Lazy reporting and media spin.

I have commented many many times on how reporters, eager to slope off early on a Friday or just plain lazy will take statements at face value and not bother doing any work other than a quick copy and paste.

Walesonline is guilty of this, taking Mr Shenker's lies, half truths and spun facts and putting them out as so called news.

A quick Google search on Alcohol Concern under news finds that they are among the top for reporting the dubious facts from this fake charity/quango that is almost totally funded by taxpayer cash.

First up this little gem where the unelected quango Alcohol Concern Cymru are saying that health should play a part in allowing drink licenses. Strange I don't remember voting for them to have a say on the political stage?

“We would also urge that the Licensing Act be amended to make public health one of the key considerations when deciding whether to grant new licenses or extend existing ones.

If these new age prohibitionists got their way, there would be no pubs left in Wales.

Next up a non story over a pub sign and so taxpayer funded non job who thinks he knows better than us called Andrew Misell, a so called policy manager at fake charity Alcohol Concern, said he believed pubs needed to think about the sort of messages they were sending out and should make it clear to customers that they were welcome to have a soft drink.

Andrew do fuck off old chap, no one voted for you and I dislike you using my tax money to dictate my lifestyle choices.

Then a debate on should there be a hike in booze prices. Guess which way the prohibitionists going?

And we have our very first lie reported and missed totally by the press when they report Alcohol Concern figures state that alcohol is 75% more affordable today than it was in 1980. Wrong, see the sidebar for how duties have made it more expensive in real terms not less.

Plus the argument of units comes up again, despite them being discredited and meaningless, see the sidebar again.

Finally some lazy hack ran a non story on how a supermarket wanted to sell legal goods and shock horror, people might actually want to buy a few cans. The old anti-social boozing fear scare story.

Maybe Wales On Line might care to do a story on how a quango is attempting to dictate policy, how it is the new face of the old prohibitionist movement and how it gets almost all its cash from your money via central government.

Then again that might require some work, so instead Wales on Line will keep copying and pasting the press releases from Alcohol Concern.

Time to give it up, a message to Don Shenker of Alcohol Concern.

Your mono eyed paymaster has gone, okay you have a budget for this year but with luck this new government will slash your fake charity along with all the translators for Somali pirates claiming asylum and diversity tree hugger non jobs.

See what I really dislike about your organisation is not the lies so much, or the half truths, or the fact lazy 2nd rate reporters take your shit and put it out as fact; oh no it is the fact that you misuse the charities act.

How so people will ask, and so I shall explain. Most charities, real ones that is help those who need help. We have all seen them, the numerous shops on the high street filled with OAP's, collecting cash for everything from cancer suffers to abandoned dogs.

They are staffed with helpers who give their time for causes they believe in and do a lot of good work, often with little or no thanks or publicity.

Then we come to Alcohol Concern and groups like it, no shops on the highstreet, no folk giving their time and most of their cash comes from your pocket. Yes that is right, central government gives them cash via the Welsh Assembly, NHS etc etc. Less than 1% of their budget was through donations.

Indeed they help not one drunk get off the demon booze, unlike outreach centres who do the practical hands on work. Instead they lobby.

They lobby government, using your money to do so, taking cash from the NHS and councils that could be used by proper charities to help people in need.

Sadly the charities act allows lobby groups with paid staff to claim they are charitable, even if their only aim is to keep themselves employed and to increase taxes on our pleasures.

One day Don, the axe will fall on your group and others like the potato marketing board(yes it's real Google it) and I will be there laughing as the wind blows alcohol concern away like a dried up dog turd.

Sky fed non story by lobbyist Don Shenker.

Shame on you SKY, falling for Don's lies and half truths.

Still you have to start with a headline, so make it a shocking one:

One in 10 people plans to drink more than 40 units of alcohol during an evening out, according to research.

That would be the meaningless units, see the sidebar its all there. Apparently a unit was created by some bored boffin on the back of a fag packet and is based on absolutely nothing.

That is the equivalent of twice the recommended weekly limit for men and three times the weekly recommended maximum for women.

That would be recommended weekly limits created by the same boffins who created the meaningless units.

The figures were discovered following research into the drinking habits of 214 people in Liverpool, Manchester and Chester.

Nice to see that they took a large base for this, a whole 214 folk.

The scientists took them through a series of interviews, breath tests and assessments of their levels of drunkenness, such as slurred speech and ability to walk.

From the overall sample, 80% said they intended to drink more before returning home, with one in 10 believing their total alcohol intake would be more than 40 units before bedtime.

Yea Gods, do SKY not have the common sense to see they have been fed a prepared story by a lobby group Alcohol Concern, a group that is funded by YOU. They are not a charity, at least not in any meaningful way, instead they misuse the charities act; pass themselves off as a charity whilst pushing a political agenda calling for regulations and higher prices on your tipple.

Anyway over to the lobbyist Don who told Sky News Online: "Men who regularly drink over 50 units a week and women who regularly drink over 35 units a week are considered 'high risk' and very likely to develop alcohol-related health problems.

Now note the use of the scare word "likely", despite the fact its based on meaningless units. Its likely that one day Don may discover that he has a pointless job, develop a backbone and leave the public teat for a real job in the private sector. Ok, not very likely but it might happen if his beloved Labour lose and your tax money is not mis-used to fund puritanical lobby groups.

"That some people are drinking over these amounts in a single evening is cause for real concern.

"This study highlights the increasingly heavy drinking culture in the UK and the lack of understanding, or complete disregard for the potential health and social harms that can result."

More lies and hype from Don will be reported, as an when someone in the media is stupid enough to give him the time of day.


Please note, should Don have a problem with the facts he has the right to reply, come on Don over to you....

Binge Drinkers Still Fail To Heed Warnings(that's made up warnings folks)

An here we go again with the latest installment of made up lies, half truths and spun facts from fake charity (over paid from your taxes) head Don Shenker.

Sky report that "One in 10 people plan to drink more than 40 units of alcohol during an evening out, according to research."

That is the equivalent of twice the recommended weekly limit for men and three times the weekly recommended maximum for women.

The figures were discovered following research into the drinking habits of 214 people in Liverpool, Manchester and Chester.

The scientists took them through a series of interviews, breath tests and assessments of their levels of drunkenness, such as slurred speech and ability to walk.

From the overall sample, 80% said they intended to drink more before returning home, with one in 10 believing their total alcohol intake would be more than 40 units before bedtime.

Sorry to interrupt this tale of health terror by the state funded fear merchants at Alcohol Concern, but do have a look at the side bar. There you will see that the "units of alcohol" is a fact a meaningless figure plucked out of the air. A spot of fag packet maths created by a scientist years ago.

A spokeswoman for the independent charity(euphemism for a fake charity/lobbyist group funded by vast amounts of taxpayers money) Drink Aware said such an amount was "unfortunately not unusual".

"We know of one young girl who, over the week, drank 213 units.

"This country has a culture of drinking and, whereas it used to be about the enjoyment of drinking, it's often now about going out to get drunk, and that's all."

Drink Aware believes the way to curb the level of drinking is through education - teaching people the damage they can do to their bodies if they drink such amounts on a regular basis.

Sadly though, they fail to mention that they lobby our MP's, receive most of their cash from your taxes and call for ever higher controls and duties to be imposed on your evening tipple. 

(fake charity)Alcohol Concern's Don Shenker told Sky News Online: "Men who regularly drink over 50 units a week and women who regularly drink over 35 units a week are considered "high risk" and very likely to develop alcohol-related health problems.

"That some people are drinking over these amounts in a single evening is cause for real concern.

"This study highlights the increasingly heavy drinking culture in the UK and the lack of understanding, or complete disregard for the potential health and social harms that can result."

Yes, thank you Don. No one elected you, no one voted for you and yet your lobby group raids our wallets, gets money from the Dept of Health, has no offices on the high street doing real charity work. 


When you stand for office and get elected to the The Commons on your ban booze ticket only then should you be telling us what the national policy should be. 

Don carries on lying.

There are lies, venal lies and statistics. Don like all the non job, 3rd sector fake charity parasites uses them all.

First up we have a fluff nonsense story that middle age women are at serious risk, in The Express.

The overpaid(from your tax money) head of Fake Charity Alcohol Concern’s Don Shenker said: “It’s easy to see why middle-aged women do not equate a sedate evening in with a few glasses of wine with the alcopops and all-you-can drink culture of youth but the health implications are no less worrying.

“Part of the problem is binge drinking being associated with young people, alcohol-dependent adults, rowdy nights out and public disorder. As the survey shows, the reality is much more complex and widespread.”

I thought of many comments on this rubbish produced and recycled by The Express as a story and yet the best comment was actually in the comments just below Don's tax payer funded words.

Strange the ladies surveyed did not know they were binge drinking until the surveyor told them what binge drinking was.


What is the definition of binge drinking, it was not in the article. Is it confidential or is it a move able feast, changes so the survey comes out with the answer the surveyor wants.
Ive had never seen such a plethorat of meaningless statistics.
Take the figure for admissions, 14 304, meaningless until a time frame is specified, a week, a month, a year, or is it the number currently in hospital, or what.


There are lies, venal lies and statistics.


As to not being able to state how many units are in a glass of wine, nobody actually knows, not least the expert.


A unit is, I understand a centilitre of alcohol however this definition is one the same experts do not wish to us to use. The alcoholic content of a glass of wine will vary according to the strength of the wine and the size of the glass both of which are infinitely variable. again we were not privileged to know the answer used in this survey.


In a similar vein, no one has the right to give a ticking off to adults for legal life style choices we are continually being badgered with advice about this and about that but these same people will not say a dickey bird about the pitfalls of sexual lifestyle choices and promiscuity which probably costs far more problems.

Welsh (Arse)mbly wastes cash on Don Shenkers lies and half truths.

A class post from Brew Wales

Fake charity Alcohol Concern have been splashing out on a new website with taxpayers money, this time from the Welsh Assembly who kindly gave them £250,000 last year to interfere in our lives.

The new bilingual campaign, intitled Drinkwise Wales features lots of interactive sections with the 'How Much Do You Drink' bit firmly on the front page. My answer is of course - "None of your bloody business you Nanny State Stasi employees so why don't you get the hell out of my life and stop trying to tell all of us how to run our lives". Unfortunately there is no section to put that in. Also only wine, lager, canned beer, whiskey and alcopops are mentioned on the page, leaving us real ale and cider drinkers alone. Come on now Alcohol Concern, if you are going to be preaching to the masses on how to run their lives, surely you need to be preaching to all of them?

Perhaps the worst bit of Nanny State pandering on this site is thereaction game at which you must be the farmer catching eggs from his chicken. No I'm not kidding and this pile of shit is payed for by us the taxpayer!

Nearly forgot to mention that this taxpayer-funded site is offering a competition to win £100 worth of Amazon vouchers. All you have to do is answer a few questions and give them your name, address and email address so that this fake charity can put you on their database.If you have the number on your personal ID drink entitlement card that would also be useful.

Anyway that's the Saturday rant over and I've not even read the Daily Mail yet, still if you want more on the puritanical neo-prohibitionists Alcohol Concern and their boss Don Shenker I suggest you head over to see Fido at the Don Shenker is a Chump site. NB the word 'chump' is used in the similar way that Peter the Pedarist used it earlier this year.

Don Shenker spouts more lies and halftruths.

First up from this we can assume that fake charity head Don likes the idea of us all having to show ID cards to drink the demon booze,
Policies are being considered in Australia that may reduce alcohol health risks, it has been revealed. The Western Australian Government is debating whether or not to implement a drinker identification system, which will require everyone buying the substance in a shop to show a card, ABC News reports. It can then be used to check if the individual has been banned from drinking, allowing service to be denied.

Racing and gaming minister Terry Waldron has not revealed what form the trial will take, but he observed that it may be familiar to one in the Northern Territory. "My plan is to travel to Alice Springs and then by the end of the year make a decision about what is the best way to go in parts of [Western Australia]," he told the news provider. Don Shenker, chief executive of Alcohol Concern, recently noted that firmer measures are needed if the problems associated with alcohol misuse in the UK are to be tackled. Posted by Natasha Harrison

Next up the unelected puritan, is even called an "expert and calls for us all to pay more for our tipple

Minimum pricing is the only way to combat alcohol dependence, an expert has claimed. Don Shenker, Alcohol Concern chief executive, noted that without it, supermarkets will continue to sell the substance at low prices. By introducing such a measure, it will mean that a base cost is in place that retailers will not be able to go under, he added. "We need to make alcohol less affordable.

The international evidence shows that we're all better off if the consumption of alcohol is decreased overall," Mr Shenker remarked. According to the Office for National Statistics, the number of alcohol-related deaths in the UK has increased consistently from the early 90s. In 2008, there were 9,031 fatalities connected to drinking, which was a hike from the 4,023 who passed away in 1992. By effectively tackling the issue, it would free up more time for police to deal with crime and stop "clogging up" departments in hospitals, Mr Shenker stated. Posted by Natasha Harrison

Since when did Don become an expert? He works if I can use that word, for a non job fake charity that is funded through my taxes. A lobbyist is all Don is an his own expertise is passing off lies, half truths and distorted facts via his agency.

Fuck off Don.

Minimum pricing on the demon booze.

One of Don's favorite rants is that of minimum pricing per unit on the demon drink.

Thankfully The Devil's Kitchen has a rather good bit on how the EU has declared minimum pricing to be illegal.
Cigarette price-fixing infringes EU law
The Court of Justice of the European Union has ruled that Irish legislation fixing a minimum retail price for cigarettes infringes EU law.

The legislation here breaches Directive 95/59 which has rules on excise duty affecting the consumption of tobacco products.

It falls to the evil drinks industry to state the obvious:

Gavin Hewitt, chief executive of the Scotch Whisky Association, said: “Given this latest evidence, the Scottish government must now recognise the legal realities. It cannot introduce a trade barrier in breach of the UK’s European obligations by imposing minimum pricing on alcohol in Scotland.”

Best of all was this bit:

And the European Commission has made it pretty clear that it will not tolerate minimum pricing for alcohol:

The Court of Justice of the European Communities (“the Court”) has ruled that national rules fixing retail prices for alcoholic beverages could constitute measures having an equivalent effect to quantitative restrictions on imports contrary to Article 28 EC. This would be the case if, for example, prices were set at such a level that imported products were placed at a disadvantage in relation to identical domestic products.

So do be a good chap Don and fuck the fuck off out of our lives, no one has voted for you to dictate to us on drinks or matters political; or your fake charity Alcohol Concern that is funded by government handout's to spout lies and half truths.


Without taxpayer cash your so called charity would dry up and blow away in the wind like an old dog turd. 

Don starting off 2010 with lies and hype....

So much like 2009 then really.

First up a fluff scare the plebs bit of nonsense from rubbish tabloid The Daily Star on the shock horror of supermarkets supplying customer demand for cheap booze.

Don Shenker, of Alcohol Concern, said: “Supermarkets which sell alcohol at pocket money prices are contributing to the problems which alcohol can cause.” - See the sidebar on how the price has actually gone up in real terms repeatedly thanks to rises in duty by HM Govt.

Next up prohibitionist Don trots out the we have to save children argument. URGENT action to raise the cost of booze was demanded today after a shock survey revealed the true extent of Birmingham’s underage drinking problem.

Pressure group Fake Charity funded by your tax money Alcohol Concern said the price of beer needed to rise.

The organisation spoke out after the shocking drinking figures were laid bare in a city council scrutiny report into drug and alcohol misuse among adults and children in Birmingham.

Chief executive Don Shenker said: “Sadly it’s now the norm for schoolchildren to be drinking at younger ages.

“And when they do drink, they are drinking larger amounts that are beyond youthful experimentation.

“Without government action on pocket-money prices and easy availability of alcohol, this is a worrying trend that’s likely to continue.” 

But Don misses the point that they are in fact, underage. Therefore breaking the law and what he is pushing for is to punish those who obey the law, rather than the young criminals. Maybe if the police and Blunkett's bobbies spent a bit more time enforcing the law, the problem could be dealt with.

Next up Don trots out the same old lies and half truths on BBC Pravda

Don Shenker, from campaign group fake taxpayer funded quango Alcohol Concern, told the BBC the proposals would not prevent people being able to "pre-load" with alcohol from supermarkets, and would not stop pubs and clubs selling a pint of lager for under £1.

"It is just tinkering with the price issue rather than decisive action," he said. "We need a minimum price per unit of alcohol which will affect pubs, clubs, off-licences and supermarkets."

Earlier this month, a Commons health select committee report estimated that a minimum price of 50p per unit of alcohol would prevent 3,000 deaths a year.

Despite there being no evidence that 50p a unit - see the sidebar on how units are meaningless - will in fact save any lives at all.

Next up the lie that booze has become cheaper, when in fact it has risen is trotted out to the press association.

Chief Executive of waste of my tax cash fake charity Alcohol Concern Don Shenker said that the falling price of alcohol in recent decades had boosted the amount Britons drink. He said: "The attitude that has been created is that alcohol is an ordinary commodity. Now we can buy alcohol in supermarkets it's all over the place, it's not separated off any more."

Do check the sidebar again on the lie about cheap booze, remember HM Govt gets a cut from every pint you drink. Oh and the shock, the horror that ordinary poor folk can go and buy the demon drink without it being "separated off any more.", we really must end the free market.

Down with that sort of thing.

Another quote from this unelected chap in The Mirror, a paper well known for its lack of reporting and making up of scare stories.

Don Shenker of Alcohol Concern said the Government was "tinkering" when "decisive action" was needed.

Here is some action for you Don, why don't you get off the taxpayer funded gravy train, get a real job and fuck the fuck off.

That cheap booze lie repeated by Don.

Repeat a lie often enough and it will become the new truth. I spotted this classic lie in the media.

Fake charity Chief Executive of Alcohol Concern Don Shenker said that the falling price of alcohol in recent decades had boosted the amount Britons drink. He said: "The attitude that has been created is that alcohol is an ordinary commodity. Now we can buy alcohol in supermarkets it's all over the place, it's not separated off any more."

Ah now there it is, the open lie, do check the sidebar and you will see that it has in fact risen in price and keeps on rising.

A certain German painter and decorator would be so proud of Don and his quango.

The truth as the Office of National Statistics shows, this is utter horse cock:

Between 1980 and 2008, the price of alcohol increased by 283.3%. After considering inflation (at 21.3%), alcohol prices increased by 19.3% over the period.

So that's one lie debunked, just don't expect Don to tell you that, despite your taxes pay for his out and out lies.

Any excuse to nanny.

Next up from the Nanny state, you will love this one.

The Express has a story on some drunk driver who was 5 times over the legal limit which of course is the perfect excuse for fake charity head man Don, to call for you all to be punished with higher taxes.

Don Shenker, of quango Alcohol Concern, said: “Drink driving causes fatalities and misery for those involved in accidents.

“The relative risk of a drink-drive accident increases significantly after 50mg in 100ml blood alcohol.”

Another excuse for Don to nanny. Remember Don is paid for by your taxes, funded by you to lobby HM Govt for tighter controls and more taxes on your drinks.

No one voted for him, elected him to any public office and yet there he is spreading his half truths and lies on the demon drink.

Don back in the media at your expense.

First up we have a Pravda style media spin over at Community Care.

Now before I put Don's rubbish across remember that his group is a quango, a small fake charity that is funded by your taxes in order to parrot the government's message.

Fake charity head of Alcohol Concern, Don Shenker said: "Giving the alcohol industry the upper hand is creating a catastrophe for the nation's health.

"With thousands of avoidable deaths and billions of pounds cost to the NHS, it beggars belief that the government is still dithering. "

Public health minister Gillian Merron said the government had adopted a strategic approach to tackling alcohol abuse but accepted that current levels of alcohol-related hospital admissions, crime and death were unacceptably high.

She said: "We will consider all of the committee's proposals carefully and respond to them formally in due course."

See what happened there, we have someone paid for by your money putting across the exact same message as HM Govt. Remember Don is there paid for by you, to call for more taxes on YOU.