[LinuxBender]

A better analogy would be bacteria in your mouth.

For years, you had billions of bacteria in your mouth, slowly disintegrating the enamel of your teeth and slowly burrowing cavities into your teeth. They consume the food you eat, then urinate acidic waste that destroys your teeth and gums. They do this so slowly that you don't even feel the acidic damage.

Then, one day, you use a very strong mouthwash that contains alcohol. The alcohol instantly kills billions of bacteria, all of whom urinate instantly all at the same time, in excruciatingly painful death. The acid level is so high that it causes a burning sensation in your mouth, you are like, "damn, this mouthwash burns, I'm not using this crap again!"

You saw the mouthwash as the bad guy. In reality, the bad guys were there all along.