I will not argue about the alcohol-water death rate because it's ridiculous.
And I guess nobody is smart enough to say "I've had enough". I'm sure you would have loved taking a look at the streets in my city at new year's. They were full of vomit and fight aftermaths everywhere. I'm not sure if you can call that a celebration.
Also, you can drink water AND socialize. A friend of mine ordered tea at a party once. And now whenever we go somewhere we always make a joke about it. So yeah, even not drinking can create fun stories.
I guess i should stress the difference between drinking and getting drunk a bit, because I'm talking about drunkenness. That's what i meant when i said "I hate alcohol". I hate it's effects. For me it's okay to have a few drinks or so. At least until you're able to control yourself. If you cross the line then it's not fine with me. And people my age always cross that line. I will not even mention the drugs...
I'll stop here because the topic is about booze and not about not drinking booze.