Another case of global warming?

Some years ago (probably around 1990 or so) before it became ‘trendy’ to talk about Global Warming I remember listening to the weatherman John Kettley describing what it was. Contrary to popular belief, it would not necessarily entail the same weather albeit warmer, but instead significantly more changeable and extreme weather...there's always records being made (Winter 1947 and 1963 and summer 1976) but June 2007...Moscow has it’s hottest ever June temp – 38C, Greece has its highest ever temperatures recorded of 47C. Sheffield has its wettest day on record (10 days after the wettest day for 35 years) during the wettest June on record. I’m sure the finger-pointing will start soon about who was 'to blame' and the local councils will be the easiest target to pick on.

I have to say full marks to Sheffield Council and the team of volunteers on Monday regarding the provision of emergency shelter for those of us that needed it. It was well organised, everyone got fed and watered and provided with a duvet. Joe Public seemed to be in fairly good spirits, though I heard the odd complaint that the food was too spicy(!) and that there was only 2 choices available, and that they should have provided beds for everyone. What do some people expect?? It’s easy to moan but I’m sure if it had been Albania, the police would have probably run off home and it’d have been a free-for-all with every man for himself.

The Battle of the Booze

Forget Battle of the Buff, this is the real issue we have to worry about. It’s been in the air for a while now, but now the govt is planning a white paper on it. Basically the idea is to try and work out what will happen if they double the price of alcohol and try and make ‘drinking as anti-social as drink-driving or smoking’. Men who drink 4 pints in one siting once per week (surely this applies to 90% of the male UK population?) are now regarded as 'hazardous drinkers' The only reasons I can think of for this are:

1. The govt wants to a quick-fix scheme to save money on the NHS and is greedily eyeing up the money they think they might be able to suck out of drinkers.
2. It’s phase 2 of the campaign to turn the UK into an Islamic country?! Phase 3? Haven’t a clue – compulsory veils for all women over 15?!?
3. Gordon Brown just wants us all to believe he is (what we all think anyway) a dour, non-drinking, tight-fisted Scotsman who hates to see everyone else have a good time.

Prohibition has never worked in any country its been tried in. Just to name a few The US and Norway in the 1930s and the Soviet Union’s campaign in the late 1980s all failed…will the UK be next?