The Price of Alcohol

98 Kroner is about $16. These are regular sized drinks, they don't come in extra large glasses or with extra strong alcohol.

Norway has a huge problem with binge drinking. Actually, most people don't see it as a problem, "it's just the way it is." Daily drinking is considered a problem, but binge drinking is mostly thought of as a part of Norwegian culture. I don't think anyone thinks it's a good part of Norwegian culture, they just don't see it as inherently bad. It's quite bizarre to me that it's even acceptable to get black-out drunk at some corporate functions.

The main way the Norwegian government has tried to curb this behaviour is to raise the price of alcohol to exorbitant levels. The problem is that doesn't really work. Russia showed the world that doesn't work when they tried it for a time under Communism. It really only discourages people who aren't alcoholics from drinking. This is a country where literally everyone pays for the poor health choices of others since it has universal healthcare. One would think it would be in everyone's best interest to try something that works when it comes to the alcohol problem.