Great Britain leads the world in teenage drunkenness. One third of teens ages 13 to 15 have been drunk at least twice—the highest proportion of any developed country—according to a report from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (oecd).

Excessive drinking is common in Britain. In fact, according to a separate survey, 42 percent of Britons see binge drinking as “part of Britain’s culture.” About a quarter say there is “nothing wrong with drinking to excess.”

Britain is paying a price for this drunkenness—literally. Alcohol misuse costs the National Health Service ₤2.7 billion (us$4.5 billion) a year. On average, one drunk is admitted to hospital every minute. The wider cost of alcoholism, including factors like crime, disorder, and social and family breakdown, is estimated to be ₤25.1 billion (us$41.9 billion). Alcohol is involved in half of the violent crimes committed in England and Wales.

What is the cause of this problem? A lack of education? Child poverty? Not enough help from the government? The oecd report concluded that it was none of these things. It stated that British teens are “materially fairly well-off,” and that average family income is higher and child poverty is lower than oecd averages. The UK even performed better than average in quality of school life.

The report found that Britain spends ₤90,000 (us$150,000) on each child from birth to the age of 18—₤10,000 (us$16,000) more than the international average.

These statistics show that there is something very wrong not only with British society, but also how Britain attempts to solve its problems. They show that simply throwing money at the problem won’t fix it. This doesn’t get to the root cause. Why do people—both young and old, since binge drinking is not just a teenage phenomenon—feel the need to go out and get drunk?

Part of it certainly is the culture. In Britain today it is perfectly acceptable and even trendy to get drunk. But that still doesn’t get to the core reason of why the culture was established in the first place.

Drinking can foster camaraderie and unity between friends. Drinkers may have a great time—until the next morning. Part of the cause of the problem is the short-term thinking that is endemic to this society. Eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die is the mentality. It is the same short-term thinking that drives families, and even governments, into massive debt. Let’s enjoy what we have now, and worry about the future later.

The oecd survey also shows that this attitude is active in other areas of British life. The UK has the fourth-highest rate of teenage pregnancy—after Mexico, Turkey and the United States—of the 30 industrialized countries surveyed. Britain ranked third in the oecd’s category of “risky behavior”—a combination of drinking, smoking and teen pregnancy statistics. Only Mexico and Turkey came higher. The trend shows that British teens are into pleasure for the moment, regardless of consequences later on.

Why such hedonistic and risky behavior? Widespread alcoholism reveals widespread hopelessness and purposelessness.

Young people in Britain have little sense of purpose or direction. The government tells parents not to teach their children that anything is right or wrong when it comes to sex. Schools don’t enforce standards of discipline and parents don’t instill values in their children. Political correctness neuters their history lessons, so they have no sense of where the nation has come from, and therefore no idea that it should really be moving somewhere. They have no goal to strive toward, no purpose to aim for, no cause to make sacrifices for. So they amble through life, trying to have fun as they go.

Most have never been taught that they should think about the future. They have not been taught that they should be trying to make a contribution to society. Rather, they have been taught to do whatever they think will make them happy. Except they have never been taught the way to lasting happiness.

Throwing money at education has not helped the problem, because education is part of the problem. Wrong education is creating hopeless adults.

The only way to solve Britain’s drinking problem is to give the people a vision and a sense of purpose. The Proverbs warn that “where there is no vision, the people perish.” This is happening in Britain before our eyes. Not even the leaders have any real vision for the country—it is drifting into danger while the people party on.

Drunkenness is an ugly symptom of this far more pernicious problem: Neither individuals nor the nation have any vision.

The nation as a whole shows the same drunken hedonism as the young people in the survey. The government binges on debt without regard for the hangover tomorrow. It sets accused terrorists free, not thinking that this could encourage terrorists to be more fearless in the future. It cuts spending on defense and outsources its capability to develop weapons, with no thought about the possibility of a future attack.

If Britain could fix the short-term, purposeless thinking that causes its drinking problem, then it could fix everything else that is wrong with the nation. Britain had a greater sense of purpose in the past. Though far from perfect, it was better than no purpose at all.

Men, and even nations, need a purpose to survive. Otherwise, they self-destruct. That is what happens to the drunkard, and that is what is happening to Britain as a whole.

But thankfully, this self-destruction will soon be over. Soon the whole world will be given the true vision—a lasting sense of purpose that will make the lives of everyone more fulfilling. If young people followed any purpose with drive and zeal, drunkenness would stop being a problem. But there is only one real purpose for man that will lead to a truly happy and fulfilling life.

Soon everyone will be taught this purpose. They will be taught why man is here on Earth. But you can have that same sense of purpose right now—one that will add a new depth of joy and meaning to your life. For more information, read Mystery of the Ages and The Incredible Human Potential. Pursuing this vision will lead not to a hangover the next morning, but to lasting happiness.