To the Editor:
I am writing in response to a letter by Ben Hughes which appeared in the Sept. 13 issue of the East Tennessean. The subject Mr. Hughes addressed was smoking. I must confess, after reading Mr. Hughes’ letter, my emotions have been quite conflicted.
I am not sure whether to applaud Hughes’ good fortune . or to feel very sad for him. It seems that Hughes has indeed been fortunate that he has never had to personally witness a loved one who fell victim to the horrific illnesses and the eventual death which smoking causes. I cannot make that claim however, having lost my parents, an uncle, an aunt and my mother-in-law to the illnesses caused from smoking. Maybe he has never had to lay awake listening to a loved one cough and wheeze almost non-stop, gasping for breath or see them in tears after hearing they had terminal lung cancer.
Maybe he hasn’t yet been required to rush a loved one to the hospital in the throes of a heart attack, brought about by years of smoking which had damaged their heart and arterial system, only to have an emergency room technician inform him later that the loved one did not make it.
Obviously he is oblivious to those suffering from COPD (chronic emphysema), and cancer of the larynx all of which are the result of smoking or subjection to second-hand smoke. While other things such as exposure to radon gas or asbestos particles may cause lung cancer; the No. 1 cause remains cigarette smoke via firsthand or secondhand smoke.
To ridicule individuals who may suffer from some form of respiratory distress because they do not wish to have to fight their way through the clouds of smoke often found in front of the library and other buildings at ETSU is not only heartless, but displays a level of ignorance.
Perhaps, however, I should feel sad for Mr. Hughes? Perhaps his own smoking or exposure to secondhand smoke has begun his own demise. Perhaps hardening and shrinkage of arteries which supply much needed oxygen to the brain has begun to reduce Hughes’ ability to think clearly and logically. If this letter has failed to make a point, ETSU has established a policy on smoking which can be found in the Spectrum (Student Handbook).
– Respectfully, Daniel N. Gibson

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