***

WHAT a load of old cobblers about our national flag and the Beijing Olympics.

Surely if a Welsh athlete (sadly we don't have any local ones there) wants to fly our dragon flag they should be allowed to.
It's like saying they can't take a lucky pendant, lucky teddy bear or whatever into the fray.

It's absolute nonsense that the draconian rules imposed by the Chinese authorities mean that flags of any non-competing nation may be confiscated. Who says we're not competing. English Scottish and Welsh athletes are there representing us all.

Fans who refuse could be barred and athletes could even be disqualified from competing if they break the rules.

Good luck to them all anyway. Let's hope we can bring back a few more medals than our usual dismal haul for all the money injected into the games.

I suppose our TVs are about to be inundated with hours of coverage of some of the most bizarre "sports" for the next few weeks.
Oh well, it's only once every four years I suppose we might as well make the most of the spectacle.

***

AN old friend of mine, Dennis Duggan, has written to me explaining how the possibility of imposing an alcohol ban in the streets of Welshpool might cause gentle folk like himself a bit of a dilemma.

And I can understand what he means.

On the one hand trying to stamp out some of the more loutish drink-related behaviour seems a good thing, but what about enjoying a cool drink on a warm afternoon – not that there have been too many of late!

Dennis writes: "Many towns now have a ban, for obvious reasons, but I fear that such blanket laws – although introduced with good intentions – often have a detrimental effect on innocent citizens as well as their intended targets.

"My wife and I are pensioners, and lead innocent and blameless lives. It is not our habit to become blind drunk in public, thus instilling terror into hapless passers-by and causing problems for the boys and girls in blue.

"But one of our small pleasures is to take an occasional trip by motor coach to some pleasant destination, perhaps the seaside or a charming little inland town, and we prefer to take a light lunch with us. And what better liquid refreshment to accompany our modest repast than a bottle of wine? So picture an elderly couple, sitting quietly on a convenient bench while consuming their lunch along with a glass of vino. Hardly a threat to civilisation is it?

"But sometimes we are committing an offence, because we are drinking alcohol."

Let's hope any anti-drinking law is passed with some sensitivity.