article named Milwaukee, Wisconsin "America's Drunkest City."

According to the article, Milwaukee earned dubious honor because "more than 70% of adult Milwaukeeans reported that they had had at least one alcoholic drink within the past 30 days … twenty-two percent of Milwaukee respondents confessed to binge drinking, or having five or more drinks on one occasion … and 7.5% of the population were reported as heavy drinkers - adult men that have more than two drinks per day, or adult women who have more than one drink per day."

Ranking number one in the nation, based on the data set Forbes was using from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's "Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Survey 2004," is not a good thing. In fact, the number one ranking in binge drinking is downright troubling and does not paint a pretty picture of Milwaukee.

But when did having one alcoholic beverage a month become a bad thing? My grandparents would have answered yes to that question and they are certainly not what one would consider "drinkers."

I also take issue with the "heavy drinkers" statistic. If I had a single glass of wine with dinner every night (which I don't), I would be a "heavy drinker." In Europe, and many other countries outside of the United States, a glass of wine with dinner every night is common practice. I don't think we would call Italians "heavy drinkers" because they tip back a glass or two of Chianti with their spaghetti every night.

According to the article, the four runners up to Milwaukee in the "drunkest city" rankings are Minneapolis, Minnesota; Columbus, Ohio; Boston, Massachusetts; and Austin, Texas.

The party towns of Las Vegas came in 14th, New Orleans ranked 24th and Miami ranked 33rd of the 35 cities on the list.

There are too many unanswered questions about how Milwaukee obtained the number one ranking (and how some cities ranked suspiciously low) in this survey for it to be taken seriously. But, in the end, there is little we can do to change it. When the media in Miami covers the story and boasts about being number 33 on the list, they're still going to say, "At least we're not as bad as Milwaukee."

Milwaukee has been undergoing an exciting transformation in recent years. We have a booming arts scene, including the world-renowned Santiago Calatrava-designed Milwaukee Art Museum. New restaurants are popping up everywhere. Condo developments are springing up in downtown Milwaukee. I hate to see this development tarnished by one silly survey.

Every city has it's problems with alcohol, but a survey like this does nothing but generate media buzz, but does nothing to actually tackle the problems that alcohol can cause in a community.