Argument Essay: AlcoholIn the film “Smoke Signals”, directed by Chris Eyre, Victor and Thomas, two childhood friends who grew up on an Indian reservation together, travel across the country to collect Victor's father's ashes. Victor's father, Arnold, had saved them both from a fire when they were children, although Thomas' parents were killed in the fire. Arnold was a hero in Thomas's eyes, but considered an abusive alcoholic in Victor's eyes. When Victor arrives in Phoenix, he meets one of his father's friends, Suzy. She told Victor that Arnold had accidentally started the fire with fireworks while he was drunk. In the article “Cognitive Impairment Due to Alcohol Abuse: Current Research Statistics,” contributors 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 heavy drinking on a person. With such negative impacts and high consumption across the country, 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 Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay This article explains the many cognitive impairments associated with alcohol abuse. He explains that “changes in cognitive functioning have been noted in 50 to 80% of alcohol-dependent patients with no signs of neurological complications.” (268). These effects included memory deficits and problems in the overall functioning of their cognition. As the article argues, alcoholism has serious effects on the mind, which is reflected in the film. Arnold's decision-making was influenced by the fact that he was intoxicated 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 possibility of such 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 alcohol. In the film, Victor does not like it when his parents are drunk and expresses this when he throws the beer bottles at the truck. When his mother notices this, she yells at Arnold to stop drinking, causing him to hit 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 hitting his wife during the film, but there is also a scene in which Victor is the victim of his father's domestic violence. Many families face the same domestic violence issues presented in the film. In the story "What You Pawn I Will Redeem" by Sherman Alexie, the main character, Jackson, describes a much more extreme case of inter-family violence, caused by his great-uncle's drunkenness, which led to his death of his grandfather. . As his grandfather attempted to resolve domestic violence between Jackson's great-uncle and his girlfriend, his "...great-uncle leaned down, pulled [his] grandfather's gun out of the holster and shot him in the head.” (24). Jackson explains that his great-uncle never even understood why he killed him, proving the effect that drunkenness has on a person's mind. The effect of alcoholism on decision making leads to this problem,..