Tim Worstall

Banticipation

In the comments on yesterday’s piece. Mike Medina of St. Albans carries on with the task of expanding the language:

I’ve thought of a possible new parlour game – Banticipation – in which contestants are invited to guess what’s going to be next.

An excellent neologism, don’t you think? Lessee, the BMA has discussed the banning of drinking in public, the serving of more than two drinks to an individual in one visit to a pub, the CRE a Tintin book (and if that goes, where Huck Finn, with the reference to "nigger"?…which is as everyone should know, one of the great anti-racist scenes in American literature), well, anyone got more candidates?

Banticipation played in the comments section?

In

27 responses

  1. Tristan Mills Avatar
    Tristan Mills

    Smoking in your own home if you have children.
    Trans fats (whatever they are) – they like banning them in the US, not much longer until they are here.
    The Dam Busters due to the dog being called Nigger (already censored by ITV at least).

    Reply
  2. ph Avatar
    ph

    blogs that take the piss out of people who want to ban stuff?

    Reply
  3. john b Avatar
    john b

    Tim’s original thought has been done:
    http://www.amazon.com/Day-They-Came-Arrest-Book/dp/0440918146
    (while the book centres on the use of the n-word in Huck Finn, its most amusing ‘idiot censors’ scene is when the librarian heroine points out there are scenes of rape and appalling cruelty in the Bible as well – so the craven school principal tears the relevant pages out…)
    Tim adds: Not sure that I’d try to claim the Huck Finn one as original….but good to see that it has been done.

    Reply
  4. Neil Avatar
    Neil

    Tim Worstall will call for something that people enjoy to be abolished, on account of the way it is funded?

    Reply
  5. Mark Wadsworth Avatar
    Mark Wadsworth

    I think it’s important to concentrate on things that many find enjoyable and don’t really harm anybody else, e.g. hunting and fishing, smoking at home or in your car, cheap flights, pornography, eating sticky buns or meat, listening to an MP3 player with headphones, drinking alcohol (whether in public or at home), competitive sports, being filthy rich, Tintin books, Enid Blyton books, using swear words etc. BUT of course all of these things are either bad for you, offensive to a pruirent minority or they are just not PC or “green”.
    That’s why they banned foxhunting (but not halal slaughter), playing conkers, smoking in pubs etc.

    Reply
  6. dearieme Avatar
    dearieme

    Boxing

    Reply
  7. Mark Wadsworth Avatar
    Mark Wadsworth

    Violent computer games.

    Reply
  8. Mark Wadsworth Avatar
    Mark Wadsworth

    Scantily clad women in advertisements and size-zero models.

    Reply
  9. Neil Avatar
    Neil

    The BBC
    Tim adds: Who would want to ban the BBC? Sell it though…..

    Reply
  10. Neil Avatar
    Neil

    Public transport.

    Reply
  11. Neil Avatar
    Neil

    Planning regulations.

    Reply
  12. Mark Wadsworth Avatar
    Mark Wadsworth

    Neil, are you being ironic or have you not quite understood the rules of the game?

    Reply
  13. Neil Avatar
    Neil

    It’s things people want, but ‘they’ would like to see banned, right?
    Have I got the wrong end of the stick?

    Reply
  14. chris strange Avatar
    chris strange

    Porn

    Reply
  15. John Hargreaves Avatar
    John Hargreaves

    Sports cars that go over 100 mph. I think I read some MEP positing that yesterday.

    Reply
  16. Mark Wadsworth Avatar
    Mark Wadsworth

    Plastic bags, disposable nappies, patio heaters, gas fires, bonfires, loudspeakers with more than 20 watts output (unless installed into small hatchbacks with blacked out windows and driven round residential areas late at night), horse riding and tumble driers.

    Reply
  17. Avana Beach Avatar
    Avana Beach

    Political Blogging
    …and I wish that I thought that this was really a joke

    Reply
  18. Mark Wadsworth Avatar
    Mark Wadsworth

    Watering your lawn, washing your car, motor racing and tanning salons.

    Reply
  19. Neil Avatar
    Neil

    “Who would want to ban the BBC? Sell it though.”
    On account of Tim Worstall objecting to the way it is funded. He knows best.

    Reply
  20. Mark Wadsworth Avatar
    Mark Wadsworth

    Having children.

    Reply
  21. Devil's Kitchen Avatar
    Devil’s Kitchen

    Banning children again.
    DK

    Reply
  22. Mark Wadsworth Avatar
    Mark Wadsworth

    Water skiing (if they haven’t done that already). Dogs in urban areas.

    Reply
  23. Mark Wadsworth Avatar
    Mark Wadsworth

    DK, crikey, that Neil Harding knows how to hit the nail on the thumb. Was there ever a point he didn’t miss?

    Reply
  24. Roger Thornhill Avatar
    Roger Thornhill

    Banning councillors voting on something they care about? No, done.
    Banning habeas corpus? Almost
    Banning England? Almost
    Building cars that are beautiful? Done.
    Banning protests by MEPs about EU corruption? Done it.
    Grief! This is like being Dr Evil coming out of Cryogenic Stasis and trying to hatch an e-vil plot to get $1m, er, no $1bln in extortion.
    How about “Banopoly”, a game where you have local authorities, not streets, Government Departments, not Utilities. Railways remain (ha). You build Quangos, not properties, in the authorities you own (I am not kidding) and fine people who land, not charging rent.
    “Community Chest” will have a card – “Get out of Jail Free due to overcrowding”.

    Reply
  25. Mark Wadsworth Avatar
    Mark Wadsworth

    Plastic bags.

    Reply
  26. Joe Otten Avatar
    Joe Otten

    If all this drives you to leave the country, is that banishment?

    Reply
  27. Penny Southwell Avatar
    Penny Southwell

    SEX – in a bid to reduce the population, save the world from global warming and reduce the cost on the NHS of abortions. SEX will be banned by 2010

    Reply

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