Topic: alcohol In the film “Smoke Signals”, directed by Chris Eyre, Victor and Thomas, two childhood friends who grew up in a Indian reservation together, they travel across the country to retrieve Victor's father's ashes. Victor's father Arnold had saved them both from a fire when they were both children, although Thomas' parents had been killed in the fire. Arnold was a hero in Thomas's eyes, but seen as a violent alcoholic in Victor's. When Victor arrives in Phoenix, he meets one of his father's friends, Suzy. He tells Victor that Arnold had accidentally set the fire with fireworks when he was drunk. In the article “Cognitive impairment due to alcohol abuse: current research statistics”, collaborators U. Pikirenia, IA Fedotov, OD Tuchina, A. Kapytau explain the cognitive effects of alcohol abuse. Both the film and this article highlight the effects of excessive alcohol consumption on a person. With such negative impacts and high consumption across the nation, alcohol should be legally controlled or banned in the United States. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay This article explains the many cognitive disorders that result from alcohol abuse. He explains that “changes in cognitive functioning have been found in 50-80% of alcohol-dependent patients who showed no signs of neurological complications.” (268). These effects included memory deficits and problems in the overall function of their cognition. As the article claims, alcoholism has a heavy effect on the mind, which is reflected in the film. Arnold's decision making was affected because he was drunk and caused him to burn down the house at the beginning of the film, killing Thomas' parents. In our country crimes and accidents happen every day because someone is under the influence of alcohol. If alcohol were limited and controlled, the likelihood of these events occurring would decrease and our society would become safer overall. Another negative effect of alcohol is the impact it has on families. One of the main reasons Arnold left his family was because of alcohol. In the film, Victor doesn't like it when his parents are drunk and expresses this by throwing beer bottles at the truck. When his mother notices this, she yells at Arnold to stop drinking, which prompts him to beat her and leave the family. This scene focuses on two aspects of the effects of alcoholism on families. First, the correlation between alcohol consumption and domestic violence. Not only is Arnold shown beating his wife throughout the film, but there is also a scene where Victor is the victim of his father's domestic violence. Many families are plagued by the same domestic violence issues shown in the film. In the short story “What You Pawn I Will Redeem,” by Sherman Alexie, the main character, Jackson, describes a much more extreme case of interfamilial violence, caused by his great-uncle's drunkenness, which led to the death of his grandfather. . While his grandfather was attempting to resolve domestic abuse between Jackson's great-uncle and his girlfriend, his "...great-uncle bent down, pulled [his] grandfather's gun from its holster, and shot him in the head." (24). Jackson explains that his great uncle never even understood why he killed him, further demonstrating the effect that intoxication has on a person's mind. The effect of alcoholism on a person's decision making leads to this problem, when a person would usually never do such a thing if they were sober. The effects of excess alcohol also affect other aspects of the family. Alcohol.