We'll teach you how to live right, you silly person
A government advisory board in the UK has proposed a smoking permit:
Charlie Brooker of the Guardian has a sufficiently sarcastic response to the whole idea here, so I'll refrain from going further with that.
One thought to add, though: What about tourists? I mean, if the government were to implement this scheme we could say goodbye to all those puffing Japanese visitors, for example, and their money as well. People coming to Britain for a holiday couldn't be expected to go through the whole deliberately-difficult application process, of course. But it would be unlikely that they would enjoy their holidays if they were going through withdrawal. They'd probably go to France instead.
It wouldn't do to lose all that business to the Frenchies, so you can bet there would be different rules for tourists. There would have to be easy, temporary permits for them. It wouldn't be fair to subject visitors to the same sorts of indignities endured by the poor saps who live here.
They won't go through with the scheme, I don't think. Instead they'll use the default British method of curtailing every undesirable activity (such as driving, flying, polluting, smoking, drinking, eating unhealthy food, etc.) which is to slap more taxes and fees on it.
In Britain, only rich people can afford to misbehave.
The permit might cost as little as £10, but acquiring it could be made difficult if the forms were sufficiently complex, Le Grand said last night.I find the use of the word "libertarian" in this context insulting to the intelligence. This is big-brother-knows-best British nannyism at its finest. Calling it libertarian is positively Orwellian.
His paper says: "Suppose every individual who wanted to buy tobacco had to purchase a permit. And suppose further they had to do this every year. To get a permit would involve filling out a form and supplying a photograph, as well as paying the fee. Permits would only be issued to those over 18 and evidence of age would have to be provided. The money raised would go to the NHS."
Le Grand said the proposal was an example of "libertarian paternalism".
Charlie Brooker of the Guardian has a sufficiently sarcastic response to the whole idea here, so I'll refrain from going further with that.
One thought to add, though: What about tourists? I mean, if the government were to implement this scheme we could say goodbye to all those puffing Japanese visitors, for example, and their money as well. People coming to Britain for a holiday couldn't be expected to go through the whole deliberately-difficult application process, of course. But it would be unlikely that they would enjoy their holidays if they were going through withdrawal. They'd probably go to France instead.
It wouldn't do to lose all that business to the Frenchies, so you can bet there would be different rules for tourists. There would have to be easy, temporary permits for them. It wouldn't be fair to subject visitors to the same sorts of indignities endured by the poor saps who live here.
They won't go through with the scheme, I don't think. Instead they'll use the default British method of curtailing every undesirable activity (such as driving, flying, polluting, smoking, drinking, eating unhealthy food, etc.) which is to slap more taxes and fees on it.
In Britain, only rich people can afford to misbehave.
Labels: britain
posted by Andy at 6:30 AM
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