h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Around here in Israel lots of places I go to (cafes and such) are neither really smoking or really non-smoking; yet if you start smoking and someone feels inconvenienced they ask you to stop. So with some efforts from both sides you don't need to pass ridiculous laws.

And speaking of addictive habits which are dangerous to innocent third parties, why not mention drinking? With behaviour altered and common sense clouded by alcohol, how many people will become at best annoying to others (like, guys trying to chat up ladies) or worse (brawling, drunk driving, whatever). Should they pass a law to prohibit alcohol in pubs, eh?

I think with moderation one can easily tolerate drinking and smoking. Of course blowing smoke in someone's face, or beating him up because you're drunk is not acceptable. Yet between this and total abstinence are there not plenty of intermediate and acceptable states?

Besides, I don't like thinking of the police having to concentrate on enforcing smoking laws while there are larger crimes going on. Like, I think they wanted to pass a law in France to make peopple pay for some services when they call the firemen: you call them to ask to get your cat from the tree, they charge you. You call them because some house is on fire, that's free.



And, while we're at it and speking of choice and whatnot: I don't like TVs in pubs, I find them very intrusive, even when the sound is turned off. However, it is increasingly difficult to find a TV-free place (or at least, a place where it is switched off a sensible amount of the time). And I also like, sometimes, no music at all in the pub - just pub noises, people speaking, glasses clanging, orders being passed. Now if I'm not mistaken, the only music-free place I know happens to be located in Brussels, about 2000 miles from here Speak about having a choice.

The entire Wetherspoon chain in the UK is TV and music free as far as I'm aware
Crap beer though unfortunately

`not that that is any help if you're in Israel of course...

<>

Either they've stopped doing real ales in Wetherspoons, or you have no taste in beer.

I'll go and visit next time I pass through the UK

Oh, and if it is the ones which own the Standing Order in Edinburgh I rather like them How could I forget about them? Shame on me

Unfortunately, it is indeed rather hopeless from Israel (about 2500 miles from Edinburgh ). By the way, and quite offtopic: idi you know that Guinness is quite close to be number one beer in here?

Yes, Wetherspoon's does own the Standing Order.

My local Wetherspoons (at the moment, the Berkely in Bristol) has a TV, which is usually showing sport with the sound off.

However, yes, no music, cheap prices, wide variety of ale.

Just catching up on the backlog...

>> they're now saying, "By gosh, this doesn't fit into my right wing plan for the world at all. This small trivial thing must be stopped, because I've got nothing better to do than waste my time on stopping people I've never even met from smoking". <<

Eh? You mean left wing, surely?

RF

The Wetherspoon's I've been to do cheap real Ale indeed. Sadly in my experience they've no idea how to look after it.
If you know one that does it well then

The Standing Order in Edinburgh does a mean Caledonian 80/' and (although I haven't been in a couple of years) the Savoy in Swindon is the place to go for a jug of Spit.

The other thing is that Wetherspoons in Birmingham seem to attract all the lowlife.
My one experience of the Real Ale in the big Wetherspoon pub in Cardiff (the one by the bus station) is taking five separate pints back as they were either rancid or cloudy just in one lunchtime and ending up having a pint of Carling.

Pint of Carling... you must've been desparate!

We've got two Wetherspoons in Swindon... the Savoy is okay for clientele (except on Friday and Saturday nights... but then it's the same for any town centre pub) but the Grove Company Inn seems to attract the craggy-looking men with swallow tattoos on their throats and ACAB on their knuckles who have "been away for a bit".

Actually there is a 'posh' Wetherspoon's on Broad Street in Brum called the Lloyds Bar/Solomon Cutler - it has lots of TV's for showing the footie though and serves no ale other than Smoothflow Worthingtons/Tetley

Desperate... it was getting late, it took more than 20 minutes just to get one drinkable drink, and this was at lunchtime so I couldn't hang about...

Just seen the latest ad against smoking on Scottish TV tonight - OUTRAGEOUS !!!

They state definitively that passive smoking kills. This is a lie !!
There is no proven link. Possible, yes, probably, yes, but not definate.

Why are the Government allowed to tell outright lies and get away with it?

They are scaremongering.

I am in favour of smoking ban. Smoke is not a short time killer, but smoke can really provoke a lot of deseases 8and that's scientifically proved). people can smoke in their homes and open spaces (not a public space though.

About banning alcool as well... there is a minimum limit to alcool, that we can consider it doesn't affect the human organism in a severe way (tabacco can in any quantity do potential harm).

Nevertheless we should educate chilldren to avoid both (tabacco and alcool). In case of an adult who smokes or drinks to much, he or she should seek some kind of way to get read of the addiction.

( too )

Tobacco is sacred.
Those who disparage its use or despise its users are like Danish cartoonists; foolish, rude, uninformed and merely exploiting current fashion to their own gleefully selfish ends.

Tobacco is sacred.
Smokers have as much right to puff as others do to pray.


~jwf~

>> Why are the Government allowed to tell outright lies and get away with it? <<

I thought that was what they were *for* ...

RF

"Smokers have as much right to puff as others do to pray"