Want a beer?
 

Blame it on the economy.
 

As American’s wallets take a hit, they continue to hit the bottle. Despite the need to cut back on expensive goods, many people still seem to be drinking. It makes sense, though. College students know better than anyone the power of alcohol to make you forget about your problems.
 

CNN explores the link between drinking habits and the economy:

In the past few weeks, scattered reports have noted that alcohol sales are up in some places, despite -- or maybe even because of -- the downturn in the economy. The new figures have revived the thinking that when Americans are taking it on the economic chin they keep a firm grip on the bottle.

A closer look, though, shows in those states and others, the rise in alcohol sales merely follows on past increases. The most recent increases are, in some cases, smaller than what has been seen in the past. Still, the fact that they're increasing says something.

So people are drinking more. Or at least as much as in the past. But wait. Then CNN continues with:

"A lot of people think that when times are bad people will drink more. The evidence is pretty clear that, at least in terms of alcohol sales, that that's not true, that people will drink less," said Christopher Ruhm, a professor of economics at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

Okay so no, people are actually drinking less. Then again...

But just because overall consumption may dip, doesn’t mean everyone behaves that way, says Thomas S. Dee, a professor of economics at Swarthmore College.

Hold on, now some people are drinking more and some people are drinking less and some people are drinking the same amount.
 

Thank you for that insightful analysis.
 

If anyone’s been drinking, it’s CNN.