"I had never, ever drunk beer in high school, and by the time I got to Tech we were having these parties out in the cotton fields and getting so drunk. I was the champion beer drinker; suddenly I was pouring it down my throat... Insane! Insane!"
About this Quote
"Cotton fields" does a lot of quiet work. Its not just a rustic backdrop; its Southern iconography, a hint of tradition and class, with the parties staged literally on top of an agrarian past. The setting makes the drinking feel both mythic and slightly lawless: hidden from adults, but also embedded in regional identity. Its the kind of detail politicians often use to signal authenticity, not policy.
The repeated "Insane! Insane!" is a performative alibi. He wants you to hear moral distance while still enjoying the adrenaline of the story. Calling it madness lets him indulge the memory without owning its implications: the competitiveness ("champion"), the peer economy of masculinity, the way "suddenly" suggests less choice than momentum. In a politicians mouth, this becomes a parable about temptation and self-control, but also a subtle bid for relatability: yes, I went off the rails too, briefly, like any regular guy.
Quote Details
| Topic | Youth |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Livingston, Bob. (2026, January 17). I had never, ever drunk beer in high school, and by the time I got to Tech we were having these parties out in the cotton fields and getting so drunk. I was the champion beer drinker; suddenly I was pouring it down my throat... Insane! Insane! FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/i-had-never-ever-drunk-beer-in-high-school-and-by-46269/
Chicago Style
Livingston, Bob. "I had never, ever drunk beer in high school, and by the time I got to Tech we were having these parties out in the cotton fields and getting so drunk. I was the champion beer drinker; suddenly I was pouring it down my throat... Insane! Insane!" FixQuotes. January 17, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/i-had-never-ever-drunk-beer-in-high-school-and-by-46269/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"I had never, ever drunk beer in high school, and by the time I got to Tech we were having these parties out in the cotton fields and getting so drunk. I was the champion beer drinker; suddenly I was pouring it down my throat... Insane! Insane!" FixQuotes, 17 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/i-had-never-ever-drunk-beer-in-high-school-and-by-46269/. Accessed 21 Feb. 2026.



