DEAR ABBY: My husband is the head of a large corporation. He does not drink hard liquor, but very few people know this because at parties he takes one drink and pretends to sip it all evening.
He watches his junior executives' drinking habits very carefully, and they are promoted accordingly. Anyone who takes more than two drinks is passed over for promotion -- no matter how good a job he does.
I feel that my husband should have a talk with the man and give him a chance to cut down. He says, "No, once a drunk, always a drunk." He says it takes guts not to drink in today's society, and he needs men with guts to run the business right. What is your opinion? -- SCARSDALE
DEAR SCARSDALE: If everyone who takes more than two drinks is (as your husband states) a "drunk," there are a lot of "drunks" effectively running a lot of businesses.
I agree, it takes guts not to drink in today's society, but one who takes a drink publicly and "pretends" to drink it so no one will know he's a non-drinker is lacking guts himself. If guts is the issue, the person who says, "No thanks, I'm an alcoholic" has far more guts than your holier-than-thou abstainer.