Friends have beers together. Can Officer Crowley and Professor Gates pretend to be buds? I wonder how the conversation at the White House will go down.
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President Obama - Welcome, Officer. Welcome Professor. I am glad you both could make it to DC though I understand why you took different flights here.
Professor Gates - Thank you for having us, Mr. President. Yes, I figured I ran the risk of getting cuffed again if we flew together.
Officer Crowley - Thank you for the invitation, Mr. President. I did not wish to have a reference made to my mother so I opted for a different flight, too.
PO - What kind of beer do you want? We have light, dark, ales. Just about anything.
PG - I am watching my weight so I will take a light. It is hard to stay in shape when you are in your late 50s and walking with a cane...which I think would be pretty obvious to anyone who was not stupid.
OC - I will have an ale. That's what I was drinking when you called me, Mr. President, to apologize.
PO - I remember calling you but I would not characterize that conversation as an apology.
PG - Nor would I, from what I remember reading about the transcript...What were you doing in a bar anyway at lunch time?
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Anyway, it is hard to imagine how these guys are going to be pals, though I suppose you can drink with someone and not be his friend. Is liquor a way for men to open up to each other? A way to break bread? Yes! A number of guys who were interviewed for Buddy System did reference getting closer to other men when alcohol was involved. A 30s guy who I highlighted specifically said he became closer to men when he and they had been drinking. Another guy in his 20s said he apologized to an old friend who he had not spoken to for a year. The guy told me he was drunk (he couldn't have apologized while sober, apparently) when he called the friend and they have been close again ever since.
It makes sense. Men feel looser when there is beer. It is a masculine and safe thing to do. Drinking beer is clubby, sports bar behavior. Supppose Obama had invited them to the White House for a glass of red wine? Not going to happen. Too effete; not masculine. A glass of scotch? Maybe, but it does not invoke the sports bar. A glass of carrot juice? A cop is not a granola type guy. Beer it is and that industry must be counting its newfound popularity. Men feel safe around beer and friendships have been built around pubs and bars for centuries. Why stop now?
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Next scene - A beer commercial - President Obama looks into the camera and says:
"When I stir things up I like to calm the waters with a cool glass of (blank) beer."
