2008 Woodie Awards
Butt Out
Smokers need to be more considerate
Jeremy Worden
Issue date: 10/21/04 Section: Opinions
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Smoking. Many people smoke because smoking seems cool or hip. Other people smoke to relieve stress or lose weight. Personally, I think smoking is a nasty, disgusting habit that we can do without in our society and on our campus. However, people will choose to do what they want to do, so if you smoke I am not going to chastize you or judge you for doing so, but I will say something about how your choice affects the people around you who do not smoke.
One problem I have with many smokers is how careless they are while smoking. There have been many times when a smoker blows smoke or ashes from their cigarette on me and, needless to say, it is annoying. Also, why must smokers congregate right by the entrances of buildings? Every time I leave a building, there is a group of people smoking right by the door making it impossible to leave without having to walk through a cloud of smoke. Why should I have to smell like smoke because you like to smoke? Currently, the weather is not that bad, so would it be too much to ask for smokers to walk a few feet away from the door to smoke so other people can walk in and out of the building unimpeded? I cannot wait to see how far away people will smoke when it gets really cold outside. Are smokers going to stand inside and hold the cigarette out the door to smoke so they don't get too cold while other people squeeze by trying not to get ash or smoke on them? We will have to wait and see.
One of the biggest complaints people have with smokers is how careless they are when they are finished with their cigarettes. Now, I know a lot of smokers who actually throw their cigarettes away in the ashtrays, and I commend you for doing that. But, there are some smokers who just drop their butts on the ground.
If you walk on any sidewalk on campus and look down, you are bound to find at least one cigarette butt. There are even piles of half finished cigarettes on the ground by the ashtrays that have been provided for smokers all over campus. If you smoke a cigarette and carry it all the way to the ashtray would it kill you to spend an extra two seconds to dispose the butt in the ashtray where it belongs?
One problem I have with many smokers is how careless they are while smoking. There have been many times when a smoker blows smoke or ashes from their cigarette on me and, needless to say, it is annoying. Also, why must smokers congregate right by the entrances of buildings? Every time I leave a building, there is a group of people smoking right by the door making it impossible to leave without having to walk through a cloud of smoke. Why should I have to smell like smoke because you like to smoke? Currently, the weather is not that bad, so would it be too much to ask for smokers to walk a few feet away from the door to smoke so other people can walk in and out of the building unimpeded? I cannot wait to see how far away people will smoke when it gets really cold outside. Are smokers going to stand inside and hold the cigarette out the door to smoke so they don't get too cold while other people squeeze by trying not to get ash or smoke on them? We will have to wait and see.
One of the biggest complaints people have with smokers is how careless they are when they are finished with their cigarettes. Now, I know a lot of smokers who actually throw their cigarettes away in the ashtrays, and I commend you for doing that. But, there are some smokers who just drop their butts on the ground.
If you walk on any sidewalk on campus and look down, you are bound to find at least one cigarette butt. There are even piles of half finished cigarettes on the ground by the ashtrays that have been provided for smokers all over campus. If you smoke a cigarette and carry it all the way to the ashtray would it kill you to spend an extra two seconds to dispose the butt in the ashtray where it belongs?