[jambutty]

"Thou Shalt Not Smoke" looks like becoming the eleventh commandment if the self opinionated non smokers have their way.

Not content with having got their way about smoking in general they now want to dictate what a person does in their own home.

Of course they conveniently forget that as they drive off in the poisonous fumes belching car, THEIR EXHAUST FUMES INVADE MY HOUSE er flat.

During the same programme it was also reported that if a Council official is to visit a house the occupants must not smoke ONE HOUR before the official’s arrival. Now how are they going to enforce that as most official visits are on spec? And someone suggested that people approaching the Council offices should stop smoking BEFORE THEY REACH THEM.

How long before the Council, being the owner of rented social housing, will decree that the tenants can no longer smoke in their property? How are they going to police that? CCTV in each room?

I notice that government is going all out to get us all to quit smoking with a new £7m advertising campaign that is attempting to frighten us into submission. Little weird beings resident inside the brain and a list of chemicals in modern day tobacco products. I also notice that the ads for nicotine patches also include the words, “It will help your will power.” An admission, if ever there was one, that nicotine patches are not the be all and end all answers to stopping smoking and will power is paramount as it always has been.

The worst part is that some non-smokers are crawling out of the woodwork gloating about the success in attacking the smokers. Well take heed you gloaters, the no smoking in enclosed public spaces campaign has established a precedent where the government can tell you, the citizen of the UK, what you can do and where. Your totally selfish behaviour in the smoking debate will backfire on you when Big Brother comes a calling.

And now this crackpot idea of increasing the age to 18 where buying tobacco products is legal. I suppose that NL considers that if the 16 & 17 year olds can no longer buy cigarettes they will quit. Some will but the rest will get them by hook or by crook.

Logically the government should follow the anti-smoking campaign with a similar one about vehicle exhaust fumes and how they are poisoning all and sundry. Will they tell us what lethal chemicals there are in vehicle exhaust fumes?

With the same logic New Labour should also attack drinkers. After all they are complaining bitterly about binge drinking by the young. Years ago when beer was beer made in the traditional way it was made from organic ingredients. Then came what people called “chemical beer” as production was speeded up to cut down production costs and increase profit. Lager in particular was known as a chemical drink and today the main tipple is lager.

So come NL tell us what is in a pint of lager.

People who would invite someone to have a drink with them with the phrase, “What’s your poison” don’t realise how true a statement that is.