Quote of the day

"In miniature, Sajid Javid’s approval of touts is part of the same ideology that sees every available inch of public life exploited for profit, every transaction monetised at every possible point, from energy to entertainment, often at the expense of those least able to afford the surcharges. How can Javid legitimise touts, making access to the arts prohibitively expensive for many, and yet also be the culture secretary responsible for the simple act of getting people through the doors to see stuff? It’s Orwellian doublethink that is beyond mockery."

I might as well just face facts and automatically link to every single column Stewart Lee ever writes for the Guardian. His latest - focusing on ticket touts (or "Secondary Ticketing Agents", as they'd prefer to be called) - is yet another that not only deserves but actually demands as wide a readership as possible.

Objecting to touting does not make you a "champagne socialist" - it makes you someone with a basic sense of ethical decency. But then how could we expect the present Tory government, without a moral compass between the lot of them, to understand that? The fact that touting is not only not illegal but actively endorsed by them is just another reason to hate the horrible bunch of bastards.

(Thanks to Jen for the link.)