tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3585028625507474093.post6222624409418389422..comments2023-10-17T15:56:22.827+01:00Comments on Velvet Glove, Iron Fist: "Bad pubs"Christopher Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15963753745009712865noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3585028625507474093.post-78093878330858544952013-08-30T12:55:30.783+01:002013-08-30T12:55:30.783+01:00According to the Guardian,our all caring state ret...According to the Guardian,our all caring state retreated from "more than a century of Whitehall mothering" when it liberalized licensing laws. <br /><br />As you point out, in the Orwellian fantasy inhabited by Guardian hacks, the less than liberal smoking ban doesn't exist and pubs simply catered for changing public taste. <br /><br />I know that the Guardian is in favour of liberal policies only when they suit its agenda but rewriting history is a new low. <br /><br />Ivan Dhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18364023294207490403noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3585028625507474093.post-53012028014413080232013-08-30T12:14:22.766+01:002013-08-30T12:14:22.766+01:00It is interesting to note on Frank Davis's blo...It is interesting to note on <a href="http://cfrankdavis.wordpress.com/2013/08/30/a-refreshing-change/" rel="nofollow">Frank Davis's blog</a> today in a response he got from his MEP, and I quote:<br /><br /><i>Believe it or not smoking inside the EU parliament is actually permitted in the MEP bars and believe us this is regularly taken advantage of- We’re in a position now where some politicians are preaching one thing while imposing misery on people while doing another.</i><br /><br />I know hypocrisy is the norm in politics, but this is so blatant that it beggars belief!nisakimanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04563041282703559939noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3585028625507474093.post-51722156826281261372013-08-29T20:20:24.827+01:002013-08-29T20:20:24.827+01:00Ok, pubs were forced to go non smoking inside but ...Ok, pubs were forced to go non smoking inside but there was hardly any real opposition. Alienate over half your customer base and then look forward to a boom....then wring your hands and wonder why it never happened. Pathetic. The fact is that there was never a cat in Hell's chance of attracting enough non smokers to fill the void. Most of these never went to pubs because they weren't, and still aren't, pub lovers. Regardless of smoking.proglodytehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12145072961985094227noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3585028625507474093.post-52109788321744399312013-08-29T19:17:15.127+01:002013-08-29T19:17:15.127+01:00Even before the ban, most pubs with a significant ...Even before the ban, most pubs with a significant food offer had a non-smoking section covering at least part of the area where food was served, because there was a clear market demand.<br /><br />But non-smoking areas in wet-led pubs were much rarer, and even where they did exist - generally because their provision was dictated by the owning pub company rather than the licensee - tended to be poorly used and the section that filled up last.<br />Curmudgeonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02558747878308766840noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3585028625507474093.post-50108395709952569652013-08-29T18:54:26.276+01:002013-08-29T18:54:26.276+01:00As you say, had people wanted smoke free pubs they...As you say, had people wanted smoke free pubs they would've existed before the ban. <br /><br />And pubs aren't, or shouldn't be, restaurants. There are plenty cafes and restaurants already. They are places to drink and chat. And smoke. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16404228797989793409noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3585028625507474093.post-36144076059005912032013-08-29T18:19:13.256+01:002013-08-29T18:19:13.256+01:00This comment has been removed by the author.Dick Puddlecotehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01481866882188932892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3585028625507474093.post-33121800145043477512013-08-29T17:32:56.235+01:002013-08-29T17:32:56.235+01:00People like John and Amanda represent the future o...<i>People like John and Amanda represent the future of pubs.</i><br /><br />Doubtless there will be a Piers and an Annabel lurking in the background somewhere, too. <br /><br />As you point out, Chris, these people aren't talking about <b>pubs</b>, they're talking about something entirely different. However much the Islington set try to ignore or deny it, the smoking ban has torn the heart out of the real British pub, and no amount of 're-positioning' or 'changing direction' is going to change that fact. <br /><br />As you also point out, if non-smoking pubs were 'the future', then legislation would have been unnecessary - they would have been doing it under their own steam in droves. In reality,the only one who did preempt the ban (Wetherspoons) encountered a financial disaster, and rapidly did a U-turn on the policy. All these facts are totally ignored by the Grauniad-reading metro-liberals, who see the ideal 'pub' as being a chintzy chocolate-box facsimile catering to foodies. They've probably never been in a real pub - it would scare the living daylights out of them.nisakimanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04563041282703559939noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3585028625507474093.post-89250844144239660062013-08-29T14:43:22.699+01:002013-08-29T14:43:22.699+01:00Nail firmly hit on head there, Chris - well said!Nail firmly hit on head there, Chris - well said!Curmudgeonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02558747878308766840noreply@blogger.com