You know this already but yeah you are absolutely the rational one here. I drank a lot back in the day because i had a terrible home life as a child and exhibited a few other self destructive behaviors, but in the last ten years or so ill drink one beer or glass of champagne at a wedding or super bowl watch party, but 100% just to be polite and avoid people chiding me to drink. Yes, people will actually get upset and tell me to drink sometimes, work people wcyd. Idk it's like ethyl alcohol is exactly the stuff we used to sanitize surfaces at work because it kills everything and also dissolves the chemicals we work with. It's just madness to drink that stuff!!

I truthfully told him that I don’t drink at all and I guess that was inconceivable to him because he started going, “You WILL drink. EVERYBODY drinks. Don’t lie and…” so on so forth.

There's a lot of social pressure to drink, particularly for folks over 40. My first year at my current company, it was very normal for the department head to take everyone down to the bar and buy them shots. We definitely had folks that declined. But those weren't the ones he got close with. Consequently, they weren't the ones who got fast tracked for promotions and raises and such.

Not saying it's a strict 1:1 correlation, because we definitely have a few teatoddlers in the upper wings of management. But it's the exception more than the rule.

There's also a lot of status in drinking - particularly expensive wines and liquors - such that having a nice bottle on hand when friends are over is considered normal. So I can see why it's frustrating to your dad, talking to someone who isn't in that lifestyle and culture, when he hears "Oh, I just don't do that". Particularly, when he's trying to hammer home how easy it is to go from "I don't drink" to "I drank too much".

It never seemed appealing to me what with seeing people ruin their lives and act foolish, the odor, all the money people spend on it etc.

It's a popular social lubricant for a reason. A glass of wine or beer is great at reducing social anxiety. I've got friends who insist on a drink at big events. It's that or pop a xanax.

I also know a few girls who go from dead fish to horny af after a few glasses. So, when they want to hook up, they will take a few shots first to get in the mood. And "odor" can be a plus (for me, anyway) when it's a petty scotch or rich cherry.

There's also an artistry to the craft of fermentation, such that it's as much a hobby as a habit. I know a guy who brews his own beer and loves to bring different casks to events to show off what he's made. And another who works in the industry. He loves to pull out bottles he picked up overseas and show off different styles, flavors, and techniques of manufacture.

Then there's just a general quality of pairing. My wife keeps a small wine collection, knows what pairs well, and regularly opens a bottle for cooking or to match with a particular meal.

So... YMMV. But there's definitely a big gray area between never drinking at all and being an alcoholic.