In the course of a recent article in the magazine about the rise of neo-prohibitionism, I noted how anti-alcohol campaigners might be turning to a device used by their counterparts in the war against tobacco:

“Dealing with alcohol” will be easier after decades during which the nanny state has been working on ways to undermine individual autonomy. To take one example, concerns about “passive smoking” successfully if unfairly consigned the ghost of John Stuart Mill to the periphery of the tobacco wars. A more expansive understanding of alcohol’s “externalities” (passive drinking) — traditionally thought to refer primarily to cases of physical or emotional abuse — will increasingly be put to work.

In that case, I was looking at how the CDC had been calculating the financial cost to the country of “excessive” drinking, an argument used by those who want to see steep hikes in alcohol taxation.

Nevertheless, variants of the original notion of passive drinking still surface, and may be signs of what is to come.

The New York Post:

Heavy-drinking students damage their pals’ physical and mental health as well as their own, according to new research.

The harms of incessant boozing among college students — such as lower grades, mental distress, and even suicidal thoughts — are linked to being exposed to a drinker’s poor behavior, say scientists . . .

Wait for it:

Study co-author Dr. David Jernigan, of Boston University School of Public Health, said: “Colleges should use these findings to partner with policymakers in support of measures like increasing alcohol taxes, limiting alcohol availability and restricting marketing, all of which can help safeguard students’ health and academic success.”

Nanny’s ratchet is being prepared.