Rise of another free rag?

The Independent sold for £1

The Financial Times, The Times, The Independent, all newspapers I love to read.  The FT providing news, nothing else.  The Times providing news with a side of culture and The Independent providing that little bit extra showbiz news compared to The Times, but not in a way that makes it complete tripe like The Mirror or The Sun.  Then again it could be even worse, blame immigrants for everything and claim a humungous number of things either cause or cure cancer.  For more information on this other piece of tripe please look for The Daily Mail.

The news today of The Independent being sold for just £1 (With various behind the scenes financial dealings) to London Evening Standard (LES) owner Alexander Lebedev made my heart sink a little.  Mainly because of the final line from the article above.

There is speculation that Mr Lebedev also plans to give away copies of the Independent titles for nothing.

Oh dear.  Have we got another Metro on our hands?  Another small newspaper that is read very loosely by very bored people on the train/tube and discarded once they leave the carriage?  After recently visiting London and picking up a copy of the LES, I don't feel we necessarily have that situation when it comes to a free version of The Independent.  The LES is a well written paper, especially for something that is free.  I am surprised though to see how many people seem to refuse the LES on the streets of London.  Compared to The Metro it is a free paper with some decent articles about your local area.  I just hope The Independent manages to hold on to its writers even though it could be going free.  However, I'm guessing my usual read of The Independent on Sunday won't be available from my local newsagents in the near future.


Now, back to The FT and its huge budget edition special. YZY998GVMQGG

All smoke and mirrors, signal, manoeuvre.

Disclaimer: I am not a smoker.  I have had the odd cigarette when rather stressed on detachments but never had a 'habit'.


What a ridiculous news story, but I don't blame the BBC as they are just reporting the calls of the Royal College of Physicians.


I'm with the RCoP on the calls for not smoking around children, why make them suffer for a choice you made?  As an adult you can ask the person driving/passenger in the car not to light up or to put it out before you get in, a child probably wouldn't say anything other than a bout of coughing.  But to ban it from cars completely?  Daft call, as it can't and probably won't happen.  Can you imagine a policeman pulling over a car of a 70 year old man, with his pipe, on his own, giving him an on the spot fine or a caution?


Don't get me wrong, if you have children in the car there is no way you should smoke anyway.  Regardless of any planned laws in the future.  Thats common sense, then again some people in this modern day seem incapable of displaying such sense.  What happens in your car is generally your own business and up to you.  I understand the rules on mobile phones and congratulate the law for it being passed, but smoking being banned?  Whats next? A policemen pulling me over because I have an old BigMac box on the backseat?  Its presence there adding to global warming because it is adding more weight to the car, therefore reducing my MPG and also being wasted in the big picture as it hasn't been recycled yet?


I commend thee for trying Royal College of Physicians, but I can't see you getting the victory you want.