Yes, there are lots of English there, mainly in San An. We are renting a villa, nearer to Ibiza town, ready to slay all the incredible european birds that as mentioned will be there. They mostly tend to be in Ibiza Town from my experiences.
Well, if the Echo is right (there's a first time for everything) £65 might pay for half a solicitors letter. Actually at today's prices, probably half a solicitors post-it note. They should just pay such a piffling fee. Interesting on this thread how people who have never been in the place are happy to share their opinion of its merit as a watering hole. And also how some are happy to generalise about groups of people, indeed entire countries of 60 million inhabitants and describe them as a homogenous group. I am waiting to be told that the residents of Southampton have a terrific sense of natural rhythm!
I'd like to argue against the premise that there's more drunkenness in the UK than in other European countries, but I can't. In my experience, there is. It has become a country where people go out explicitly to GET PISSED. I've lived in other countries and that doesn't occur to people as a SYSTEM. Are we still suffering a backlash against the Victorian generations? Cheers. Drink that up.
As a student of law, I have quite strong feelings about stuff like this. Copyright law can be so stupid at times.
Who gives a s**t about a pub having to change it's name ?! There are far worse things going on in the world right now. Dare I say it, there are far worse things going on in Southampton right now. Like high levels of unemployment and rising crime rates. I think those are things that are worth sorting out before fighting a bloody pub name change.
I think to be honest it is more the principle of the thing that has upset people. It strikes me that there is a couple of things that is wrong here. When you name a Pub you have to apply to the licensing association or some such and they are supposed to know if there is any copyright or another pub or whatever that it might affect. So someone has slipped up there obviously. Secondly having used the name for 20 odd years it cannot be argued that the sale of the copyright product cannot have been adversely affected by the use of the name. Also as the name was being used well prior to the popularity of the book and film. It cannot be argued that the pub actually gained a pecuniary advantage from the products name. However the reality is they do own the copy right and are entitled under international law for compensation to use the name. No matter how small, it will be cheaper to pay the annual fee than to fight the case in law I would have thought.
The Americans seem to own most things, now they want to own our culture as well. The UK is an easy target as we just seem to give in to anything that's dictated to us. The Hobbit may be a very small matter but it's part of a much bigger case of bullying that we seem incapable of standing up to.
I seem to remember a thread about cheltnham being closed down by the mod's recently cause it wasn't football related. Weird how this one is still going must be cause they have an opinion about it.
I think the Cheltenham thread was closed down due to bickering between posters. I'll hold my hands up and say I was involved unfortunately. It wasn't a good day !
I distinctly remember cf saying this was a football forum and to keep the threads football related, i suppose you could argue that a thread about a pub is football related cause its where most people meet before the game although i'm pretty certain that a large number of football fans will visit the bookies on match day to have a flutter on the horses. Anyhow i don't wish to cause trouble so no more will i say on the matter.
The culture of excessive alcohol consumption, in the UK, is just one symptom of a society that's slightly off balance. However, since WWI, places where alcohol is served had a time limit placed upon when they could and couldn't open. This resulted in the drink-up culture, of getting in as many as you could before the time ball rang. In Europe there has been no such restriction. Europeans have been much more relaxed about drinking, and don't have the same drink-up culture, although don't make the mistake that they aren't free of people who drink excessively. The relaxation of time limits paced on opening hours placed a lot of responsibility on young people's shoulders in controlling their drinking habits. I believe this will be a generational thing and it will pass through, and the next generation will gradually be more responsible, until the drink-up culture essentially disappears. BTW, I went in the Hobbit before it was the Hobbit. It wasn't that good a pub, as a lot aren't anyway. The pub improved after it was themed, but I only went in there a couple of times. There are better pubs around, IMO. It is entirely corporate and typical of the US to suddenly deny a pub the right to call itself what it has chosen to call itself for the last 20 years. In the past, Disney have denied small charities the chance to entertain impoverished children, using makeshift versions of their characters, simply because of copyright. They didn't look at the wider implications of their actions. Mind you, they managed to keep it out of the public eye, so I suppose they didn't care. And didn't Victoria Beckham cause trouble for Peterborough Utd, by contesting their right to call themselves the POSH..? I believe she was just about to have a go at P&O Cruises [Port Out, Starboard Home] before she realised they had more money than she had, and a better case too.
Some people seem to feel that you can't enjoy yourself unless you are drunk. It's like saying other people are not interesting, entertaining or funny unless your senses are dulled by drink. Mind you I've met a few people like that! I used to like a couple of drinks on a night out, but sadly as I've got older I can only manage one drink, hence my single glass of wine at SMS as a treat. Drink should be a pleasure and not something to sling down your neck as soon as possible. Quite a few fans miss part of the match at SMS in order to get drinks in...they act as if St Mary's is the only place that sells alcohol in Southampton. Don't get me wrong...I do love the fun loving nature of the British people and roll my eyes if someone says they don't drink, but it shouldn't spill over into vomiting and urinating in the street.
If people can't enjoy themselves unless they're drunk, then they are clearly unhappy with their lives. I would advise sorting out the problems that are making them unhappy so that they wouldn't have to drink themselves stupid to have a good time.
Are you capable of only caring about one thing at a time? There's a principle involved here that small businesses can't be bullied by massive corporations and their lawyers. Copyright law can downright petty sometimes and we need to take a stand.
If you're unhappy when you're sober then you're going to be an unhappy drunk. I'm perfectly happy when I'm sober, and drinking is one of many ways I can have a good time with my mates because it's fun and it feels good and it makes you think you're better at talking to women. A person should never rely on alcohol as a solution to their problems, but my relationship with booze is a very good one, basically because I'm not weak, I don't have an addictive personality and I have no time for moping about any problems I may have. Sometimes I may have a few too many and lose my ability to walk, talk or remain conscious, but it never leads to me pissing or vomiting in the street, or being a burden to society in any way, so what's the problem?
