The U.K.

Simple Minded

Re: The U.K.

Post by Simple Minded »

YMix wrote:Move to France. :)
Also known as "the Theodore Dalrymple solution."
manolo
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Re: The U.K.

Post by manolo »

YMix wrote:Move to France. :)
YMix,

That is not a bad idea.

The French recommend 21 units per week max and the Spanish recommend 31 units ditto. I'm very comfortable with 21 units, which equates to almost a bottle of scotch or bourbon per week. More than enough to warm my toes in the mild GW winters. :)

OTOH I could just stick with our old recommendation of 21 units. This new CMO is a bit of a dork; she is recommending banning all diesel cars from the road, putting a tax on sugar and complains that the term 'nanny state' is a personal sexist reference to her person. Typical conservative.

Alex.
manolo
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Re: Nanny state on booze

Post by manolo »

Simple Minded wrote:
Welcome back Alex. When you want someone else to pay for your lifestyle needs, you got to expect their input.

Example, one of my Obama worshipping friends is very overweight and drinks like a fish. He wants others to pay for his healthcare, but thinks that other's expectations that he attain and maintain a healthy weight and healthy lifestyle are intrusions on his freedom. Oddly enough, he does not think that his siphoning off their financial resources is an intrusion on their freedom. :?

Humans..... rational thought is definitely not one of their strong suits. As they say in the colonies, "You made that bed, now lay in it!"

Cheers.
SM,

Haha, chatting with you is like slipping on a familiar pair of bedroom slippers after a long holiday away.

As you know, I am very pleased with my NHS experience, but not averse to a little private medicine in vanity situations. A local clinic offers an alcohol related health check for £150 which is only three bottles of good scotch. My doc confirms that blood tests show a normal liver in my case, but I have been on the hooch for 53 years which is a heck of a lot of booze in total. I might be tempted to a private check up sometime (no links to photos of cirrhotic livers please; I've had that already from various well wishers).

On the NHS thing, our service around here is amazing. My attractive lady doctor often phones me at home, which never happened in more youthful times. She just asks how I am - sweet. :) A bit like room service.

Alex.
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Nonc Hilaire
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Re: The U.K.

Post by Nonc Hilaire »

52 units per week goes a long way towards explaining Basque attitudes.
“Christ has no body now but yours. Yours are the eyes through which he looks with compassion on this world. Yours are the feet with which he walks among His people to do good. Yours are the hands through which he blesses His creation.”

Teresa of Ávila
Simple Minded

Re: Nanny state on booze

Post by Simple Minded »

manolo wrote:
SM,

Haha, chatting with you is like slipping on a familiar pair of bedroom slippers after a long holiday away.

As you know, I am very pleased with my NHS experience, but not averse to a little private medicine in vanity situations. A local clinic offers an alcohol related health check for £150 which is only three bottles of good scotch. My doc confirms that blood tests show a normal liver in my case, but I have been on the hooch for 53 years which is a heck of a lot of booze in total. I might be tempted to a private check up sometime (no links to photos of cirrhotic livers please; I've had that already from various well wishers).

On the NHS thing, our service around here is amazing. My attractive lady doctor often phones me at home, which never happened in more youthful times. She just asks how I am - sweet. :) A bit like room service.

Alex.
thanks for the kind words, mate!

Difference of opinion is what makes it fun. Should I be upset that my fat friend is raising our collective health care costs? Or should I rejoice in the knowledge that he will die younger and save big $ on our collective Social Security costs?

Should he be concerned that I ride motorcycles and might increase our collective health care costs? Or should he take comfort in the possibility of my motorcycle caused early demise saving big $ on our collective Social Security costs?

Just like my young Brit friends, they only feel that you ripped off them and the NHS, cause you survived your motorcycle accident. You selfish cad. ;)

If you didn't survive, would they appreciate your selflessness (or lack of self)? If you didn't survive, they might be advocating state subsidies for 150+ HP sportbikes for feeble old farts in the name of lowering NHS costs.

Personal cost determines perspective (probably cause it's personal?). Collective cost is very nebulous and easily argued from any perspective, or from any time frame.

Drink as much as you like, and tell them to sod off!

My Irish buddy thinks the NHS sucks, but professes to support the concept. But then he gets hypocritical by buying clothes over here as often as he can cause he claims they are 1/5 to 1/15 the cost of the identical product in Ireland. Wants the benefits, but doesn't want to pay the cost. Humans.....
noddy
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Re: The U.K.

Post by noddy »

according to http://www.pintprice.com France is probably worse than England - recommended daily doses arent the same as the tax rates.


the socialists.

Lager in France is £4.66 GBP
Lager in United Kingdom is £3 GBP
Lager in Australia is £4.41 GBP
Lager in Japan is £3.52 GBP


the freedoms

Lager in Iran is £4.42 GBP
Lager in United States is £2.68 GBP

the poor.

Lager in Portugal is £1.69 GBP
Lager in Thailand is £1.51 GBP
Lager in Romania is £1 GBP

the clogged

Lager in Netherlands is £1.69 GBP

this site isnt that accurate as the prices are user reported and can be out of date but its become apparent that ymix and parodite are living in paradise.
ultracrepidarian
Simple Minded

Re: The U.K.

Post by Simple Minded »

noddy wrote:according to http://www.pintprice.com France is probably worse than England - recommended daily doses arent the same as the tax rates.


the socialists.

Lager in France is £4.66 GBP
Lager in United Kingdom is £3 GBP
Lager in Australia is £4.41 GBP
Lager in Japan is £3.52 GBP


the freedoms

Lager in Iran is £4.42 GBP
Lager in United States is £2.68 GBP

the poor.

Lager in Portugal is £1.69 GBP
Lager in Thailand is £1.51 GBP
Lager in Romania is £1 GBP

the clogged

Lager in Netherlands is £1.69 GBP

this site isnt that accurate as the prices are user reported and can be out of date but its become apparent that ymix and parodite are living in paradise.
a wee bit of data with almost infinite interpretations. if only we could drop our vain, group identity fetish, and all drink heavily.......

any correlation between cheap lager prices and sheep farmers per capita? ;)

widespread publication (pun intended) of the benefits of being poor and clogged might solve US immigration problems. to date, publicizing gun violence has yet to do so.....
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YMix
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Re: The U.K.

Post by YMix »

noddy wrote:this site isnt that accurate as the prices are user reported and can be out of date but its become apparent that ymix and parodite are living in paradise.
If beer is all you need in life, by all means come around. I'll drop you in the Old Town and check in every week or so. :)

Also, there's no need to use pintpricewhatever.meh when you can check out the retailers (1 USD = 4.3408 Lei/RON):

https://www.carrefour-online.ro/apa_alt ... duse/bere/
https://www.cora.ro/bauturi/bere-si-cidru

Pubs and restaurants charge more for beer, obviously.
“There are a lot of killers. We’ve got a lot of killers. What, do you think our country’s so innocent? Take a look at what we’ve done, too.” - Donald J. Trump, President of the USA
The Kushner sh*t is greasy - Stevie B.
noddy
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Re: The U.K.

Post by noddy »

YMix wrote:
noddy wrote:this site isnt that accurate as the prices are user reported and can be out of date but its become apparent that ymix and parodite are living in paradise.
If beer is all you need in life, by all means come around. I'll drop you in the Old Town and check in every week or so. :)
excellent. 'all' is a big word but since i got emphysema from dope and ciggies my options for instant relaxation are limited to strong ales.

the older i get the more a good beer and laugh is the highlight of the week, do you have a chorizo equivilant for my nibblies ?

if the internet is half decent i might even keep my programming job for a while and earn aussie wages in romanian costs of living.. alright... lavender... hmm.. damn.. thinking...
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YMix
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Re: The U.K.

Post by YMix »

noddy wrote:do you have a chorizo equivilant for my nibblies ?
Plenty of pork stuff here, both local and imported.
if the internet is half decent i might even keep my programming job for a while and earn aussie wages in romanian costs of living.. alright... lavender... hmm.. damn.. thinking...
Well...
Wikipedia wrote:According to a top made by Akamai in 2015, Romania is ranked 10th in the world and 1st in Europe in terms of average Internet peak connection speed with 73.6 Mbit/s.[3] In Akamai's The State of the Internet Report covering the fourth quarter of 2012, Romania came 4th on average peak connection speed by EMEA country/region.[4]
http://www.dospeedtest.com/blog/romania ... ed-states/
“There are a lot of killers. We’ve got a lot of killers. What, do you think our country’s so innocent? Take a look at what we’ve done, too.” - Donald J. Trump, President of the USA
The Kushner sh*t is greasy - Stevie B.
manolo
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Re: Nanny state on booze

Post by manolo »

Simple Minded wrote: thanks for the kind words, mate!

Difference of opinion is what makes it fun. Should I be upset that my fat friend is raising our collective health care costs? Or should I rejoice in the knowledge that he will die younger and save big $ on our collective Social Security costs?
SM,

A slight digression from our pattern. We can't predict the grim reaper so easily.

Over a long life I have noticed that not one of my relations, friends and close acquaintances died of what they feared. A brother in law spent his whole life freaking and testing his BP every week/day in fear of a stroke and then died of prostate cancer. The morgues are the regular destination of the young, normal weight, tea totaller.

However, ragtop journalists and pop psychologists will always thrive on health anxiety finger wagging, and so the world turns.

Alex.
manolo
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Re: The U.K.

Post by manolo »

noddy wrote: Lager in France is £4.66 GBP
nod,

Lager? In France? :?:

Alex.

PS - Just noticed. Sorry to hear about the emphysema noddy. OK, it's only words but I have a close friend who has lasted a very long time with the condition, and still doing well.
Last edited by manolo on Wed Jan 04, 2017 11:53 am, edited 1 time in total.
noddy
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Re: The U.K.

Post by noddy »

a pint of lager is as good a metric for alcohol tax per standard drinking unit as any other, which was your OC.

i couldnt be arsed chasing up various different spirits cross references.

if it was me stuck in france, id be drinking norman cider or belgium ale, lager is disgusting :)
ultracrepidarian
Simple Minded

Re: Nanny state on booze

Post by Simple Minded »

manolo wrote:
Simple Minded wrote: thanks for the kind words, mate!

Difference of opinion is what makes it fun. Should I be upset that my fat friend is raising our collective health care costs? Or should I rejoice in the knowledge that he will die younger and save big $ on our collective Social Security costs?
SM,

A slight digression from our pattern. We can't predict the grim reaper so easily.

Over a long life I have noticed that not one of my relations, friends and close acquaintances died of what they feared. A brother in law spent his whole life freaking and testing his BP every week/day in fear of a stroke and then died of prostate cancer. The morgues are the regular destination of the young, normal weight, tea totaller.

However, ragtop journalists and pop psychologists will always thrive on health anxiety finger wagging, and so the world turns.

Alex.
True nuff. My point was once you start making demands on others ("give me your money for my health care, including repairs caused by my self-destructive tendencies!") don't be surprised if they expect some level of personal responsibility or control in exchange ("drink less and lose some weight you fat f**k!".... or "at least mow my lawn!"..... or "no more motorbikes for you!").

The desire for free lunches and square circles, is only human!

You are relating personal anecdotes about individuals, the "collective" is big on statistics. eggs and omelets, once again.

Compassion enforced at gun point is a tricky business. If you want to be compassionate, it is wise to be well armed!
Last edited by Simple Minded on Wed Jan 04, 2017 1:43 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Simple Minded

Re: The U.K.

Post by Simple Minded »

noddy wrote:a pint of lager is as good a metric for alcohol tax per standard drinking unit as any other, which was your OC.
True, but problem is, in big jurisdictions like the US tax rates vary bigly. None of my relatives live at the top or the bottom of the food chain, but our property taxes vary by a factor of 8. I know areas that pay half what I pay, and twice what my relatives pay. Now the factor is 32. That's not even including the dirt poor areas or filthy rich areas.

From a college town bar, to a trendy zip code, a factor of 40 in the price of a beer would not surprise me.

That's why national solutions to local problems aren't very popular over here other than with isolated university intellectuals and inside the beltway power seekers. People like choices in the costs of the services they purchase.
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Torchwood
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Re: The U.K.

Post by Torchwood »

As Brexit approaches, and the Orangutan thinks how to start WW3, all you guys can think of is the relative costs of getting p*ssed (British meaning, not American).

In the circumstances, not a bad idea.
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Nonc Hilaire
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Re: Nanny state on booze

Post by Nonc Hilaire »

manolo wrote:
Simple Minded wrote: thanks for the kind words, mate!

Difference of opinion is what makes it fun. Should I be upset that my fat friend is raising our collective health care costs? Or should I rejoice in the knowledge that he will die younger and save big $ on our collective Social Security costs?
SM,

A slight digression from our pattern. We can't predict the grim reaper so easily.

Over a long life I have noticed that not one of my relations, friends and close acquaintances died of what they feared. A brother in law spent his whole life freaking and testing his BP every week/day in fear of a stroke and then died of prostate cancer. The morgues are the regular destination of the young, normal weight, tea totaller.

So you can consstently keep your thumb up your ass and still die from prostate cancer?
However, ragtop journalists and pop psychologists will always thrive on health anxiety finger wagging, and so the world turns.

Alex.
“Christ has no body now but yours. Yours are the eyes through which he looks with compassion on this world. Yours are the feet with which he walks among His people to do good. Yours are the hands through which he blesses His creation.”

Teresa of Ávila
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Apollonius
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Re: The U.K.

Post by Apollonius »

Never could understand the appeal of alcohol. What wretched stuff.
manolo
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Re: The U.K.

Post by manolo »

noddy wrote: if it was me stuck in france, id be drinking norman cider or belgium ale, lager is disgusting :)
nod,

Agreed, although I once had a Japanese lager called Sapporo. My student used to drink it with a single malt chaser, and the experience was not at all bad. He used to phone me from Tokyo with just the English I had taught him, but if we were both pissed it was fine. Alcohol is a brilliant universal translator.

Normandy. :) Been lucky enough to enjoy local cider in Rouen and again you have my agreement.

Nobody could dislike Belgian beer, not possible.

Happy times.

A.

PS - Don't know where you live but there is a gorgeous strong beer called Brakspear Triple. I love it.

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=braks ... NbIGMCM%3A
manolo
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Re: Nanny state on booze

Post by manolo »

Simple Minded wrote: True nuff.
SM,

This really is like old times. I'm doing PSs for Nod and you're editing posts to me.

The excitement!!

A.
Mr. Perfect
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Re: The U.K.

Post by Mr. Perfect »

Torchwood wrote:As Brexit approaches, and the Orangutan thinks how to start WW3, all you guys can think of is the relative costs of getting p*ssed (British meaning, not American).

In the circumstances, not a bad idea.
I thought this account was in the things have never been better camp.
Censorship isn't necessary
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Re: The U.K.

Post by noddy »

Torchwood wrote:As Brexit approaches, and the Orangutan thinks how to start WW3, all you guys can think of is the relative costs of getting p*ssed (British meaning, not American).

In the circumstances, not a bad idea.
you can bring yourself back up to speed with a few quick google searches.

"literally hitler"
"deplorables"
"pepe"
"hiliar"
"nevertrump cuckservative"
"stupid old white people"
Last edited by noddy on Thu Jan 05, 2017 7:49 am, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: The U.K.

Post by Mr. Perfect »

Good to see you back ethinker I was concerned you may have expired.

If you don't mind my asking an intellectual question, what does it feel like to be totally obliterated politically
Censorship isn't necessary
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Re: The U.K.

Post by manolo »

Mr. Perfect wrote:Good to see you back ethinker I was concerned you may have expired.

If you don't mind my asking an intellectual question, what does it feel like to be totally obliterated politically
Hi Mr P,

Good to see you here too. :) I shall have a look into the old (new) place shortly.

Your question? Hmm, as a social libertarian I'm seeing that I don't have a dog in the race these days. Of course, libertarians never did have one.

As I said to our 'lefty' daughter, "You will have the experience of being a dissident, probably for quite a long time". She has moved into the countryside and has a large piece of land including woodlands, but won't let me shoot my crossbow because of our new granddaughter. :) She says I can have a catapult if careful.

Back on the politics, there are some long processes afoot, which will probably see me out. I'm unaffected practically, except that I've cancelled my subscription to the Labour party and my Romanian dentist has bought a house here, so I can continue to secretly love her.

Keep well,

Alex.
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Nonc Hilaire
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Re: The U.K.

Post by Nonc Hilaire »

Buy that catapult. If social cohesion fails the grandaughter will provide plenty of free ammunition.
“Christ has no body now but yours. Yours are the eyes through which he looks with compassion on this world. Yours are the feet with which he walks among His people to do good. Yours are the hands through which he blesses His creation.”

Teresa of Ávila
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