Sunday 12 October 2014

"Weird" Is Not Recognising Mistakes

Via the Engineer, it seems that the Mirror is doing its utmost to stem the tide of Labour votes leaking to UKIP by exposing the party's "weirdest policies".

Personally, I don't reckon number 5 would appear very 'weird' at all to working class people, but then the Mirror isn't staffed by them is it?
5. Changing the smoking ban to allow smoking indoors
UKIP says they will "amend the smoking ban to give pubs and clubs the choice to open smoking rooms properly ventilated and separated from non-smoking areas".
Weird? Sounds eminently sensible to me as I suspect it would to Labour's core working class voters.
This is interesting because it's a divisive political topic but also because practically, it's quite hard to ensure that there's no risk to non-smokers in pubs.
Indeed it is divisive. No matter how much the tobacco control cartel try to pretend it's a dead subject, it never will be. The Mirror admitting the ban is still divisive - a full seven years later - illustrates how barmy and unfit for purpose it was in the first place. Quite understandable really, since the ban we have had inflicted on us was never asked for by the public and is still opposed by more than support it.

As for there having to be "no risk to non-smokers in pubs" -  let's set aside this daft idea that pubs should be as risk-free as a health clinic for now - surely "smoking rooms properly ventilated and separated" would do precisely that for all but the insane. Those who really believe they are going to suffer health problems from someone smoking in a different room are the weirdos, not UKIP.
Would pubs really want to invest money in creating new rooms specifically for this? 
Only in a socialist-leaning ban-friendly newspaper can the suggestion that pubs might not want to spend money translate into there having to be a law against them doing so. Would it not be common sense - and therefore not weird - to allow them to choose how to spend their money themselves?
Especially six years after the smoking ban, as our smoking culture has changed and e-cigarette use is on the rise.
It's seven, dear, but let's not split hairs. And as for invoking the rise of e-cig use, that's precisely why the smoking ban is an abomination, because if it weren't for the rancid, vindictive con artists at ASH and the extremist smoking ban they connived to impose in order to justify their grant money, there wouldn't now be a rising tide of bans against e-cig use despite there not being even the vaguest hint of evidence to justify it. Especially in a separate bloody room!
Hmmm, who really would like to come out of the rain and cold to smoke in pubs?
Is this satire?

Probably thousands of working class smokers in each and every previously safe Labour stronghold who have increasingly started voting for UKIP, that's who.

Still, all the while Labour and their press supporters - such as Sophie who wrote the Mirror piece - continue to think policies which even one of their own describes as "aimed at the latte-sipping, chino-wearing, light Green, inner-city left" are winners, working class votes are going to continue to be shipped to UKIP all over the country.

If Sophie's sophistry was designed to put people off UKIP, though, it doesn't seem to be working as the poll under her article shows.


It seems staggering to me why the upper middle class privileged toffs on the left continue to be determined to punish the poor, ignore the public, and alienate their core working class vote.

Now that's what I call weird.


9 comments:

Jax said...

I do wonder whether the writer of the Mirror article is a – probably closet – UKIP supporter. Especially with her final sentence after the “smoking ban” policy. Because none of the policies mentioned strike me as being particularly “weird.” “Weird” policies would be one like that proposed some years ago by the Monster Raving Loony party for free cheese and pickle sandwiches for everyone. Now that’s weird! Anyone on here old enough to remember that one? No, thought not!

No, the policies cited in this article are simply different from any proposed by the Big Three parties. And “different” isn’t the same as “weird,” by a long shot. In fact, I’d bet my bottom dollar that, if these policies were proffered to the majority of the British public without any particular party in question being cited as their author (to avoid any automatic political bias from kicking in), virtually everyone in the country, with just a few dissenters (because there’s always some), would think they were all pretty good ideas!

Furor Teutonicus said...

XX Would pubs really want to invest money in creating new rooms specifically for this? XX

If the pubs had not manically ripped out all the "Snugs" and smoking saloons in the 70s and 80s, to turn their places into cattle barns with beer, there would be no problem, would there?

FrankH said...

It's a shame they included "Medals fro every person in the armed forces" in that list 'cos that one is weird. I was in the RAF, I didn't do anything that warranted a medal. I left after 9 years, if I'd really wanted a medal I could have stayed in for another 6 years and they would have given me a medal for long service and good conduct, or as we called it, 15 years of undetected crime.

Dioclese said...

Particularly liked 'Agreed with them all'

If you're interested, here's a summary of all the policies that the other parties say they don't have : online here

Telos said...

>It seems staggering to me why the upper middle class privileged toffs on the left continue to be determined to punish the poor, ignore the public, and alienate their core working class vote.

Well, it's kept them in jobs, money, power and privilege for years now. We've been saying for a long time that eventually the working class will wake up and turn on them, but it never happened. (But perhaps finally it will.)

truckerlyn said...

We can but hope!


When I wrote my original 3 page rant to my local MP it started with telling her that they should butt right out of peoples' personal lives as we are not all the same and never will be. They should also remember that they are SERVANTS not our masters as they hold the privileged positions that they have due to enough people being stupid enough to vote for them!


Let's hope that there are seriously fewer stupid people voting next May!

truckerlyn said...

Great post Dick.


I would, however, prefer to see the choice as Smoking and Non Smoking venues. That way, non smokers have nothing to complain or whinge about! I really do not like the thought of being 'locked' away in a separate room! After all, if pubs did decide to accommodate smokers in this way and have to create such a room, I am sure they would do it on the cheap and it would not be particularly inviting! After all, with the huge toll the smoking ban has put on pubs, not many have the money to splurge and they will count on the idea that anywhere indoors is more inviting that standing out in the wind and rain - which means we could well still be treated as second class citizens!

nisakiman said...

Yes, I'm inclined to agree with you, Lyn. It would be much more convivial if the pub was just a pub like they used to be. We know that the whole SHS thing is utter bollocks, so why on earth should smokers be herded into a single space "with proper ventilation". I like fuggy pubs - it adds to the ambiance. :)

Let the non-smokers have their 'smoke-free' pubs, and give us back a proper pub where you can go to drink, smoke, talk and laugh.

truckerlyn said...

Absolutely. After all, many of these non/anti smokers don't have a sense of humour anyway! They would be bound to complain about the noise of raucous laughter, never mind the continual babble of chatter!!


And, even if the smoking room were hermetically sealed, at least one would be bound to complain that they could smell smoke! If one of them were later diagnosed with cancer they would be bound to try and sue the pub as well!!!