Smoking in Greece
You can’t seem to get away from it. Even in restaurants, where it’s illegal.
No wonder the economy here is in trouble. They spend too much time smoking.
Banning Cigarette Displays and Packaging
Whether this will have any affect on the level of smoking, I don’t know.
I have my doubts, as I think it will lead to an increase of counterfeiting and smuggling. Who’s to say it won’t be cool to smoke a pack with an exotic name on it? After all the Pope smokes Marlboro.
Seriously though, we need a ban on smoking in any vehicle and especially at bus stops. The latter particularly annoys me, especially when it’s raining.
The Pope Sets A Good Moral Example
This was said in this week’s Popbitch.
The Pope, apparently, smokes Marlboro Red
So smoking is OK to give you cancer, but using condoms to stop sexually transmitted diseases is wrong.
But then I did read it in Popbitch, which may mean it’s just a rumour. So if it isn’t true, we might see the Pope suing for defamation.
Now that would be fun!
Don’t Smoke in Company Cars in Essex!
According to this story, there is a crack down on those who smoke in company cars in Essex.
Good!
Smoking should be completely banned in all vehicles and at bus stops too!
Wales Get It Right on Smoking
They would appear from this report, to want to ban smoking in a lot more places, including cars with kids in them.
They should also ban smoking at bus stops.
How Do You Make A New Threadbare Carpet?
You could ask why you need one too, but here’s the paragraph from Modern Railways describing the sumptuous interior of the new Midland Grand Hotel, that is soon to open at St. Pancras.
Here is the grand staircase, made famous in a score of films, with a sumptuous new carpet from Brintons of Kidderminster – but wait, the carpet does not look that new. No it has been specially woven to look a little threadbare, to be in keeping with the age of its surroundings.
The hotel must also be unique in that it will feature a Ladies Smoking Room, where smoking will not be allowed.
The Telegraph has an article here.
Will this become the best station hotel in the world? If it does, Sir John Betjeman will be chuckling out loud. It is certainly attached to a station that the head of French Railways, once said was the best station in the world.
Would Plain Packaging Cut Cigarette Sales?
The government is thinking of making cigarette companies sell their death in plain packets. The response of the companies is predictable and says that it will make their products easily to counterfeit. It probably will, but then there is every reason to cut cigarette smoking.
I said in a post a few weeks ago what I would do. If anything, I’ve got even more outrageous in my views.
Smoking Mothers Breed Criminals
I hate smoking with a vengeance and for good reason!
But when I read this study from Harvard that mothers who are heavy smokers, are more likely to have children with crimnal tendencies, it enfoces my view, that we need more restrictions on smoking and more help for people to give up.
I’d like to see the following come into law.
- It should be illegal to smoke in any vehicle.
- It should be illegal to smoke within 100 metres of a school at all times.
- It should be illegal to smoke within 10 metres of any child under 10 on the street.
- All tobacco should be sold in approved outlets, where all customers are videoed. Such video can be inspected by the licensing authorities.
- Children under 10 are not allowed into premises where tobacco is sold.
- No sales in garages and petrol stations.
- Tobacco can not be sold in the same building as food. Shops would be allowed to set up separate entrances to a part of the store where tobacco would be sold, but this would be videoed and child free. Waitrose in Newmarket used to sell alcohol this way.
- Councils would be allowed to create no smoking zones. I wonder what would happen if say town A made it’s town centre and shopping area smoke-free and town B didn’t!
I know it’s draconian, but get rid of the evil of tobacco and we’ll probably be surprised at all the results.
Nick Clegg on Smoking
I’m not in favour of smoking, but when Nick Clegg discloses that he does on Desert Island Discs, it’s not good. Is it another case of politicians saying do as I say and not as I do?
George Osbourne Abolishes Child Benefits for High Earners
We had three chidren and when we were hard up, the small amount of child benefit we got helped C make ends meet. But as we could afford to send all of our children to private schools, I don’t think we’d have missed the child benefit, when I became a high earner.
So I think George Osbourne has got it absolutely right. If you have three children, the benefit works out at about £180 per month. In the grand scheme of things if you are earning over £44,000 and living well, it’s just a case of good wine a month or a meal down the pub for two, once a week!
What really gets me is the sight of young and sometimes not-so-young mothers, wheezing as they push the baby around, whilst smoking their ciggies. After all 20 a day is about £180 a month! So if you have three children, you can use your child benefit for the fags!
The Anonymous Widower 