Don Shenker is a cunt

Lazy reporting and media spin.

2010-05-22T02:08:00.000-07:00

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.

2010-05-14T01:05:00.000-07:00

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.

2010-05-05T17:56:00.000-07:00

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)

2010-04-20T02:33:00.000-07:00

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.

2010-04-12T11:20:00.000-07:00

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.

2010-04-03T10:47:00.001-07:00

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.

2010-04-01T03:50:00.000-07:00

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.

2010-03-18T04:45:00.001-07:00

Minimum pricing on the demon booze.

2010-03-06T07:09:00.000-08:00

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....

2010-02-02T06:57:00.000-08:00

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.

2010-01-09T12:39:00.000-08:00

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.

2010-01-09T12:34:00.000-08:00

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.

2010-01-09T12:28:00.000-08:00

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.

Don growls at Wetherspoons.

2009-12-29T08:11:00.001-08:00

The Daily Mail run with some classic howlers in this load of old horse cock. Pub chain JD Wetherspoon has sparked fears it is encouraging binge drinking by selling beer at just 99p a pint.

It is re-running its controversial ‘January sale’ campaign from last year – but this time it is extending the 99p deal to include glasses of wine and shots of gin.

Charities have condemned pubs which slash drink prices as ‘irresponsible’, saying it simply encourages people to drink more. Drink is already 60 per cent lower than it was in real terms in 1980.

Now I am no fan of chav booze seller JD Wetherscum, indeed I have often described them as a supermarket in pubs clothing. A soulless clone pub chain, devoid of all originality, with none of the games you find in real pubs and less atmosphere than the fucking moon. However, the demon booze argument has been debunked and should be nailed to cross and left to die once and for all.

Really? Sure about that "fact" about cheap booze are we Daily Mail? 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.

Nope, so that's one lie debunked.

It comes just a week after it emerged that almost a million people were admitted to hospital for drink-related reasons last year.

Okay, now lets debunk this one the almost a million people sounds a lot. Yet how many of them were mad pant pissing alcoholic's from Scotland, who see a trip to A and E as a weekly trip out. I am sure should the figures be broken down, the largest numbers will be spotty teens and repeat offenders like Mad Jock McPant Pisser.

Plus if factor in the fact that each night millions of people go out, enjoy themselves and do not end up splashing half a gallon of alco pop over some junior doctors shoes at 3AM, neither do they get arrested and suffer nothing more than a sore head in the morning. That however fails to make a story in the Daily Mail.

And naturally the self appointed moral guardian and new age prohibitionist one Don Shenker of fake charity and taxpayer funded quango Alcohol Concern : 'This is a shocking indictment on the Government's failure to tackle harms from alcohol misuse.

'The Government must take strong measures on the affordability and availability of alcohol to reduce the unnecessary burden on the NHS and improve everyone's health.

Note that Don is speaking as someone not elected to any office, who is funded by your taxes and believes he knows what is best for you. No matter what you may think.

Last year, the fake charity and quango Alcohol Concern condemned Wetherspoons’ move, saying that if the drinks industry did not regulate itself, the government should step in.

Don Shenker, chief executive of fake taxpayer funded non job quango Alcohol Concern, said: 'Alcohol is not an ordinary commodity like bread or milk.

'Alcohol causes harm to the nation's health and economy, and there appears to be a strong link between cheap alcohol and the high levels of binge drinking.'

If those are not the words of a thin lipped prohibitionist, a member of the New Labour funded temperance movement then I don't know what are?...

Is Alcohol Concern breaking the rules on what is a charity?

2009-12-20T20:18:00.000-08:00

The Charity Commission's guidelines on campaigning and political activity state that "an organisation will not be charitable if its purposes are political". It states that trustees must not allow the charity to be used as a vehicle for the expression of the political views of any individual trustee or staff member.

As its aims tally 100% with the views of the Department of Health, that it lobbies in government and frequently calls on politicians to increase taxation, duties and regulations on the nations drinkers; quite how can Alcohol Concern be classed as non political?

Add to that the fact that almost 100% of its funding comes from government sources, the NHS budget, local authorities and the like and we see that it is in fact a lobby group for prohibitionists.

So I have popped a complaint off to the charities commission who oversee the UK charities, I do hope that they contact Don as well...

Don peddles his half truths and fibs to the Telegraph.

2009-12-19T06:39:00.000-08:00

Well Don has been a busy chap putting his 2p worth on this rubbish in the Telegraph that shows we are all drinking far to much, despite the fact that we are drinking less and paying more than ever in duties for out tipple.

Naturally the fact that units are made up, which I have detailed below, but first over to taxpayer funded fake charity shit spouter Don...

Don Shenker, chief executive of quango Alcohol Concern, said: “If we underestimate our drinking levels, then we’re underestimating the amount of harm we can expect to happen to our families, communities and wider society – as well as how much further we need to go to curb our excessive consumption.
“Poor survey intelligence can result in misinformed policy.

Don do take a nice cup of shut the fuck up, reports are based on guesswork and when based on meaningless units the whole report becomes meaningless, do you see?

“Any future government must get to grips with measuring the true scale and nature of this problem if it is to make a difference to reduce alcohol harms.”

No Don, any future government must get to grips with cutting taxpayer funded non jobs out from the taxpayers wallets, without tax money your fake charity would dry up and blow away like the bloated dog turd it is.

A spokesman for the Department of Health said: "We welcome Alcohol Concern's report as many people do not realise how much alcohol they drink and they may understate their drinking on self-reported surveys.
"That's why the Government also uses data on alcohol sales to measure the true level of alcohol consumption, which informs our policies.”

That would be the same Department of Health, who put our money into Don's quango, are right you are so conflict of interest there then... Now onto the graphs.

The graph below shows the percentage of men and women drinking more than their 21/14 unit weekly 'limit.

Clearly it shows people are drinking less, a fact borne out by falling alcohol sales in the industry.
Of course the neo-prohibitionists don't like this so they reinvented the 'unit' of alcohol

Since 2007, the Office of National Statistics has assumed larger glasses are being used and stronger alcohol is being consumed. They now assume that a glass of wine contains 2 units, rather than 1, as it did before. With beer, what used be counted as 1 unit is now counted as 1.5, what used to be 1.5 units is now assumed to be 2 units and what used to be 2.3 units (a large can) is now counted as 3 units.

The term 'unit' was made up anyway.(see sidebar)

So according to the revised data, people are drinking more and of course this is the type of misinformation that the fake charities thrive on - they are dependent on their funding from the Government. They have to keep up the scare stories in order to have the Government continue funding them.

Hat tip to Brew Wales.

Don spouts his rubbish on the Boots website.

2009-12-19T06:24:00.000-08:00

Such a shame Boots give Don the time of day....
Don Shenker, the Chief Executive of fake charity Alcohol Concern, says he welcomes the new guidelines, which he says will “enable parents to be better informed about the health risks under 18s face when drinking. The guidelines will especially help parents who want to establish clear boundaries with their children and clarify that drinking above these guidelines carries increased health risks,” he says.

Lets just debunk this myth, first off the figures are based on non science. The alcohol units were plucked out of the air and are utterly meaningless(see sidebar for more), also everyone has a different tolerance towards alcohol.

The British Liver Trust also welcomed the new guidance, saying it would help children grow up with a healthy respect for alcohol. Alison Rogers, the Trust’s Chief Executive, says “we would like to welcome the official recognition of the importance of the parents’ role in establishing sensible drinking patterns for their children and the fact that this guidance provides clear and unambiguous clinically-based advice.”

However, Don Shenker says it’s important to remember there are many factors affecting young people’s drinking other than what parents say. "The easy availability of alcohol at pocket money prices is far more important, and the government should consider getting tough on cheap sales to help tackle underage drinking,” he says.

What Don misses is that it is illegal for under 18's to purchase alcohol and increasing taxes just hits the innocent drinkers; not the teens who load up on alco pops from the corner shop. Maybe better policing would be a better option?

Of course Don and his fake charity, funded by the UK taxpayers via the NHS and local authority handouts are there to do Labour's business and increase taxes(that is the sole reason for Alcohol Concern).

Don Shenker tells his fibs to the Daily Mail.

2009-12-16T10:53:00.000-08:00

The Daily Mail ran a story on the rise in the numbers admitted into hospital due to the demon drink and so naturally went to taxpayer funded quango head Don for a statement.

Don Shenker, chief executive of Alcohol Concern the fake charity that gains most of its funding from the public purse, said: 'This is a shocking indictment on the Government's failure to tackle harms from alcohol misuse."

Gosh is it Don, is it really? An what pray tell is your liberal and wise solution to the problem?

'The Government must take strong measures on the affordability and availability of alcohol to reduce the unnecessary burden on the NHS and improve everyone's health.'

Must they? So we need further tax rises and restrictions on the availability of alcohol so that drunk folk are not clogging up the A&E departments. How about this Don, why don't you stand for public office, you know become an MP, stand on that ticket and see if you can get elected.

I bet you won't even get 10 votes Don an it will be a well deserved oblivion and deposit lost; far easier to suckle on at the public teat lapping up my taxes and moralising against the public having a tipple.

See here is a solution an it involves no tax rises what so ever, or restrictions on anyone. If someone is found drunk, then treat them an also nick them for being drunk and disorderly. The laws are already there on the statute books, a fine from PC plod and a hangover is the result.

Problem resolved. No need for restrictions, or quango's like yours sucking the cash from the public purse.

Lastly what is always missed in this sort of anti-drink bullshit, is this simple fact. For every drunk nicked, for every violent assult or idiot who throws up over a doctors shoes at 3AM in A&E; millions of folk have had a good night out.

Not been arrested, not gotten into a fight, thrown up or come into conflict with either the authorities or their fellow drinkers; but should that little inconvenient truth come out the taxpayers may wonder quite why Don is paid from their hard earned taxes...

Come on Don go get a real job and stop lying to us.

A challange to Don Shenker.

2009-12-07T06:36:00.000-08:00

Don has been given lots of media airtime, lots of ink in the dead wood press and lots and lots of hard working taxpayers money to fund his rather shoddy quango.

Worst of all organisation that support beer drinkers like CAMRA, have also given Don the time of day, which is like someone popping in to see Sweeney Todd for a quick shave.

He has repeated again and again the same old lies on how beer is cheaper than ever, gives us all cancer and reduces us all to mindless animals; who of course need taxing and controlling by all knowing folk like Don.

So here is the challenge to Mr Shenker and his fellow New Labour loving puritans, I will match you fact for fact, debunk your spin and take you on in a debate any day of the week.

Anytime, anyplace, anywhere as the old saying go's. Not holding my breath on this mind you, as spin is far easier at a distance rather than openly debated with lots of facts, rather than lies on booze units and cancer.

Contact fidothedogster@gmail.com

Don Shenker a vile scumbag playing on the fear of cancer.

2009-12-07T06:17:00.000-08:00

Don is up to his old tricks, playing on peoples fears in order to push the message that drinking is evil and so should be banned.

He turns up like a zit on a teen in The Telegraph claiming that 24 hour drinking is to blame for increasing cancer rates.

Don happily chirps his banning message, yes the Alcohol Concern quango chief executive Don Shenker said: "Many people are not aware of the connection between alcohol and cancer yet it can be a major contributor or cause of the disease."

Yes Don, its right up there with smoking, pollution and just plain bad luck. Maybe Don would care to ban people from drinking very hot tea as a study shows there may well be a risk of that causing cancer.

Or maybe the drug fosamax as this site suggests.

Plus of course another study suggested that folk who engaged in lots of oral sex were also in danger, so no more getting down in front of Gordon Brown and the NHS directors for funding Mr Shenker as it's bad for your health. I don't see Don seeking to ban that!

In fact the exact causes of cancer are often unknown, having known a few people die of that other than some guess on the part of the medical establishment as to the causes they really can not say; other than an educated guess.

A more reliable source that a state funded quango had this to say on mouth and throat cancer:

In some cases the exact cause of cancer is not known. However, the primary cause of mouth and throat cancer is smoking. People who drink excess alcohol are also at risk and when mixed with tobacco use, their chance of developing cancer is much greater.

Still playing the fear card and grasping at every straw in order to put across the Government message, something this fake charity do in order to maintain their non-jobs and continued funding is all Don is good for.

Don gets a mention.

2009-12-03T02:54:00.000-08:00

This Don Shenker tribute site gets a mention over at The Devil's Kitchen.

The TaxPayers' Alliance has published a list of the top 25 parasitic quangos and so-called charities that the country could well do without. Not only would this save £33 million a year but - better still - Don Shenker and Deborah Arnott would have their mouths ripped from the teat of the state and be forced to get a real job.

The thought of Don being ignored by the media is one that fills me with joy, the thought that our tax money could be saved by not paying Don to spread half truths and outright lies in the media is a pleasure.

Best of all would be the thought of his fake charity, funded in the main by the state having to close down and blowing away like an old dog turd for lack of funding; whilst Don ends up flipping burgers or cleaning tables in the local JD Wetherspoons.

Although charity is an inaccurate word for the Alcohol Concern types, a bunch of thin lipped puritans who are in fact a lobby group paid for by Labour who are calling for more regulation and higher taxes.

Whereas real charities do useful stuff like help poor people and save starving infants in the 3rd World etc.

Don plays the fear card. Drinking gives you cancer.

2009-11-30T06:26:00.000-08:00

Well the quango head is on fine form in delivering his government message on how the demon booze will kill us all. Don who gets a stead pay check from HM Govt, the major funder of his quango has been in the Daily Express claiming we are all going to get cancer from having a quick half a shandy.

Alcohol Concern chief executive Don Shenker said it was time to introduce tobacco-style health warnings on alcohol.

Don old chap, its high time that my tax money was used NOT to fund you and to remind you that no one has voted you into any position of power. You are not an MP, elected by people by a quango head of a fake state funded charity; in short a parasite.

“While alcoholic liver disease remains the number one killer linked to alcohol, more and more people are suffering from oral cancers — and record drinking levels have undeniably played a part.”

Really, an you have the evidence for that or just one study? Oh and drink levels have actually declined, so I shall clear that little lie up for starters.

The researchers compared cancer mortality rates across Europe between 1990 and 1994 and 2000 and 2004. So its all based on an old study that is 4 years out of date and has no hard evidence of a direct link between a quick tipple and cancer.

Nice to see that the "third sector" is being oh so responsible to the public, then again as they are paid for by the state I guess it's a case of who pays the piper.

More than 7,500 people are diagnosed with cancer of the oesophagus in Britain each year. So 60 million plus people, if Don has his way, will pay higher taxes on their drink, in order to protect 7,500 people who get cancer, based on an old study and with no hard evidence to back it up...

Oh another "study" pointed out that oral sex also increased the likelihood of throat cancer, so will Don be campaigning for warning signs on chaps penises? Naturally Don will be exempt from that as not many ladies will be willing to pleasure a talentless quango head.

Don Skenker spouts his drivel in The People.

2009-11-30T06:12:00.000-08:00

Don turns up to deliver the right on message on the demon drink for HM Govt, in The People, Another 30 pieces of silver well earned there Don.

All cans and bottles of booze MUST carry health warnings by law from next year.

The drinks industry will be forced to give alerts on beer and spirits just like those on cigarette packs.

Ministers plan to get tough after the failure of a voluntary scheme first proposed in 2004 and only patchily implemented in 2008.

There is the problem, the scheme was supposed to be voluntary, however as the drinks industry did not choose to follow the puritanical line of New Labour and highly paid non job quango heads like Don, they have chosen to legislate instead.

And the usual lies are rolled on out to back up their measures:

Drink-related fatalities, such as those from liver disease and road accidents, have TREBLED over the last 25 years. And alcohol abuse in the UK is among the highest in Europe.

Depends on how you read the figures, play with stats enough and you can produce any result you like. Who knows they might be faking global warming data next.

Don Shenker of Alcohol Concern quango, funded by your tax money said: "The death toll is unacceptably high. And the worst part is that all of these deaths are avoidable."

Sadly paying for Don spouting his utter shit in the press is not avoidable.

Don Shenker - Fake charity shitspouter. In the local papers.

2009-11-06T06:43:00.000-08:00

Yet more shit from state funded jobsworth and recopied by lazy hacks on some local rag.(This is the West Country) A REGIONAL breakdown of the TellUs3 survey, obtained by national charity Alcohol Concern(that's the state funded charity that gets its money from your taxes and pushes Labour's message of higher taxes), shows that children and young people in the South West report rates of drunkenness above the national average.
Nearly 11% of young people aged between eight and 16 said that they had been drunk twice or more in the past four weeks, the national average being 10%.

A total of 6.2% had been drunk three or more times in the past month.

The survey, conducted by schools inspector Ofsted, also revealed that less than a fifth of young people in the region had never had an alcoholic drink.

The charity is calling for further action on alcohol pricing, marketing and on support for parents, after research pointed to the central role parents can play in tackling young people’s drinking. (Maybe if the law was enforced better, there would be no need for controls, or the fake charity quango that keeps Don in a well paid job!)

Earlier this year, a comprehensive survey of 15 and 16 year olds showed the effect of their parents’ attitudes on their drinking behaviour.

It found that 80% of pupils who felt their parents would disapprove of their drinking had never drunk alcohol, compared to 24% of those who thought their parents approved within limits and 16% of those whose parents let them drink as much as they liked.

A poll carried out by YouGov for Alcohol Concern pointed to some of the likely reasons for young people’s drinking, with 68% of people living in the South West believing that cheap alcohol means that young people are more likely to drink and 82% believing that some alcohol products are marketed to appeal to underage drinkers.

Alcohol Concern chief executive Don Shenker said: "Sadly, children and teens in the South West are getting drunk far more often than the national average.

“However, the good news is that parents’ attitudes to their children’s drinking can indeed make a difference to their behaviour.

"Setting an example by drinking responsibly in the home and being honest about the health risks of alcohol are essential.

“This must be combined with tough action on cheap drinks and those marketed towards underage drinkers if we’re to see young people drinking less in future." - Said Don, the self appointed chap who has never been elected by anyone to a political position and who like many a public sector parasite, believes he knows what is best for you; whilst using your money to lecture you.

Like a zit on a teens face the puss of Don keeps coming on back.

2009-11-06T06:37:00.000-08:00

Uber hoon Don can be seen spouting his utter shit in The Sun.

Don Shenker, chief executive of Alcohol Concern(the state funded charity that you pay for), said: "It is simply irresponsible to encourage young people to drink far more than the recommended daily limits on a night out."

That would be the limits that have NO BASIS in science what so ever. See sidebar for more info on that.

Chris Sorek, chief executive of Drinkaware(another state funded charity that you pay for), said: "Pub crawls often encourage drinking to get drunk but this kind of activity can result in sexual assault, having a serious accident or being a victim of crime.

Gosh that's the best they can do, Chris says behave or you might be a victim of crime?!

Health Nazi's losing the fight as a poll shows.

2009-10-23T08:38:00.000-07:00

A hat tip to Brew Wales for this one as well as Obo and Mr Eugenides

Fake Charity Alcohol Focus, the Tundra-based Government-funded equivalent of Alcohol Concern has an interesting survey on it's website.

The question it asks is:

"Cheap alcohol is damaging health and society. I support minimum pricing"

Visitors to the site then have a choice of yes or no.

At the time of posting 6403 people have voted and the percentages are Yes 4% and No 96%.

As the people have spoken surely the time has been reached where these fake charities have their Government funding withdrawn? This Nulieber social engineering is a waste of public money - a way to try and persuade us that we have to conform to their way of thinking - and they way they do this is to pay fake charities such as Alcohol Concern, Alcohol Focus and even have Alcohol Concern Wales now, to produce scare stories and made up statistics to frighten and brainwash the public into believing their propaganda.

Hurrah, the public are not as stupid as public sector non-job shrills like Don would have us believe!

The Indy quotes Don's shit.

2009-10-23T08:27:00.000-07:00

Oh dear its a poor day, lots of lazy reporting. The Independent deserves a clip around the ear for lazy reporting and what's worse not reporting the utter arse bilge that Don issues by the gallon from his top bottom.

Apparently the demon drink will kill a person every second according to scientists.

Now apparently a study by the "Alcohol and Health Research Unit" - oh er! Go check the Fake Charities website, its a taxpayer funded wankfest quango - (AHRU), which explores the link between consumption and alcohol-related deaths in the UK for the first time, predicts that excessive drinking will kill 90,800 people by 2019. The number of deaths has jumped from 3,054 in 1984 to 8,999 in 2008.

Then they quote Don, strange I did not realise that he was a scientist. Although what with the dumbing down in the schools under Labour, no doubt he qualified with a C+ in Media Studies from a Polyversity before fucking off to the public sector to be a joyless shrill.

Don, you keep quoting and I shall keep ripping your arsewater apart.

Don Shenker - Fake charity shitspouter get coverage for his rubbish.

2009-10-23T08:19:00.000-07:00

First up Don has his utter arsewater bilge reported in the Publican. Shame on them an otherwise good trade read being stupid enough to report on a shrill for the fake charity Alcohol Concern.

A man(and I use that word in the loosest possible context of the word) that seeks to bugger the beer trade senseless with over regulation and raise more taxes under the false pretext of "public health"

A health chief has today branded anti-binge government campaigns as “pretty dull” and argued that trying to “persuade” people not to drink too much is not enough. - So fuck off then Don, close down the fake Charity and go get a real job in the private sector you utter parasite.

Don Shenker, chief executive of Alcohol Concern, said the best way to tackle the issues was through increasing taxes and introducing minimum pricing – and cheap alcohol in the home was adding to the problem. Ah yes the prime message of the public sector, to keep the bloated taxpayer funded quango wankers like yourself in a non-job.

Speaking at a conference on women and binge-drinking, Shenker said if people could be “persuaded” not to drink too much “that would be a wonderful thing”. But he added: “I just don’t buy that.” - And I don't buy your B/S either Don. 50+ pubs a week are shutting their doors for good and you want to hammer nails in the coffin of the trade; you utter cunt.

“Stamping out loss-leaders from supermarkets and raising the price could be the quickest way to minimise harm to young people,” he said. So not planning on urging the police to enforce existing laws that stop the wee bairns from supping ale then?

He later added: “Some government adverts are pretty dull, it has to be said.”

However Shenker, who admitted he enjoyed visiting “well-run” pubs, did not directly acknowledge the £100m Campaign for Smarter Drinking launched earlier this year by the drinks industry, backed by the Department of Health. Gosh 100 million and we still fund non jobs like Don, nice to see our money being wasted.

Cheap alcohol being brought into the home by parents was also contributing to the problem of young people and alcohol, Shenker added. Any evidence? Oh sorry I forgot you run on fear, innuendo and state funded bullshit.

“There’s more incentive because it’s cheaper and there’s more alcohol in the home,” he said, pointing to figures showing that 80 per cent of 11-15 year-olds with parents who disapproved had not drunk alcohol.

The Department for Children, Schools and Families, Shenker revealed, is due to launch a campaign next year encouraging parents to be more responsible about the messages they pass on to their offspring about alcohol.

And on the issue of underage sales, Shenker called for the Challenge 25 scheme to become a condition of licence for all off-licences. Despite the law stating you need to be 18 to drink, so is there a change in the law being planned Don?

Earlier, at the event organised by the charity YWCA, Professor Ian Gilmore, chairman of the Alcohol Health Alliance, said women were the “new kids on the block” when it comes to binge-drinking.

But he said they were catching up with men, with a rise of 50 per cent in the last five years of young women in the North West being treated for alcohol problems.

Gilmore also pointed to a rise in the problem of passive drinking, arguing “we should be emphasising this much more”. Gilmore is also another puritanical thin lipped cunt that hates anyone enjoying themselves, still one knows a shit by the company they keep; isn't that right Don.

In also backing calls for minimum pricing, Gilmore criticised Gordon Brown for suggesting it will hit the responsible majority and introducing it will be “missing an opportunity to save lives”.

But he concluded: “We are not calling for a return to prohibition.” - Yes you are, go play with a rusty razor blade you scum.

Shit spouting Don is back in the Daily Mirror

2009-10-19T15:19:00.000-07:00

Another rent a quote from the fake charity head Don. Don who is the paid shrill of Alcohol Concern is pumping his rubbish into the Mirror.

Alcohol 'will kill 90,000 more over next 10 years' - Gosh really Don, another made up figure?

The number of alcohol-related deaths has tripled in the past 25 years, shocking figures reveal. -Yet consumption overall has decreased, strange that Don?

And 90,800 people - the equivalent to a packed Wembley Stadium - could die over the next 10 years. - Ah now its could die, come on Don make your tiny tax payer funded mind up.

The Alcohol Concern survey found the number of alcohol-related deaths soared from 3,054 in 1984 to 8,999 in 2008. - Ah right blanket figures spun out of context, very good Don.

Chief executive Don Shenker said: "This is an unacceptably high death toll and the worst part is that all these deaths are avoidable.

"This rise also runs in parallel with the growing affordability of alcohol." - Yep keep pushing the prohibitionist message Don.

Ay up, this site has been spotted.

2009-10-01T18:46:00.000-07:00

One of my regular reads the Pub Curmudgeon has noticed that this site is none to pleased with Don and his constant puritanical shit spouting.

Don Shenker - Fake charity shitspouter forces Everton to remove sign

2009-09-30T06:11:00.000-07:00

Don the self appointed spokesperson and censor rattles his cage:
Everton FC have removed an advert for a super strength spirit from Goodson Park after concern was raised by alcohol campaingers.

The Toffees had be criticised over the billboard advert for the the 89.9% 'Hapsburg Absinthe' on a hoarding mounted above the Family Enclosure.

Absinthe, nicknamed "devil water", is notorious for its dangerously high alcohol content and was outlawed in the UK until 1998.

Last year, Everton announced that they were the first Premiership club to remove their shirt sponsor, Chang Beer, from their replica shirts, to shield youngsters from alcohol promotion.

Alcohol Concern campaign group Chief Executive Don Shenker had criticised the placement of the Absinthe advert in Everton's family enclosure.

Mr Shenker said: "There's no point removing drinks logos from shirts if advertising hoardings are promoting to children one of the strongest drinks around.

"The heavy marketing and promotion of alcohol, combined with low prices - are encouraging young people to drink at a level our health services are struggling to cope with.

"A ban on sponsorship of sports by drinks companies would be a good start.

"Some countries like France have already banned alcohol-related sports sponsorship and have proved sports can survive without it.

"A complete ban on alcohol sponsorship of sport and music events will put a stop to alcohol companies associating the glamour of sport with drinking alcohol."

A family values group had also called for the advert to be taken down.

Dr Adrian Rogers of Family Focus said: "It's a matter of being consistent - if you refuse to advertise alcohol on childrens' shirts then you should not advertise it where parents go to watch games with their children."

Last month, the lethal beverage was banned in New Zealand after a teenager was left fighting for his life after repeatedly downing shots of the spirit.

The dangerous drink also contributed to the death of a Grimsby father-of-three Martyn Hurst, 49, who died last month after consuming excessive amounts of the drink following a friend's funeral.

Earlier this month, the British Medical Association launched a bid to have a total ban on alcohol advertising in the public domain including at music events and football matches.

Professor Gerard Hastings of the BMA said: "Given the alcohol industry spends £800 million a year in promoting alcohol in the UK, it is no surprise that children and young people see it everywhere on TV, billboards or football sponsorship deals.

"All these promotional activities serve to normalise alcohol as an essential part of every day life. It is no surprise that young people are drawn to alcohol."

A spokesman for Everton FC confirmed that the club have removed the sign from the section but refused to comment.

Note that Don is not a politician, no one voted for Don, no one elected Don to any public office - he is an employee of a quango that receives most of its funding from the public purse.

Everton need to put their hands down their trousers and see if they still have any testicles left, oh no it would appear they have been neutered by Don Shenker the fake charity puritanical shitspouter.

Don Shenker - Fake charity shitspouter and his unpant sniffing friends.

2009-09-26T04:32:00.000-07:00

http://www.thepublican.com/story.asp?sectioncode=7&storycode=65244&c=1
Portman Group chairman Seymour Fortescue has been booked to speak at an event tackling the issue of women who binge-drink.

Charity the YWCA is hosting the ‘Women Finding Solutions to Binge Drinking’ conference on October 21.

YWCA chief executive Sarah Payne said: “We are really excited that Mr Fortescue has agreed to speak. He will provide a valuable insight as chairman of the Portman Group.

“Excessive drinking is a concern to everyone, including drinks manufacturers, and it is good to see that they, represented by the Portman Group, will be involved in our conference.”

Fortescue said: “The drinks industry has a legitimate and significant role to play in combating alcohol misuse. Effective industry self-regulation is vitally important. I shall be discussing this and how drinks manufacturers can develop partnerships to tackle the drinking culture.”

He joins speakers including Professor Ian Gilmore, president of the Royal College of Physicians, Sara Thornton, the Chief Constable of Thames Valley; and Don Shenker, Chief Executive of Alcohol Concern.

The conference will be held at Central Hall, Westminster, London. Further details are available on www.ywca.org

Splat - Don like a zit on the face of teen bursts forth.

2009-09-24T05:08:00.000-07:00

I knew it would not take banning little puritan Don long to pop forth with more antibeer bile and like a hate filled puss loaded zit, here is quango boss Don with another load of self appointed, unelected regulators: From the Morning Advertiser

A powerful alliance of health campaigners and a top policeman are urging the Government not to shelve its mandatory alcohol retailing code.

It’s in response to a leaked document that shows Business Secretary Lord Mandelson calling for the introduction of the controversial measure, which is expected to add more costs to firms, to be delayed due to the recession.

Campaigners accused Business Secretary Lord Mandelson of “pandering to big business concerns” and say delay would be a “costly error”.

The group — made of Association of Chief Police Officers’ Mike Craik, Alcohol Health Alliance chief Ian Gilmore, Alcohol Concern chief executive Don Shenker and Alison Rogers, chief executive of the British Liver Trust — expressed their view in a joint letter to the Times.

The code would force pubs to follow conditions, including offering smaller drinks servings and curbs on drinks promotions, including all-you-can-drink deals.

The letter says Mandelson’s call for the code to be shelved “is a matter of concern for those interested in reducing the rate of crime, health harm and anti-social behaviour on our streets".

It says the code “was already a long overdue measure” when it was announced six months ago.
“Delaying the measure until 2011 — effectively shelving it indefinitely — would be a costly error and appears to pander to big business concerns over profit at the expense of safer streets and public health.

The usual shower of the self appointed, the righteous and members of the police who have gotten above their station and forget their job is to enforce the law not create it.

Don Shenker - Fake charity shitspouter at the Welsh Arsembly.

2009-09-23T13:44:00.001-07:00

From Brew Wales.Today in the Welsh Assembly the first formal meeting of the Cross-Party Welsh Assembly Beer and Pub Group takes place. An informal meeting was held earlier in the year to gauge support for the pub and drinks industry in the Assembly and the subjects for discussion today include tax and regulation to the beer tie and responsible retailing. Other subjects on the agenda include career paths in the pub sector, responsible selling of alcohol and the plans in Scotland, and promoting locally-sourced produce.

All 60 Welsh Assembly Members have been invited to the meeting. Speakers will include Enterprise licensee Phil Jones of Fair Pint, who secured a temporary 38% rent cut after a long-running dispute. He’ll discuss “the pros and cons of pubcos”.

Justin Grant, of the Breconshire Brewery, who chairs the Association of Welsh Independent Brewers, is due at the meeting, alongside representatives of larger brewers SABMiller, SA Brains and Coors.

The British Beer & Pub Association and Fake Charity Alcohol Concern are also due to attend. Alcohol Concern have a vested interest in appearing as according to 2007/8 figures 57% of their income came from the taxpayer. No doubt Don Shenker***, Chief Executive of the Government-funded fake charity will be trying to get some funding from the Welsh Assembly Government at the meeting today for his new fake charity, Alcohol Concern Cymru.

Some information regarding the fake charity Alcohol Concern:

"Alcohol Concern supports banning happy hour, raising the price of alcohol, lowering the drink drive limit, banning glass bottles in pubs, warning labels on cans and bottles and banning TV advertising before 9pm. It described the ban on happy hour promotions as "a step in the right direction" and the introduction of cigarette-style warning labels on bottles as "a very good first step".

Basically they epitomise the nanny state along with everything that is wrong about this country today and would not exist if their Government-funding dried up.

Nine AMs are currently members of the Cross-Party Welsh Assembly Beer and Pub Group, which was formed in June. It is chaired jointly by Nicholas Bourne, leader of Welsh Conservatives in the National Assembly, and Labour AM Jeff Cuthbert.

***my bit on Don Shenker: I have mentioned before the taxpayer funded busybody that is Don. A fear mongering shit spouter of the worst type. Who I described as

"a self appointed New Labour spokesman on all matters booze related. A thin lipped puritan (who has a small cock probably) and who would not have been out of place in the last years of Cromwell's republic, flogging schoolboys who played football on a Sunday."

His fake charity according to its 2007/08 accounts, out of a total income of £903,246, Alcohol Concern received £515,000 (57%) from the Department of Health (£400,000 unrestricted and £115,000 in restricted funds). It received just £4,991 in public donations.

A man who generates fake media stories about how the demon booze can cause cancerand Don's offer to help the pub trade means higher costs, regulations and pushing his puritanical aims.

Another classic bit of fear mongering by Don was this on how drinking can leave you open to catching infections.

Why CAMRA and others who love the pubs, real ale and the social pub scene and responsible drinking tolerate that odious little puritan is beyond me? Having Don help the pubs is as advisable as putting Gary Glitter in charge of UK children's homes.

Without public funds to put across his odious puritanic views Don and his piss poor group of quango wallah's would dry up and blow away like old dog turds.

Oh and lastly the Welsh Arsembly should be closed down: a talking shop of 2nd raters, failed politico's, the socially inept, time servers and assorted do nothing fuckwads all happily living off the taxpayers of Wales.

Don Shenker - Fake charity shitspouter is a cunt.

2009-09-23T13:34:00.001-07:00

Cross posted from The Lone Voice.

So who is Don Shenker I asked before? The answer is an unelected head of a state funded "charity" - a quango in other words - designed to put across the government message of higher taxes on the demon drink.

Like spots on a teen Don keeps popping up everywhere, so lets have a look at Don's "message"

SPLAT - Like a zit being burst Don splatters into the Daily Mail, to lay into ministers, bleating that they are colluding with the alcohol lobby to water down new warning labels on drinks. Putting out the message that its all about saving the children and to help pregnant women.

SQUEEZE and more puss from Don splatters forth the same message into theMorning Advertiser.

Two papers and online articles in the same day, hell MP's would cream their pants for coverage like that. Now note that no one has ever voted Don into any position of power what so ever.

The fake charities site has a lot more detail on alcohol concern. In effect an outsourced bit of government to push the policy of regulation, control and fear - as well as higher taxes.

One point Don and his puritanical ilk use is that of the so called booze units, the recommended guidelines that were in fact plucked out of the air and have no basis in real science what so ever:Guidelines on safe alcohol consumption limits that have shaped health policy in Britain for 20 years were “plucked out of the air” as an “intelligent guess”.

The Times reveals today that the recommended weekly drinking limits of 21 units of alcohol for men and 14 for women, first introduced in 1987 and still in use today,had no firm scientific basis whatsoever.

Don even pretends to be helpful, what his help equates to is bans and extra costs, they openly push for the following:

Supports banning happy hours = higher costs.
Raising the price of alcohol = higher costs.
Banning glass bottles in pubs = higher costs.
Warning labels on cans and bottles = higher costs.
Along with the use of piss poor plastic glasses, now used in my town centre and another cost that struggling pubs have to deal with.

Best of all, get this from the Morning advertiser...Alcohol Concern chief executive Don Shenker offered to work alongside the Campaign for Real Ale (Camra) and think tank the Institute of Public Policy Research (IPPR) to investigate ways to help responsible pubs survive.

As helpful to a struggling pub trade as a kick to the testicles, him helping pubs is like getting child care from Gary Glitter. The bloke is a curtain twitcher, a control freak who were he not on the state funded teat thanks to his fake charity, would be reporting his neighbors for putting the wrong rubbish in the wrong bin. Who knows maybe Don does that in his spare time?

Don every time you spread your prohibitionist shit, I shall be there to debunk it and spread the message that the perceived problem with booze is just that. A small problem affecting a small number of people, spun by lazy hacks, politicians out for tax raising and others with an axe to grind.

That in fact each and every day the vast majority of people go out, have a drink and do not: end up getting arrested, throwing up over a GP's shoes at 3AM, or causing any trouble what so ever.

That shock horror, they get up and carry as normal the next day and do not even pull a sickie.