freedom 2 choose-what an idea!

Something very strange has happened in Lyon County, Iowa US of A! Although Iowa has had a statewide ban for the past 3 years, smoking is permitted in casino's like the newly built Grand Falls. Iowa is now finding itself host to gamblers from South Dakota & Minnesota-smoking gamblers!

Leave me alone I'm having a ball!

Not unsurprisingly, smoking & gambling go hand in hand so Grand Falls has gone 50/50 in favour of.....err.....no one! Now there's a novelty! Apparently there are 900 slot machines, 450 of which are in the smoking section and 450 in the non smoking section. Guess which one turns over more revenue?

I just want a lever playing field ffs!

Can this be true? Is it possible that some bright spark has at last seen the light? Has someone, somewhere finally realised that smokers do deserve respect and the same rights as those killjoy, pesky no smokers-after all, they spend plenty of money as well!

"Not everyone in the smokers side smokes" said Sharon Haselhoff (Casino General Manager), "but we have a variety of machines on both sides and by looking at our 'coin-in', our smoking side definitely has a lot more 'coin-in' than the non smoking side!"

Money, money money, I've got it and you want it, get real!

Well 'shiver me timbers and slap ma thighs', the same rules apply over the pond as here-smokers are more generous spenders! But then it comes with the territory really, for smokers are quite happy to spend money on cigarettes, knowing that government is carving them up with tax so free spending on pleasurable pursuits is hardly going to be drudgery for them!

So, it looks to me as if Iowa have come up with the perfect scenario as they are taking valuable business from neighbouring states and providing for allcomers-well, it's not rocket science really is it!

non smokers integrating with smokers as well-whatever next?

Perhaps some fool over here will actually sit up and take note of this development and then sit down again and think, "I wonder if that could work here?"

Answer-of course is could (and would). You give me two pubs for a month, on the same road, one hundred yards apart and I will kit them out exactly the same as each other-but with two different signs.

All we want is fairness, is that too much to ask?

Both will serve exactly the same beers, shorts, crisps, nuts etc and open/close at exactly the same times. I know now which one will take MORE money, which one will easily turn a PROFIT, which one WON'T need to put silly half-arsed promotions on to try and draw customers in. And, like some of those gamblers, even as a non smoker I KNOW which one I WILL BE IN!

"

Snipering Reversed

Well folks haven't we had enough unwarranted horror with the diabolical events in Norway over the weekend, with 93 (so far) reported dead and countless injuries form gunshot wounds plus enough trauma to last anyone a lifetime. So having got that out of the system of disbelief at someones callousness to shoot at will it is seemingly becoming rife when one opens the Luton Herald & Post, for a leisurely read, only to find that one Alan Dee has decided that he has the perfect answer to our 'national smoking problem' - shoot all smokers! Very clever indeed, infantilishly clever.

 Shooters have their eye on smokers

It is obvious that this bonehead journalist sees smokers as a blight, a stain on our society so instead of simply allowing smokers/smoking to take its naturally diminishing course (well, it was until the smoking ban came in) he wants to assist the nation to healthyness.
It struck me that perhaps he was in collusion with another nutcracker, Paul Bartlett, who it now seems has taken to e-mailing our friend Dick Puddlecote incessantly with ravings about fire. The reason I thought of this collusion was quite simply that with all the supposed fag butts in Mr Bartletts domain, popping of a few smokers here and there as they stepped out for a fag would easily wash away the fag butts with the blood of the unfortunately deceased smokers!Two in one you see folks-I love value for money. Councillor Bartlett would only have to do a quick celebratory war dance, the rains would come and the streets would be spotless again.-simples.
I then got to thinking about where this ideology was going, I mean, where were the smokers in all this? Rock bottom that's where! So, it's time for a reversal and reversals always start with the media, so it's time to kick anti smokin' ass folks. We know the ban has bred a new breed of sanctimonious prats-the holier than thou dickheads, so this is for them:-

Response to Alan Dee-Luton Herald & Post (23/07/2011 Page 8)

Let me describe another way of righting the wrongs, the evils of this country! We now have, just over 4 years into this infernal smokeban, created a sub culture of sanctimonious prats. You know the sort, they stood in pubs joyously laughing at jokes with smokers/non smokers alike but now, suddenly, they feel the hand of righteousness is upon them as they castigate all that smoke-and obviously die. Well I’ve got news for all sanctimonious prats that don’t smoke-you will obviously die as well!
Let us look at two scenario’s shall we? Firstly, Professor Konrad Jamrozic, anti tobacco zealot and (junk) scientist( Yes, I am waiting Rollo!). It was his highly flawed study on tobacco/death that was the basis of this ban, courtesy of the totally biased SCOTH Committee. I’ll bet that even he couldn’t believe his good fortune when his ‘study’ was utilised for such purpose. Jamrozic lived in a smoke free environment, worked in a totally smokefree, laboratory environment in his quest for his Utopia. He died in his mid fifties from cancer-a sarcoma actually, which is a bone cancer that has no known cause. Well, upon my soul! How could such a thing happen?
Now let’s look at Bertrand Russell. Russell led the British "revolt against idealism"-now there’s a thing in this idealistic smokefree world now being moulded. He died aged 98 after smoking his pipe for 72 years (shock-horror!). One of the greatest liberal thinkers of our modern age smoked for 72 years and saw off many of his friends, associates and even enemies. How can this possibly be when he smoked?
With Jamrozic’s totally unreliable study backing up the rest of the lies, fabrications and statistical manipulations we have a law in place that has cast a great divide amongst a nation that once united to thwart the German forces who threatened to over-run all of Europe. Strange that it was Hitler who first employed modern day smokebans - alongside Jew-hating! Now it's smokebans & smoker hating!
To some, 60 years on, smoker hating has occurred with the same vehemence as previously quiet, inoffensive souls now waft an arm at the merest hint of cigarette smoke. I’ve seen pathetic souls complete 5 mile charity walks 'in a breeze' yet when they see a smoker outside their local pub they suddenly have all the symptoms of a chronic asthmatic-I am amazed that they can muster the strength to drink themselves stupid during the rest of the night! But then they have no company for the pubs are now mausoleums in the main!
For Alan Dee’s information the good people of Stony Stratford saw these lunatic proposals for what they really were-crackpot ideas from a crackpot idealist who cares not a jot for 25%-28% of the population. Noticeable that he was fully supported by ASH et al as they saw this as a wonderful opportunity to endorse their ideals of a smokefree nation; from little acorns?
Blogger Dick Puddlecote issued a call to arms of all pro-choice bloggers and believers in freedom of choice. Freedom2choose.info, as the nation’s leading pro-choice, grass roots organisation immediately rallied to the call as did blogosphere, such that come the day (Sat, 16th July) The Vaults Bar (Bull Hotel) was packed with freedom fighters-including prominent speakers Roger Helmer MEP & Nigel Farage MEP. Most noticeable was the number of non smoking locals who turned out in, atrocious weather, to support the pro-choice lobbyists. The idealistic Councillor Bartlett failed to join the party!
Tuesday night came and his lunatic proposals were not even seconded as every other council member saw through his ‘healthist veil’. In fact a show of hands realised a 148 - 2 vote AGAINST the councillor-I don’t think anymore needs to be said on that subject!
What these idealistic fools fail to see is the cost of trying to kill off that which is a perfectly legal pleasure, a pleasure which netted the Treasury a cool £11bn last year in duties, yet only cost £2.7bn in treatments, giving the NHS a cool £8.3bn fund to play around with! So Alan Lees, what ‘costs’ are smokers actually lumbering the NHS with? In a proven survey it is the healthy folk that cost most as they live longer-not so idealistic now is it!
If you have your wish and ‘pop’ all the smokers you will find your income tax rising dramatically to compensate for the £11bn suddenly lost to the Treasury-do you fancy your wages being subjected to another £25p-30p to compensate for your ideals? Do you not see that normal, everyday people have had enough of nannyism’s and bully states? Do you not see all the ex-businesses and poverty developing around you? Stony Stratford proved that and as a non smoker I am proud that I was there, “the day that idealists got booted up the a**e!”
Perhaps we ought to turn the tables and simply go round ‘popping’ all the newly created 'sanctimonious prats'! Perhaps turning the clock back to a normal tolerant society is needed? Now there is an interesting proposal! Boom Boom.

Yours sincerely

Phil Johnson
Chairman
freedom2choose.info

7th Heaven?-not in the North West it's not!

Smokerphobia goes from strength to strength unfortunately as the anti tobacco lunatics reach new heights in absurdity. It is incredible what lengths they will go to to put the fear of God into people-as we shall see.
SmokeFree North West, one of the participants of the great fraud known as the "Public Consultation 2005/2006" (yet amazingly never prosecuted for fraud!) have developed an online 'stills' picture guide oh how to protect every living thing on the planet from SHS, but have they thought this through? A step by step (click by click actually) guide through your house informs you at every juncture that you are not doing enough to protect your children, your pet alligator, the marijuana plants in the cupboard or anything else that lives and breathes-until you are actually outside-SEVEN (yes 7) steps away from your property, with the door firmly shut!. They even put an ashtray on a little table-7 steps away from the house!

See video at bottom of this page on the Fresh website.

Grandly entitled "Search Your House"-Discover how to protect your children from second hand smoke, it takes you from room to room telling you that an open window is not enough, an open door is not enough etc etc until it forces you outside to enjoy a cigarette.
it is another form of stigmatisation, another method aimed at denormalising smokers-forcing smokers out of their own homes! We said this would come and it has. The anti tobacco zealots are sneaking up on smokers bit by bit; they haven't said you shouldn't smoke in your own home but they are planting the seeds again!
This is not OK, in fact, it is very far from OK as we get to a situation where a smoker lives in a block of flats, where I guarantee Evey single one of you that some idiot living 20 floors above said smoker will complain that the cigarette smoke drifting upward, from the other side of the building is curling its way round to their flat like a well trained silent assassin. I joke ye not, it will happen. These people pray for the merest whiff, the merest hint of smoke to start complaining that the smoke is getting through the concrete walls, the ventilator shafts, the sewage pipes-in fact anything possible just so that they can complain. I sometimes wonder if they would call for the smokers help if they were trapped by fire? Go on, you're dying ask! Yes, I'd say burn you self righteous bastard!
On the other side of the fence, literally, what about the old fashioned terraced houses that are so close together that there isn't even 14 ft of back yard? Can you imagine the new smokerchat culture that would spring up in the poorer areas as people huddled next to the property's rear dividing wall to enjoy a fag-just think of all the illicit partnerships that might spring up which would throw our already dismal divorce rate into even more chaos: reason for divorce cited as....."having a quick fag over the back wall with the bird from No27!" or "Ooooooh Eileen, when our eyes met o'oer them bricks!"
You see, the next move will be as described, mentally aggravating smokers that can't manage that prescribed distance to give up altogether-just more bully tactics from a state that seems to thrive on such. We now have a mentally retarded government that would obviously believe shit was sugar-just as long as the medical world told them so and they were paying a fake charity named POOOSH to brainwash the nation-well at least 350 MPs and from previous experience that wouldn't take long! I can see the banners "Save that Turd" & "Catch that Crap" as people start following pets around the streets with hordes of plastic bags in their pockets-just think of all the sugar being refined in peoples houses and just how clean our streets have become now that animal pollution is virtually zero! Yes, absurd (or should that be abturd?) but that how these puritanical asswipes of the anti tobacco movement make me-raving bloody mad!
Smoking a fag is 7th heaven and one thing for sure, the anti tobacco lunatics will be following Chris Rea on the road to hell. The words are quite significant for the anti tobacco mob:-

Well I'm standing by a river
But the water doesn't flow
It boils with every poison you can think of......

Freedom Utd 148 v 2 BarmyArmy 2nds

Justice prevails at Stony Stratford

Last night's eagerly awaited debate in Stony Stratford was attended by 150 people. Yes it was the Town Council's hearing of Councillor Bartlett's proposals to rid the world (well, his tiny world) of plague & pestilence, disease, famine, drought, floods & err.....smokers! The meeting was moved to the local church such was the audience to be-and it was, as locals turned out in force for this monstrous affront to our freedoms & liberties.
After the official opening of the meeting, Barmy Bartlett (BB) read out both motions to be debated:-

i) Stony Stratford Town Council does not condone smoking and the health risks associated with it. This Council seeks to reduce the amount of litter in our streets and to protect our historic town from germs, general nuisance and the possibility of young people in particular being burnt by cigarettes.

ii) Stony Stratford Town Council wishes to encourage all businesses in the town and, in doing so, to recognize the leading role they and residents can play in preventing the spread of disease, injury, litter, smoke, illnesses such as asthma, lung cancer and the narrowing of arteries, heart disease and its unpleasant other side effects and including the impact discarded cigarettes have on residents of Market Sq and High St in particular and children who have to put up with this 24hrs a day.


Now let's have a look at these two proposals. 'BB' does not condone smoking and the health risks associated with..... thankfully the Town Council and residents feel this is a matter of freedom2choose for oneself. Common sense prevails!
".....reduce the amount of litter" - from what I saw Saturday there was very little, of any type, to reduce!
".....young people in particular being burnt by cigarettes" - the realms of 'BB's' total absurdity. When was the last time anyone went around poking a lit cigarette at little children? For God's sake, the man ought to spend 6 months in the psychiatric ward for even thinking such things!
The rest of it is simply bibble-babble. Of course the town wants to promote businesses-for both smokers & non smokers, only two people don't it seems! And as for all the ailments with the eradication of smokers in the town diseases will also be eradicated? Has he forgotten the arterial road networks to hand-the A5 & M1? Perhaps this fool should be made aware of Dr Kitty Little's studies on diesel fumes et al!
the coup de grace:-
At the end of a very lively debate a show of hands was ordained. Barmy Bartlett voted for himself and, as he looked expectantly around the room for his self confirmed mass of supporters espied one lone arm raised with his. It would seem that 148 'silent witnesses' did NOT agree with the proposals put forward by this anti tobacco activist. Not only has 'BB' been defeated, he has been thoroughly routed, the people have spoken and the ass returned to the field-no doubt to plan his next move! It needs to be a worthy plan for nobody was even prepared to 'second' his proposals-now that is what I call HUMILIATING in the extreme!

The ramifications of these good peoples decisions last night will rock the world-the ASH-ites world for this is a clear message that public bans are a serious step too far. Are you listening Debs/Martin/Sheila and all you other screwball little people hellbent on ruling over others lifestyles.

There are hundreds of Stony Stratfords all over this country and they will all say the same.

ASH, CRUK, the WHO, Government, the message is clear and precise:-

LEAVE THE PEOPLE TO DECIDE FOR THEMSELVES!

 The fight continues on all fronts!

Stony Stratford-Balmy v Barmy

This morning, on BBC Three Counties Radio, an interview took place between David Odell, Stony Straford's Business Association Chairman who spoke passionately about Herr Bartletts ludicrous proposal at the mass protest on Saturday and, yes it's that man again, Paul Bartlett.

David Odell could be described as a 'balmy' kind of person for his speaks in a quiet, authoritative but soothing manner. He is a mild, well mannered and pleasant gentleman-a credit to the sleepy market town of Stoney Stratford.

David Odell

Now in my blog of the events of Saturday I warned that this man-loon (Bartlett) will not go away for he is of the lunatic mindset that he can change the world!
Bartlett, as reported yesterday has delayed his motion until the 20th September - the reasoning is truly barmy.

Cllr Paul Bartlet

Barmy Bartlett states that he has the motion delayed "because the people, who are against making Stony Stratford a healthier environment for everybody, have not got their arguments together properly, so I'm giving them an opportunity to do that."
Now isn't that just so generous! I mean, he wants another 6 /7 weeks for everybody to realise that he (the saviour of the world and giver of eternal life) is doing them a favour-by using the health veil! Oh please!

Cllr Bartlett after spotting a smoker in the high street

David Odell refutes that Stony Stratford is unhealthy (it looked exceedingly healthy on Saturday when I was there!) and explains that he has spent a good part of his life, as a local businessman expounding the virtues of this delightful little place situated 'just off' the A5 and a stones throw from the M1. To him, he sees it as Barmy Bartlett is putting a banner at either end of the place saying don't enter if you smoke. In effect, that is exactly what 'BB' is proposing!

'BB' responds with feigned incredulity that anyone would not enter the town because they couldn't smoke a fag. " It's totally ridiculous. There isn't one business in the town that has closed since the smoking ban in pubs and restaurants... There wouldn't be one saying that they won't go to Stony Stratford because they can't smoke." Well sorry to piss on your parade there 'BB' but not all that long ago I blogged on the fact that the smoking ban had been the final nail in the coffin of the Stony Stratford WMC, after 100 years of serving the local community.

Also 'BB', apart from the 142 bodies (my humble head count) that attended the protest on Saturday, I didn't see any drinkers in any of the other pubs-did you?

'BB' still bangs on about children being burnt by cigarette ends carried along by smokers, the 'dense fug' as a wisp of smoke curls viciously toward the person walking behind a smoker-even if that person be a smoker him/herself. We also have to consider the immense rubbish problem of fag butts-so immense in fact that this idiot went to Milton Keynes to find enough fag butts to make a picture worthwhile!

What we must remember here though is that 'BB' had the full praise of ASH for this initiative for they will have seen this as a heaven sent opportunity to produce 'research' and bona fide 'surveys' that at least 80% of the residents fully backed Barmy Bartlett-except this time, we know different.

However, the writing is on the wall, they will instruct Bartlett to proceed with getting the Town Council to agree (firstly) that they support the health of their residents and then in September argue that this motion is just an extension of that first decision. ASH tactics stamped all over it-the Town Council must not be hoodwinked by this move. Barlett doesn't care about the pollution he causes with his ambulance, or any other forms of transport for that matter, but he does hate smoking/smokers with a passion!

Does anyone have a direct link to the good people of Stony Stratford to warn them of what is occurring here? if so, please pass this on to David Odell & Co for as our good friend Roger Helmer stated on Saturday-"this is the thin end of a very nasty wedge, this is not about health this is about liberty". How right he is for this affects the liberty of every single human being in this country!

Freedom shone through the rain at Stony Stratford

By Phil Johnson, chairman of Freedom2Choose.

Driving conditions on the M1 were atrocious, it was almost as if the Good Lord himself had sent a sign that Stony Stratford, on this rain sodden day, was the start of the revolution! They say that it only rains on the righteous-well saturday morning proved that as well over 70 vehicles navigated their way to the sleepy market town of Stony Stratford-except it wasn't so sleepy today!
We arrived and thankfully found a parking space only yards away from the venue (still enough yardage to get soaked though!) as the rain refused to relent. The pub was already half full of bodies and all promotional material was plonked on a table near the back wall where the Speakers eventually sat. The posters of Herr Bartlett were gratefully recieved by all and were soon festooning the walls (great work "Cue" - and thanks mate) and all speakers referred to the buffoon as they told why 'his' motion must be denied on tuesday 19th when the Town Council meet to consider 'his proposals'.

Bill Etheridge (Freedom Association) explained why our poster on the back wall signified all that was wrong in this country, as Winston Churchill stared down at us. Bill also produced a cigar and stuck two fingers up to a certain persons proposals-'V' for Victory, for as he said, Winston fought for our freedoms yet Cllr Bartlett would want to give him a ticket for smoking his cigar!
As you watch the video you can clearly see the freedom2choose giant cigarettes packet next to Bill.
Patrick Hayes talked about how 'we' had allowed this situation to develop and that we had 'allowed government to feel 'they could take our liberties away from us'. Of course Patrick had hit the nail on the head to perfection as he did when he said, "enough is enough". This has to be the start of the people standing up for their rights, standing against pillocks like Paul Bartlett and standing against government policy makers!


Roger Helmer, our honourary member, then caused amusement by confessing that he was a politician and worse still, a member of the EU Parliament. He openly stated that he had not touched a cigarette (smoking wise) for 40 years but, should this ludicrous proposal be voted through by the Town Council he (Roger Helmer MEP) will be joining us all outside for the biggest demonstration of civil disobedience ever witnessed-and he will smoke a cigarette! Fighting talk from my non smoking friend but I know he means it, for he is fired up about the loss of human rights & civil liberties caused by this draconian ban. "This is the thin end of a very nasty wedge", claimed Roger, "this is not about health, it's about LIBERTY." And there you have it folks. The smokers rolled over when this ban was first mentioned, they rolled over when implementation was imminent and then walked away when it was law! The pubco's were complete and utter washouts, believing that 'millions of new (non drinkers) were just waiting in 'them there hills' to over-run the new clean air pubs.
Nine thousands dead businesses later......and they are still waiting!

David Odell, who happens to be the Chairman of the Stony Stratford Business Association was quietly vehement about Cllr Bartlett's proposal. As far as he was concerned Bartlett simply wanted to put a 'No-Entry' sign at either end of the community; he could clearly see businesses suffering badly should this proposal be accepted on Tuesday and clearly had no time for Herr Bartlett at all.

Finally, after a smoke break, Nigel Farage appeared and, with his usual gusto, marched straight into 'banning the ban itself'. Never one to mince his words, Nigel informed the assembled that as far as he was concerned pubs should have a smoking room at the very least! Bravo Nigel.

It doesn't seem as there is much support for Herr Bartlett's proposals in the sleepy town either as 'Charlie' described him as "absolutely bonkers" as he nipped in for 10 cigarettes. Suzi Whittaker, who runs the High Street gallery declared, "everybody wants to keep this a thriving little market town. Nobody supports him. People who don't smoke don't support him. People who have kids and don't smoke don't support him!"

Gina Sherwood was less restrained, " he's a total twat! I think it's absurd and I don't know one person who is for this!"

I would tend to agree with Gina, for the stench and the pollution caused by Herr Bartlett's ambulance far, far outwiegh any wisp of smoke that may come your, or anbody elses, way! Given that Stony Stratford rubs shoulders with an extremely busy A5 his whole argument about pollution is blown out of the window! Cigarette butts? stick a few more smoker friendly bins out Councillor Bartlett-and Butt Out!

Incidentally, on the "butt" issue, I now understand why Herr Bartlett had his photo taken 10 miles away in Milton Keynes, sporting plastic gloves, collecting fag ends for his newspaper article last week-there were none to be seen on Stony Stratford High Street! Yes, there may have been the odd 'dog-end' on the floor somewhere in the town, but where I was, there were none. My good lady handed out the f2c info sheets I'd had printed up decrying litter and Cllr Bartletts idiotic proposals...err, sorry, I underestimated the number needed!

I was introduced to Frank Davis and I met Simon Clark who had brought a box full of 'personal pocket ashtrays' and distributed freely to all. We had a brief chat and a smile about a certain matter but fully agreed that idiots like Bartlett needed to be exposed as the totalitarian fruitcakes they really are-for as Nigel Farage asked, "what next, shall we ban doughnuts?"

There were plenty there I needed to communicate with but the general hubbub rather curtailed that option.

On the day the turnout was impressive-BLOODY IMPRESSIVE! The anti ban league showed that it can provide 'muscle', it needs to continue to show 'muscle', it needs to grow like Popeye after his can of spinach!

There was another A4 sheet being handed round, headed "It's about the freedom to choose!" At the very bottom it listed:-

Lawful Rebellion.org

Captain Ranty Blog Spot

Underdogs Bite Upwards Blog

Frank Davis Blog

Dick Puddlecote Blog

Resistance-rebels.blogspot.com

Now that, to me, looks like the sort of unity we need to start with. It is no good all being individualistic, this government and the 'holier than thou' brigade need to see that together we are large, frighteningly large! They need to see that the smokers, friends of smokers and the tolerant masses are sick of this persecution of a minority that provide government with an embarrassment of riches. The time for a united fightback is here, the "stand off in Stony Stratford" has given us the base from which to march forward. Councillor Bartlett might be a lunatic but on Saturday he gave us a platform from which we can easily build!

The day was a victory for freedom, despite the rain. Spare not a thought for Cllr Bartlett for he is a twisted, self serving ego maniac disguised as a healthist. Instead, think about the real enemy and who they are twisting around every statement, every survey, every child. ASH. They fully supported this lunatic proposal to ban smoking in all of Stony Stratford, like Cllr Bartlett, they don't care about local businesses, they simply want a total smoke free environment at the expense of whatever human rights and/or civil liberties just happen to get in the way.
We must unite and return this country to sensibility!