THE closure of The Mermaid pub in Eggbuckland is another nail in the coffin of the British way of life.

In my view, we have allowed ourselves to become a fragmented society. Life principles that were once held up as truth have eroded. Others have decided how our lives will be, and we have been duped into following their vision. Many of our pubs and churches have closed. Many people now buy cheap alcohol and drink it at home. Others prefer to pay homage to DIY stores and garden centres on a Sunday, rather than go to church. Thousands of people are addicted to alcohol and drugs. There are more than 83,000 people in prison in England and Wales. Teenage pregnancy has soared. Abortion has soared. Many marriages don't last for more than three years. Hundreds of young men have been killed and maimed in Afghanistan. Life has seemingly become cheap. Recently, I visited someone who was in Derriford hospital and the place seemed busier than an airport. It made me think that surely someone should ask why so many people are ill? Many people no longer speak to their neighbours. Supermarkets have been built on the outskirts of towns and cities and people can go out of their front doors, get into their car and drive to a supermarket, get all their shopping and drive back home. They don't need to speak to anyone. I somehow think that this way of living has been intentionally designed to isolate people and keep them in their homes. Marketing gurus know that lonely people 'comfort buy'.

In the words of the Bob Dylan song, "the times they are a changing".

KEVIN ROCHE

Plymouth