Living among the ashes
The ostracism of America's smokers
Alissa Wisniewski
Issue date: 9/25/07 Section: Opinion
- Page 1 of 2 next >
VIEWPOINT
Alissa Wisniewski
Smokers are people too.
This thought was floating through my mind as I finished the three-minute trek to the smoking area where I work.
Three minutes you say? Doesn't sound so bad.
It's three minutes there and three minutes back, which takes six minutes off my ten-minute break, giving me four minutes to inhale a cigarette at lightning speed before I'm late and have to rake out the drains as punishment.
I work at an organic health food store that recently moved the smoking area from its former, convenient location at the corner flower shop to directly behind my store, six doors down.
Smoking seems to be the new leprosy, a socially unacceptable affliction that's gradually being pushed into the shadows. This ostracism of smokers extends beyond my place of employment and to the streets of El Cajon where a new smoking policy has been passed, basically forbidding smokers from tainting the fresh air of busy streets or restaurant patios.
If that isn't bad enough, now City College is going to implement the campus smoking ban, passed last semester.
One of the most enticing aspects of collegiate life is that as adults, we, the students, are able to smoke on campus; had we been able to do so in high school, I probably would've gone more.
Another form of discrimination towards smokers is the outrageous taxes placed on a pack of cigarettes in some states. In New York City, a single pack costs around $7.50. Thank God the initiative proposing similar tax increases in California didn't pass because I might have had to pick up a second job.
As another way to appease the non-smokers, NYC forces manufacturers to use the more expensive, quick-burning cigarette paper on products being shipped there. While this can be irritating for a smoker on a windy day in the city, it's not intolerable. It's a perfect compromise! California should consider a method like this one, instead of banning it outright. It's better for the environment, decreases second-hand smoke and blah blah blah ... whatever makes those non-smokers happy.
Alissa Wisniewski
Smokers are people too.
This thought was floating through my mind as I finished the three-minute trek to the smoking area where I work.
Three minutes you say? Doesn't sound so bad.
It's three minutes there and three minutes back, which takes six minutes off my ten-minute break, giving me four minutes to inhale a cigarette at lightning speed before I'm late and have to rake out the drains as punishment.
I work at an organic health food store that recently moved the smoking area from its former, convenient location at the corner flower shop to directly behind my store, six doors down.
Smoking seems to be the new leprosy, a socially unacceptable affliction that's gradually being pushed into the shadows. This ostracism of smokers extends beyond my place of employment and to the streets of El Cajon where a new smoking policy has been passed, basically forbidding smokers from tainting the fresh air of busy streets or restaurant patios.
If that isn't bad enough, now City College is going to implement the campus smoking ban, passed last semester.
One of the most enticing aspects of collegiate life is that as adults, we, the students, are able to smoke on campus; had we been able to do so in high school, I probably would've gone more.
Another form of discrimination towards smokers is the outrageous taxes placed on a pack of cigarettes in some states. In New York City, a single pack costs around $7.50. Thank God the initiative proposing similar tax increases in California didn't pass because I might have had to pick up a second job.
As another way to appease the non-smokers, NYC forces manufacturers to use the more expensive, quick-burning cigarette paper on products being shipped there. While this can be irritating for a smoker on a windy day in the city, it's not intolerable. It's a perfect compromise! California should consider a method like this one, instead of banning it outright. It's better for the environment, decreases second-hand smoke and blah blah blah ... whatever makes those non-smokers happy.
Be the first to comment on this story