Dear Editor,
I would first like to say, I am not a smoker nor do I plan on ever being one. But really, what is the big deal?
If people want to neglect Surgeon General warnings and smoke ’till their lungs fall out, that is their prerogative. So they’re banning tobacco across the nation, that’s no excuse for us to simply roll over and conform to their ways.
I know it’s for “health reasons.” Every time this topic is brought up someone talks about how violent their reactions to second-hand smoke are. I don’t know, maybe it’s just a noon class thing, but I have never seen these giant rolling clouds of death.
Do you think this ban is going to help anything? The best you can expect is to get people on edge and testy because they can’t get their fix. In case you have never attended high school, a ban doesn’t stop the smoking, just moves it to more private areas (like the restroom).
This is just another attempt to divert people’s attention away from the real issues, like the climbing gas prices or the new cost of parking permits.
They’re always ready to throw a stone at tobacco, which I find ironic. Every other debate, whether it is about abortion, the pledge of allegiance, gay marriage or gun control, the first thing people say is, “What would our forefathers do?” For those of you who haven’t taken History 2010, the majority of our forefathers were in fact tobacco farmers! Our country was founded on the plant, it’s more American than apple pie, baseball and Old Glory combined.
I’ll say it again, I am not a smoker, but I want to be able to live in a country where I have the freedom to choose to be.
– Christopher Johnson

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