Autism “locked in” stunt backfires

Looks like a Lithuanian women acted to get stunt cancelled. Good for her!

Mike the Psych's Blog

The Caudwell Children Charity (founded by phone millionaire John Caudwell) has abandoned its “Locked in for Autism” stunt after criticism from people on an online petition which said that it was offensive to suggest that’s how people with an autistic spectrum disorder had to live their lives.

Alexis Ragaliauskas has autism and set up the petition saying “It’s very dehumanising and insulting. Caudwell Children need to get with the times. They are saying autism is like being trapped in a box which is offensive – quite a lot of autistic people throughout history have been restrained and put in boxes”.

Tesco is a big supporter of such causes and a member of staff at the Burnley branch volunteered to stay in the glass box for 50 hours (see my post).

Tesco has now withdrawn its support for the stunt. Whether because of the petition or perhaps the…

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Craft Beer taking over the world?

Before I returned to Vilnius after a two-year gap my colleague Terry warned me that our hotel, The Shakespeare,  had changed its draught beer. He discovered on his solo trip last year that there was no more Svyturys Extra! He was not a happy man.

When we arrived this time I ordered a glass of the new beer, Raudonu Plytu (Red Bricks), and it wasn’t bad.

Interesting brick shaped beer mat with a whimsical; reference to the “hops wanting to do their best for you” on the back.

Turns out it’s brewed in Klaipeda at the Lighthouse brewery owned by Carlsberg. (NB Lighthouse = Svyturys). And the hotel still has Svyturys Baltas in bottles, which we also like, so not a totally lost cause.

Later in the week we went to our favourite steakhouse, Markus ir Ko, where they didn’t previously serve Svyturys, and we were also served with the Red Brick beer.

And wandering around town one of our previous haunts,the beer restaurant on Gedimino pr., which has changed names a couple of times, is now advertising itself as a craft beer venue.

Back home in my local Tesco there is now a range of craft beers, including one from America, which is surprisingly good (as I tend to think of American beer as watery and weak). I’ve tried a couple of them starting with the American Goose 312 wheat beer and the IPA and have just bought some to pass on to my colleague Terry.

We still like our Lithuanian beer when we can get it – often by circuitous routes and Polish shops.

Time for a bottle I think!