Breaking Edge

On few occasions, Edgies will cease to be Straight Edge for whatever reason. This is called "breaking Edge." It's the same concept as a Vegetarian eating meat in a moment of weakness, or just quitting the diet altogether. Either of these lifestyles could be dropped as if it were just a "fad" or a "phase" in someone's life, which they very well could have been. I now pose the question: are there any drawbacks to this choice of no longer living this lifestyle?

In my opinion, no, aside from the health risks you would have from adopting an abusive intake of tobacco, drugs, or alcohol. Otherwise, it's your own life and you should live it any way you see fit.

There are, however, consequences outside of my personal opinion. Due to the ethnocentric values that can sometimes be found in the Straight Edge culture, anyone who "breaks edge" can become a candidate for isolation. It is a slim possibility, but nonetheless the threat is present, and if the Straight Edge culture is all they knew, they could have a hard time readjusting.

Another problem that could arise is determined by whether or not the individual decided to mark themselves with a Straight Edge tattoo. If they had marked themselves with the traditional one or three Xs, then they will have a false proclamation on their skin. Of course they could have it covered or removed, but both of those are lengthy, painful processes.

"Breaking edge" is simply just a change of lifestyle, but it goes to show that people will always have different levels of commitment, and the way one finally decides to lead their life does not make flaws upon their character for having explored other lifestyles.