 Trying to Avoid the Inevitable by Kenny Wetzel This is written with the hope that the problem confronting us all will be fully understood by those on both sides of the fence. It is in no way a threat of any kind, but rather an emergency appeal to the intelligence of everyone in an effort to avoid the inevitable. We could all share the guilt of a "Brother’s War" that anyway is caused by a lack of communication or one side getting what they want regardless of the total outcome. There is a way to keep peace and both sides happy, but only through the truth -- and the truth is what is and not what should be. Unfortunate or not, it is what we have and we only need to deal with it. The truth of this matter is that when you deny the American Public something they want you create crime. Prohibition proved that. Are we on the verge of instigating a comparable circumstance such as bootlegging, speakeasys, rot gin and other wrong-doings again? If you think for one second that smokers are going to stop because they are insulted or forbidden to smoke then the sword is really on your shoulders. People are going to gamble regardless of the odds. They could care less about the small percentage who wins. They are supplying a habit. Casinos are being built on Indian reservations and riverboats to furnish the demand. The public is going to drink and then worry about their liver later, and this vice has been directly linked to more accidents and deaths than World War II. Prostitution is the oldest business in the world. Television is full of phone sex advertisements. So what has all this got to do with second hand smoke? It has everything to do with it. Let me set the table right. I’m sure we all agree that second-hand smoke is uncomfortable for non-smokers and unhealthy for everyone. There I said it! I wish I had never started and hope that both young people and others never take up the habit. But what non-smokers must really consider is that like the other vices I mentioned, smoking is here to stay. Those who are fortunate enough to stop are very lucky indeed. When I started smoking in the 40’s it was the fad. I can’t remember anyone that didn’t smoke. Our President F.D.R. smoked so what could be wrong? It was indeed the style of the day and until a few years ago was accepted by one and all. It is a part of the life of those who indulge which started from innocent beginning. I even tried to quit once and my nerves went crazy and my blood pressure went up. I know I speak for all smokers when I say we are not looking for sympathy but rather empathy and the moral intelligence deserved by all human beings. We are all creatures of the universe and have a right to be here. Insulting, forbidding and trying to embarrass us is not the way. Understand the problem and right the ship on both sides. The solution is really quite easy if the bottom line is still justice and fairness for all Trust me when I say smokers are just as uncomfortable around non-smokers as they are us. I’m just as sure that everyone has some vice that is either hidden or uncontrollable. We all have faults that bother someone else. Airport, train, bus terminals and places of business and pleasure should provide comfortable well-ventilated areas where smokers could enjoy their pleasure. I can recall when innocent families were imprisoned in makeshift jails at a racetrack after the Pearl Harbor incident just because they looked Oriental. To be falsely accused of something and put on display is shameful and disgusting. An example of this 'witchhunt' rush to judgment happened at an airport where a young person said these very words "How come they stick us in this uncomfortable glass cage because we smoke and right across the aisle in a nice bar people are getting drunk? I guess it’s all about profit but I still think American has got its priorities screwed up." What do you tell the youth of America? Do you tell them we are being treated like lepers to teach us a lesson? I don’t think so! Airports and other places of business want our money but is that blood money? Some companies force employees that smoke to go out on parking lots to enjoy their pleasure but no doubt enjoy their vice inside where it’s nice and warm. They make gambling casinos and cocktail lounges comfortable and there is nothing wrong with that because we the people have a choice whether or not to participate. Our choosing is another part of progress and our right to exercise it. Not too long ago baby-sitters were only trusted family members. Nowadays people who seem to want the luxury of all material things allow strangers, agencies and daycare centers to formulate their children’s lives. Preachers used to praise the Lord in churches but now they use TV to increase their following and fatten the wallet. Do you really believe that the kids today can’t see the hypocritical kind of life pattern that is being justified by those who make the rules and laws? Answer me this one mockery of so-called justice. "Why is it when men talk dirty to women it is sexual harassment but when women talk dirty to men it is $5.95 a minutes?" Funny but sad! If the drum-beaters, holier-than-thous and protesters can accept the world and what is going on in it but look down their noses at the ones who smoke, then they really have something to hide. I’m sure almost everyone has taken prescribed or over-the-counter drugs before. So-called remedies take up 4-6 aisles at stores that sell them. Do I need to tell you any more? Markets and liquor stores make a profit and the government levies taxes on the sale of cigarettes or so-called poison. Go figure! I wonder what would happen if those self-appointed authorities cleaned up their own house before they tried to clean up the world? I’m positive that those women and men who protest abortions by laying in front of clinics would make the worst parents in the world. Living together (used to be called shacking-up), having babies out of wedlock and divorce (after taking vows for better or for worse) seems to be the style of the day. But smoking is a no-no! Go figure again! If they taxed pot they could probably pay off the National Debt. Do you know the odds on winning the lottery? Do you really believe Oswald shot Kennedy? Sure I’m on my soap-box because there is injustice in how things are done. The habit of smoking will go on regardless, and second-hand smoke can be avoided by those who are bothered by it but not by insulting those who choose to smoke. The logic involved I have tried to explain. If I have insulted any innocent people, I apologize but everyone should know the urgency of this plea because it is an effort to avoid the inevitable. In that case nobody will win because the spoils of victory at the expense of others is tarnished and worthless. Wake up America, because the ball is now in your court! © All rights reserved. Any responses can be sent care of: |