Every prediction I made in this piece from 2005 on 24-hour drinking has proved to be correct: on-trade alcohol consumption has fallen, levels of alcohol-related crime haven't changed; pubs haven't made any extra money; but puritan idiots have continued to rail against the rule change anyway. The most offensively stupid puritan argument is that '24-hour … Continue reading In which your host is proved right
Category: Eating & drinking
Individuals who lost more than £50,000 in the Landsbanki collapse certainly let greed get in the way of good sense, and certainly don't deserve the generous bail-out terms that the government has given them. However, that pales into insignificance compared to the 20+ local councils who've lost tens of millions between them in Landsbanki deposits. … Continue reading Anything the global financial system can do, local government can do worse
So, when I said "don't bother switching banks," what I actually meant was "don't bother switching banks unless your bank, instead of falling under the UK compensation scheme, falls under the compensation scheme of a small, rainy, historically very poor island which crazily overexpanded over the last five years and has absolutely no chance of … Continue reading End of the world update: time to buy tins and shotguns?
Nando's is great, in general. Fact. Separately, I've been to the Vortex in Stoke Newington, and it's one of the worst venues I've ever had the misfortune to frequent. Fact. It was a quality piece of British [1] service, indeed: they told our party we could eat there, then told us we couldn't, then told … Continue reading On chain restaurants, and their opponents
A comment on this Guardian thread, about the prospect of extending the insane Tube drinking ban to - even more insanely - cover all public transport expresses confusion over why this is a problem: "I haven't lived in the UK for some time but where I live in Europe I frequently see people drinking in … Continue reading On antisocial behaviour
It ought to be pretty obvious that banning drinking in a place is completely different from banning drunken louts from a place. If you ban drinking in a place, it prevents people who aren’t louts but fancy a beer from having one, while doing absolutely nothing to prevent louts who are drunk from causing a … Continue reading If we ban harmless things, then harmful things will magically disappear
Sorry for radio silence, I've been in Istanbul (not Constantinople) doing Exciting but Hardworking things. Quick comment on the budget: many people, mostly on the "we believe in free markets except when, err, I'll get back to you on that one" right, seem to think that the government's rise in beer excise duty spells the … Continue reading You draconian what draconian?
Sorry, has this man actually ever been to London or New York? At present we are offered a 'choice' between an oligopoly of three or four chains, all spending so much money on advertising and formulaic minimalist interiors, that they haven't got enough left over to spend on a filling, so have to make up … Continue reading The problem is you, not the sandwiches
A BBC article on alcohol consumption statistics features a stupid comment: The figures also suggest that alcohol consumption is increasingly a problem among the middle classes. Men and women in "managerial and professional" households drank an average of 15.1 units a week. The same study also shows that men drink, on average, twice as much … Continue reading BBC channels Anti-Saloon League
I've got a new piece up at the Sharpener on the myth that London is a crime-ridden wasteland that anyone in their right mind would do well to flee before they get their throat slit. Enjoy... Also, Burning Our Money has a slightly silly piece on the Cheap Booze Menace - it highlights that you … Continue reading Sharp-ish