To Blog or Not To Blog

Blogging... what's the coo?

So why Blog? Well for me its about having a rant without all the guilt of worrying if you are chewing someone's ear off. And today's rant.. Smoking.

Now I smoke and I think I am a respectful smoker, but the current climate of the war against the smokers is doing my head in. Not only do i pay the highest amount in europe or the world for that matter for my sticks of nicotine and therefore contribute a fair amount of my income to the government in taxes, it makes me boil over that the same government is so passionate about making smokers lives a misery. Take the NHS for example, now someone I know told me that 80%, yes 80% of the NHS is funded from the taxes from cigarettes. Yet some NHS trusts are dropping smokers off their waiting lists for operations and banning the lighting up of cigarettes anywhere near the hospitals. Apparently its not good to see patients or staff in the grounds of hospitals smoking.. apparently it gives the wrong message. Well I think it gives a much worse message to see huddles of patients on the edges of hospital grounds often on main roads, with the full complement of drips and catheters puffing away. Then often a few meters away there's another huddle, this time of hospital staff creating their own toxic cloud. What does it say? well it says to me if people want to smoke they will smoke however inconvenient it is. But it anoys me no end that the NHS will happily take the cash from smokers but stick their fingers up at them at the same time. It is as hypocritical as a man who makes a living out of selling stolen goods moaning about the rise in crime!

Then take Westminister council. They want to ban smoking in the street! So you can't smoke in many pubs or restaurants which I don't mind. I think its only fair actually, but if you can't then pop outside for a quick nicotine fix, well i'm just gonna stay at home and see how businesses fair when their profits go down. It strikes me that they want their damn cake and want to eat it as well.

So what am I going to do?.. am i motivated to stop?.. no I am not! I decided to refuse to pay any taxes on my fags and choose to buy them of a nefarious bloke who imports them from poland or russia or somewhere where they cost a about 50p a pack. Ah but am i unwittingly supporting people smuggling, terrorism, drug running or the ilk.. who knows but I am sick to the back teeth of the daylight robbers who call themselves the government. Screw em all.. now where's that lighter....