Irish pubs closing Down

While upto their eyeballs in fake cocaine!

I live in a small town in Donegal. It's cocaine in every pub you go to and not just for teens and those in their twenties.

A lot of the people I grew up with (now in their 40s) are on the bag every weekend. I havent been in a pub now for over 2 years but the routine even then was house party or go to the pub for a few and then a house party with drugs until the next morning.

There used to be 16 pubs in the town. Now there are about 4 that stay open full time. Prices are mental but Im sure their costs are well up also. A few others only open for a charity quiz night or if requested by a band etc.. The rest all shut years ago.

That sums up most Irish people.

Before the great population bulge as emigration waned most Irish pubs were also homes. Around the late 80s when I first started going to the pub most were owner operator, often with family members or relations serving behind the bar.

There was a cosy intimacy because you were literally often drinking in the business part of someones home. In my hometown there was even five pubs in a row that were owner occupier run, there were many kids in my school who grew up in a pub.

Now not one of those five pubs are lived in but still operate as pubs, although I think many are shut during the week. Some had the living quarters turned into guest accommodation for weekenders.

One of those five pubs was run by a bachelor who'd close early if he felt like going to bed and he'd tell groups to try the other pubs as his was a quiet pub. Most of his regulars were one or two pint regulars, watch snooker on the TV, read the paper, basically escaping the clatter of kids at home. The funniest thing about that pub was when the smoking ban came in, which he supported, all his regulars started complaining about the stench off the furniture now that they could smell it without smoke masking it!

A lot of pubs were the same. When I hear of pub closures I know a good portion of them weren't exactly vibrant social hubs to begin with.

Hello, fellow Galway man. Remember how people looked like Zombies eating Taco Fries under that sickly yellow fluorescent lighting with dark post puke bloodshot eyes? Not very Insta ready!

My old local ,The Blacker in Coolock is the same(provided we're not talking about the same spot). The guards used to be outside at closing time every night.

"social life is going down the tubes. Post offices are closing, churches are closing. traditional meeting spots are going away not good for people and not good for their mental health."

You say this like its not unexpected. Church numbers have been falling for years. My local church consistent attendees youngest would be in their late 60s. Give it 20-30 years and all the churches will be gone.

Won't comment about the post offices. We still need those.

Peoples meeting spots have simply changed. The pub and church are no longer the social hub that it was and we need to stop trying to save them.

The generation that considered these places the social hubs will be dead in 20-30 years. Middle aged people now are adapting and conducting social activities elsewhere.

They cannot be saved. The younger generation will not be replacing the old simply for the sake of keeping the pub industry alive.

Personally I've no idea what young people are up to these days. But what is blatantly evident and all the data backs up is the growth of loneliness and perpetually online. Stats indicate people have less real life friends than past generations.

Fitness is fine but when it's coupled up with a for looks minimum beauty standards Instagramable face and body is it better? Is the explosion in lip fillers and corner shop face surgeries amongst teenagers and early 20s an improvement and an indicator of better personal habits?

I mean people can crow all they like about drunk culture and pub culture but what is replacing it. Is alcohol the problem... Really…

Lots going on in today's world but I don't think the death of social in person outlets is a celebration myself. And the fitness gurus refuse to discuss how they use their platforms to manipulate people's perception of themselves and what they should and shouldn't be doing.

"I’m sure the government could do something regarding the Make it easier to set up a business serving alcohol or at least licenses to the general area they were in rather than all licenses being hoovered up and used elsewhere. If you think a café or a coffee shop is the solution then think again. They don’t open late and I have in coffee shops that did open late of the larger cities and honestly it just wasn’t that great."

You could grant 1 million licenses tomorrow and some people would still not come. That 'some' group is growing year by year. A reason I don't like the pub (one of many) is smokers. The smell is abhorrent and many young people would feel the same I imagine.

Interestingly enough, there was never any discussion about the health implications of binge drinking and poor eating habits 20 or 30 years ago.

Now people are drinking less, eating healthier, going to the gym more and yet anxiety and depression are more prevalent than ever. Its like we've done a complete 180.

I didn't see this changing the price of alcohol in pubs as they were already above the minimums. It did make off licence a lot more expensive.

Alot of pubs , even in towns only open at 5pm

I wouldn't knock that, it's incredibly strong brand and has brought an awful lot of money into this country. I don't think any country would relish to see their own recognisable brand diminish.

I usually buy a four pack of beamish or a bottle of wine at the weekend and I really haven't noticed any real price difference because of mup.

If anything wine offers have gotten better since then. I read somewhere that aging western societies simply drink less and now wine surpluses are common.