It’s all about CONTROL (or the lack thereof).

[BlackVelvet04]

Have you ever wondered who first made second hand smoke a big issue? Or why?

I’m not sure of the who of the matter but I feel fairly confident of the why. It’s (pardon the pun) SMOKE & MIRRORS.

We have polluted skies because of big industry and automobile emissions that turn otherwise beautiful cities into smog filled nightmares. I grew up in a small town 15 miles from a neighboring town who is host to a paper mill. The air quality is so bad that a film of ash is left on cars, houses, everything in site and the inhabitants of said town breath this in on a daily basis. The local river, which could be a thing of beauty, is nothing but a sewer for the paper mill.

Our food supply is not failsafe as evidenced by the recent salmonella problem with lettuce and spinach. Our water supply is often not fit to drink causing many people to purchase bottled water. Our water supply has chlorine and fluoride in it, chemicals that nobody truly knows are safe for ingestion.

Quite frequently we hear of drug recalls but only after many people have been made ill or killed by the drug that big industry convinced us and our doctors that we need.

I could go on and on about insecure ports, nuclear proliferation, etc. but I won’t. The question is WHY have second hand smoke and to a bit of a lesser degree, gun control, become the liberal battles of choice?

My conclusion is our fellow liberals have harped on these two issues because they feel so impotent against the true abusers of their health. Being unable to rein in big business they have turned on their fellow American citizens to try and CONTROL something while giving big industry a pass.

Doctors, legislators and the media know of all the other huge dangers but choose to make little ado about them. Why? MONEY

So, keep being the stooges of big business and the media, and while you think you have made your life a tad bitter safer the biggest problems go unaddressed. On top of that you have LOST supporters for those bigger and more important issues.

[Demeter]

1. Second Hand Smoke Makes Me Sick

The hours of pain and illness I have suffered, the pounds of antibiotics for sinus infections, the fact that once I left smoke-filled environments, the problem went away, and my mother dying of smoking related cancer at the young age of 63 (cutting 30 years off her life); no, it's not about CONTROL in the terms you are thinking, it's about quality of life for all.

If you are an addict, get over it. Do something good for yourself, your loved ones, and your country.
Even as she was dying, my mother admitted she would never be over her addiction. Try, for your sake, and for all of us.

[BlackVelvet04]

2. You proved my point beautifully......

with your statement, get over it. Nor did you address the real issue.

[Dora]

4. self-delete.

Never mind. Let's all duke it out, shall we? Last man standing loses.

[NoBushSpokenHere]

8. ROFLMAO @ duking it out... I am ready...

Lookout Friday...

I really hope no one gets in my face about ANYTHING that day!

[RaleighNCDUer]

5. I think you are ignoring the real issue. For a sizeable minority

of the population, 2nd hand smoke is a serious health issue. Just because it is not YOUR issue it doesn't mean it is not valid.

And while there is major corporate pollution going on, it doesn't make this any less valid as a pollution issue.

[madmom]

3. I whole-heartedly agree with you here, I used to be a smoker and

quit for my health, I surely don't mind if others smoke, just don't make me inhale your addiction. I also think we should make a big stink (pun intended) about people who have to take a bath in their cologne. When you have asthma this is a BIG deal. I once had to leave a restaurant, food half eaten because the lady(?) at the next table had on so much cologne that my food tasted like it. Should I have had to pay the bill? I think not, but I did and left, still hungry. I was always told if you can smell your own cologne, you have on to much, it's supposed to be just a hint of fragrance not the stench of cover-up.:rant: :banghead:

[BlackVelvet04]

7. Do you propose a law to outlaw cologne?

No? Why not?

[madmom]

9. no, but maybe a little sensitivity training maybe, how about an

odor meter on every door, hell I don't know, but I do know I shouldn't have to pay for a meal I couldn't eat, or suffer from asthma attacks because someone can't control their "splash". This was a Pizza Hut for crying out loud, how dressed up do you need to be?

[lyonn]

6. The biggest polluters of our little world Is Big Business

Smoking cigs is polluting, but, its polluting affects have been diminished for the masses in restaurants, offices, etc. My house is smoky! I'm the polluter, not proud, just weak.

But the old energy companies that do not use proper filters (?), along with all the other corp. abusers of our rivers, air and soil pretty much get a free pass, kept in business due to being grandfathered in and never tearing down the old and replacing them. We will all pay in the end for neglecting this problem. For instance, old power plants will fail and this will be costly, like when the East coast, not long ago, had days of power outage. Did we ever really find out the cause?

You made an excellent point.