Welcome to The Freedom Zone
Wednesday, July 9, 2008 
Just back from Birmingham where I spent the day with Simon Richards, director of The Freedom Association. This year's Conservative party conference is in Birmingham and with the facilities available to us it seemed a good opportunity to join forces and launch a new venture, The Freedom Zone.
The Freedom Zone will be open for two days from 8.00am to 9.00pm during the conference in September. Venue is Austin Court, a short walk from the International Conference Centre. It has a modern auditorium (the Kingston Theatre, above) that seats 140 people, a comfortable lounge area which we are converting into an all-day coffee bar, and a sheltered courtyard where we intend to host a smoker-friendly reception with a barbecue and live music.
A full programme of events will be announced nearer the time. It's a big undertaking but we hope to attract some top names. If the project is a success, I would like to think we can eventually rival the long-running Health Hotel which is such a feature of the three main party conferences.
For the moment, watch this space.
Reader Comments (13)
If you attract any pro-ban MPs who are happy to partake of the barbecue but refuse to budge about their smoking stance, I trust you will remind them of this?
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/3106039.stm
By the way, can I come? ;-)
Cracking find, Martin! Do print out that article and take it with you Simon!
The idea of the 'Freedom Zone' sounds great. I want one to visit for lunch. I hope it has the desired effect.
Good find Martin. I had heard that millions have died through household cooking, but mainly in third world countries, that have poor ventilation and the far east.
Martin try this
news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/3244214.stm
1.5 millions die every year using fossil fuels.
Here is a study done into wood burning stoves in Canada, induces cancer, RR 2.68.
"CONCLUSIONS: The association of use of wood stoves with cancers of the upper aero-digestive tract is genuine and unlikely to result from insufficient control of confounding. Due to its high prevalence, use of wood stoves may be linked to as many as 30% of all cancers occurring in the region."
http://ije.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/27/6/936
This is something i wrote in the Freedom2Choose open letter to MPs:
In 2005 the Health and Safety Executive stated that they could not find any evidence of an increased risk in lung cancer among kitchen workers. Their action was to stress the importance of adequate ventilation, which should be assessed on a case by case basis.
In 2006 the Health and Safety Executive stated that they could not produce any evidence linking second-hand smoke with an increased risk of contracting specific disease (See OC 255/15 7th August 2006). What action was forced upon them? On all of us? A blanket smoking ban. A massive over-reaction to a minor problem.
Is there anything left in the world of breathing that does NOT produce cancer?
I believe that cancer is mainly hereditary or produced by some major disturbance to the human body, such as a sharp knock. Yes, really! A friend died of cancer following a fall from a horse!
Avoidance of all major illnesses is best achieved by a steady happy life with good food, sleep when needed, plenty of fresh air and a trouble free mind.
It probably helps if surgery and pharmaceutical drugs could be avoided too.
I have been a heavy smoker since age 18. I've avoided doctors, surgery, and pharmaceutical products apart from penicillin and aspirin. I will be 75 next year. I know many others like me.
I do so wish we silent unaccounted for people could somehow be factored into the never ending statistics.
Rob
There have been several reports about lung cancer caused by cooking in hot oil, especially rape seed oil. Lung cancer in Chinese women is very high, due to cooking (mainly meat) with very hot oils in woks. Even Chinese women living America suffer badly with lung cancer.
Anybody fancy a BBQ or a Chinese meal?
Hi Chas,
I wasn't commenting on whether fumes from cooking do or do not cause cancer, merely that the HSE's findings were the same for cooking fumes and smoking bans - they couldn't find any proof that there was a danger - yet the outcomes couldn't have been further apart: ventilation in kitchens, where needed, smokers forced out into the street... Not the HSE's fault, but a good indicator of the hypocrisy when it comes to smoking versus any other risk factor.
Margot. Try this.
www.journaloftheoretics.com/Editorials/Vol-1/e1
Smoking does not cause lung cancer.
That link doesn't seem to work, chas.
Blad
Just type either line onto google. I don't know how to make a 'link'.
Leading surveillance societies in the EU and the World 2007
Britain is an "endemic surveillance society" according to the map included.