[pohl]

Scanning the rest of the thread, I can see examples of other folks who took it literally.

There may be multiple effects, here: one, that there will always be people who like to drink and will latch on to any idiom that gives them a social excuse to do so. My ex, whose undergraduate degree was journalism, used to say this phrase in a HHOS (ha-ha, only serious) manner. In retrospect, she just liked drinking.

Another effect that comes to mind is that there will always be some small percentage of people who – for whatever reason – do not understand metaphors or jokes or subtext.

Finally, this phrase in particular seems likely to propagate on its own without being attached to the underlying wisdom that was originally intended.