We must expect this coalition of crusty tories and sandal wearing loonies to be the most intensely puritanical of the post-war era, and the signs on that are already clear. Clampdowns on drinking will worsen, there will be no letup- and probably intensification- of the persecution of smokers. Censorship will intensify as well, to protect the children of course.

Anyone who thinks getting rid of Labour is some kind of victory for liberty is in cloud cuckoo land.

Yeah, no ID cards. We’ve been saved from one new tyranny. The old ones will continue, and get worse. It’s the fight for beer and skittles that matters, as it always has.

Sorry to hear you have a fever.

If you’re on £22k a year, it’s not easy to make ends meet, even before taxes (speaking as someone who moved from Yorkshire to London to start earning just below that wage) a few years ago.

I’m also a bit worried that you were on some absurd tax code – you should have been on about £17k or so after tax and NI – so you’ve lost £6k down the back of the sofa somewhere!

Millsy, by economically free I mean everything from manipulating behaviours through sin taxes, to the really big issue of the State consuming such vast quantities of the nation’s wealth and output. When I was on 22k a year nearly half my income was being taken in taxes and being spent for me. That’s not economic freedom – quite the opposite. It’s a much bigger topic than I have space to cover in this post today though.

I probably shouldn’t write while I’ve got a fever, to be honest. Can’t be sure how much sense I’m making.

I want my freedom back and will continue to do so until I actually have it. Not a promise of it someday or an inquiry or committee into it, but actually getting it back. Thus far, sure, the noise is good but the delivery is nil.

I thought libitarians where#nt supposed to ask for the goverment to protect them, but allow the free market to work.

The digital economy act does matter, it’s basicly giving people legal rights to monitor your communications (how else can it be enforced).

(excuse my drunken spelling)

These stories will become more and more prevalent and either Facebook rolls with the punches and changes, or people will vote with their feet.

Your post says the battle for civil liberties is mostly won (depending on what this coalition actually does) and go on to say that the battle for economic liberty has barely started.

Then you got side-tracked. What do you mean by economically free?