Dear Editor,
You are going to die. Today? Tomorrow? More likely. Maybe 10 years from now? Even more likely. So what gives with all the complaining about smoking?
The sad truth is that global warming is far more likely to kill you with a lightning bolt to your nether regions than one weekly puff of second hand smoke. I lived with my mother 18 years (a heavy smoker) and am so far no worse for the wear (granted I don’t have asthma).
That being said, those with asthma who have somehow survived this long with a case so severe that the aforementioned occurrence presents a monumental health hurdle, all I can say is … that sucks.
Maybe you can blame God for your bad genes. Pawning your shortcomings on others (whether they be under your control or not) is no way to coast through life! Robbing men and women of basic human dignities (such as not having to smoke in the rain) is the type of actions that get whole populations locked under faceless, half-baked tyranny (check out “Player Piano” by Kurt Vonnegut for more on the subject).
Smokers are not evil people, no more so than when you choose to drive your horribly inefficient SUV monster that guzzles gas and farts noxious fumes.
So now here’s when I say “Stop whining, you pansies” or something equally callous, but wait! I’ve had an epiphany mid-sentence. Keep it coming, it’s these puerile perversions of free press that keep me reading the East Tennessean!
– Ben HughesKickin’ Ass

Dear Editor,
I have a simple response to Guy Kramer’s article in the Viewpoint section of the newspaper.
Kramer speaks like he is on the front lines, and knows the whole story. If you are a member of the armed forces, I sure wish you would have made that clear. Otherwise, I wish you would simply keep your mouth shut, as it’s obvious you’re just using the East Tennessean as a means of spreading a liberal agenda.
None of what you say has any more credibility than the words of President Bush. Please, let’s wait and hear what General Petraeus has to say. I think everyone reading this already knows what you hope he says, and that is that we should pull out. Because any kind of success in Iraq is a defeat for the Democratic Party. You’re own House Whip made that clear on the record in an article that ran in the Washington Post back in July. James Clyburn (D-S.C.) said: “Many Democrats have anticipated that, at best, Petraeus and U.S. ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker would present a mixed analysis of the success of the current troop surge strategy, given continued violence in Baghdad. But of late there have been signs that the commander of U.S. forces might be preparing something more generally positive. Clyburn said that would be “a real big problem for us.” So please, if you want to be a defeatist, keep it away from the East Tennessean. I, as well as others, take pride in our nation, and wish for success.
– Josh Stanley

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