...the beat goes on,
Drums keep pounding a rhythm to the brain,
La de da de da, lah de da de da (Sonny & Cher, 1967)
It seems that ASH have picked up on this old classic as they are now turning their unwanted attentions to the music industry, more to the point, Music Festivals!
For the uninitiated music festivals are great big events, usually outside, that create a hell of a lot of noise! Not for the faint hearted. 40 years ago when the first Glastonbury festival was frowned upon (oh yes it was!) the sceptics dismissed it as a ‘one- off’ for youthful exuberance and a flight of fancy. Nowadays it is a mega attraction that even features on BBC1 newscasts! Some of the greatest names in music have graced the stage at Glastonbury and other music festivals that have sprung up over the years. They have become an institution.
ASH (spit) have cottoned on that tobacco manufacturers are retaliating by sponsoring music events-oh how they must be squirming!
Imperial Tobacco's Rizla rolling paper brand is co-sponsoring this weekend's Lovebox festival in east London. An Imperial spokesman said: 'It’s all part of creating brand awareness and it’s entirely legitimate. Don’t you just love it? Haha.
Several of the UK's biggest festivals have allowed tobacco firms to sell their products on site in ways that have been condemned by health experts. Surely not? Fancy having cigarettes & tobacco on sale at a music festival. Fancy having burgers & fizzy drinks on sale at a music festival. Good heavens, might there even be beer flowing as well? You notice that all products mentioned are products from which the recipient derives a certain amount of pleasure – ASH don’t want you to do that. Pleasure is not on their agenda, wiping out tobacco is.
ASH need to understand that people enjoy smoking. It is a proven stress reliever in times of need. Unsurprisingly, yet another survey has materialised from ASH as, according to a survey of more than 10,000 adults in England, commissioned by Ash, six out of 10 parents want to ban tobacco marketing at festivals (we’ll assume they do mean Music festivals!)
ASH figures have a way of being somewhat repetitive for I remember that 60% (6 out of ten) wanted a total smoking ban pre July2007. That figure has now risen to 80% somehow – whilst the percentage of licensees wanting freedom of choice(smoking/non smoking) has risen from 45%-82% in the same time. How strange.
I am sitting here wondering ‘just who were these adults surveyed? Where do they dig them up from, are they connected to ASH by some mysterious link?’
Having discussed this music festival business with a good friend of mine (he attends 3 or 4 per annum) I found that the general concensus was that music festivals were all about enjoyment. Smoking, drinking, ‘pigging-out’, freedom of speech, freedom of expression and 'going where the music takes you'!. So just where the hell do ASH fit into this scenario?
Are these festivals full of 10-12 yr olds or are they full of more mature people who know their own minds. Thousands of festival goers will have made up their minds about smoking long before they ever attend a festival. I suppose ASH will call for open air music festivals to be smoke free sometime in the future-good luck with that then!
ASH, by finding a new route to spew forth their venom are simply ensuring that the funding keeps rolling in year after year. Smokers ‘extra pleasure tax’ used to beat smokers up with. Farcical.
ASH et al have killed the pub/club entertainment scene with this smoke ban as thousands of licensees can no longer afford to pay singers for a night spot in their pubs; yet another small industry going out of business.
On a brighter note our very own Juliette Tworsey and her band “FIREBUG” will be playing at Knebworth in Hertfordshire soon. If you can get to Knebworth then I would recommend you do so for they are well worth listening to. Juliette will be sporting the freedom2choose T-shirts. I wonder if ASH will compile a survey to get them banned?
