Thursday 6 January 2011

An idea that just might not go up in smoke?

Brendan O'Neill, Telegraph Blogs, relates the problems Hal Holbrook has had with his Mark Twain 'roadshow' - and the fact Mark Twain was renowned for smoking cigars at almost every opportunity.

Now just suppose we could organise a mass 'smoke-in' somewhere involving tens of thousands - or alternatively simultaneous 'smoke-ins' by thousands at hundreds of sites? Could the police cope and could the judicial system cope? Consider the possibility that different courts might hand out different sentences for the same offence - consider all the appeals that could result because of inequality of sentencing.

Wishful thinking? OK, its an idea that might have a few 'butts' in it, but one that possibly could have 'legs'?

Views?

3 comments:

Mark Wadsworth said...

That's why they pick on smokers - because smokers are by and large very law abiding people. We simply glumly obeyed the smoking ban, didn't we?

Now, apply the same logic to the burka ban...

Woodsy42 said...

This is why fixed penalties were so clever. In olden days a few public 'arenas' filled with hundreds of smokers would have been impossible to contain.
Now its a game of bluff, with them counting on the fact that fixed penalties would not clog the system and that smokers are reasonable and would not want responsibility for some poor bugger who owned the building who would get shafted even if they were not involved.

WitteringsfromWitney said...

Woodsy42: I know but what is needed is what I suggest. Wont happen though cause no one can be arsed - except to sit on it and complain!