In a global media age we are up to our necks in issues and information. But when you boil it down, few things really matter. One is beer.
The Campaign For Real Ale is backing an epetition to force a debate in Parliament on beer duty which adds five per cent to the price of a pint every year.
Beer tax is a third of the cost of a pint and, along with the smoking ban, is costing jobs and closing pubs which are a fundamental British institution.
The petition needs another 10,000 names to hit the 100,000 target by October.
If you love your pint and value your local, go to the government epetition site at http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/29664 or visit www.camra.org.uk.
Don’t make your children’s children ask, “Grandad, what was a pub?”
CUE TIP: The London Games has stimulated huge interest in taking up new activities. I’m considering renouncing couch potato status to try strip billiards. You could guarantee ticket sales if they made that an Olympic event. And the Royals do have a track record as Olympians.
BITE BACK: As if Greece didn’t have enough problems, malaria could be making a comeback.
Kathimerini reports that of the 40 cases in the first seven months of this year, six had no links to countries where the disease is endemic.
The total is similar to last year but the number of cases where the victim has not travelled to a malaria area is higher. Greece was officially declared malaria-free 38 years ago.
The mosquito-borne disease has killed millions worldwide.
And the UK is one of the biggest importers of malaria in Europe. Between 1990 and 2009, around 1,800 British travellers came home with malaria every year.
WORLD WIDE WORD: Whether you’re pro or anti ebook, you can’t ignore their growing influence. Kobo and Smashwords are global bookshops. The main player in the UK and around the world is Amazon which has just launched in India with more than one million ebooks and a huge potential for growth. I still enjoy a dog-eared paperback but there is no denying the awesome possibilities of ebook publishing.
STREWTH: I’m still blinking at the news that my Danny Lancaster thrillers – The Wreck Of The Margherita and Death Squad – are selling in Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States.
It makes me smile to imagine someone might be dipping into Danny between herding longhorn or shearing sheep.
www.facebook.com/DannyLancasterInvestigates
@williamjtodd