The National Smokers' Convention

Yeah, I attended The National Smokers' Convention last night. I went to a friend's place and out of ten people (including myself), I was the only non-smoker there. Even a gal with asthma was smoking.

Smoking has been banned in public places in Lincoln, Nebraska and they're attempting to do the same thing in Omaha. So, smokers are ticked and there are even silly commercials appearing on television dealing with the potential ban. I saw one two nights ago that stated a high percentage of people die in their sleep, so, are we going to ban sleep? Yeah, I get what they're trying to say. If people can die in their sleep or by smoking, then why does it make sense to ban one, but not the other? A friend of mine said it brought up a good point. Not exactly. It's a very desperate attempt by smokers to hang on to those beautiful cancer sticks. Why doesn't it bring up a good point? Sleeping is an essential component to a human being's life. One needs rest in order to survive. One does not need smoking to survive. If a person is working too much, a doctor might say to try and cut the hours down some, so they can get better sleep and can therefore function better at work. The doctor will never say, "Well, I think I know what the problem is. Here's my prescription. Marlboro lights. Smoke about a pack a day and this is good for a month. Once that time occurs, get back to me and we'll see how you're progressing." No, that's not going to happen. Also, I've heard of a lot of things that cause cancer, but when's the last time that you heard of sleep causing cancer? To the throat? lungs? mouth? "Oh, that's what we call sleep cancer. If you get more than a couple hours in a given night, then you'll be more prone to getting this type of cancer." Also, people who die in their sleep usually do so at an old age. These things typically don't happen to people in their teens or twenties. So, again, that commercial brought forth a very weak argument. But, smokers won't see it that way. They'll just nod and smile in unison like they've just thought up the theory of relativity.

How much does one need to smoke? The people I hung out with last night were smoking all night. Are cigarettes like clothing for some of these people? They feel naked anywhere they go without cigarettes being nearby? That's worse than alcoholics. What, do they carry shot glasses with them everywhere they go? They wear those khakis with 5-10 pockets and a shot glass in every pocket? Many of these people complain about not having any money. Gee, I wonder why. With gas prices being what they are, being packs and packs of cigarettes on a weekly (daily for some) basis can't be helping matters any. Are some of these people still in the "smoking is cool" stage in life? Because everyone else (besides me) was doing it, they felt more compelled to smoke?

Smoking in one's own home, if they so choose to do so, is fine with me, but why endanger others to second-hand smoke in public restaurants and such places? Why not even have the courtesy to ask someone like myself if it'll bother me before they light up? They complain that they're losing their rights. Smoking will never been permanently banned. Too much money would be lost. But, let me ask them this. If public places allowed skunks inside, and these skunks weren't sweet like Flower from "Bambi," would they complain about skunk spray in public places? Would they get sick and tired of taking a couple hours to get ready for a night out at a bar, go inside for 5 minutes, and walk out wreaking like smoke? It gets very old. What gets even older is their weak arguments about their disgusting habit. Yeah, we should ban sleeping, just as we should ban living, because 100% of people who live die. Although, they may be in favor of that weak argument. With how often they light up those cancer sticks, it's obvious to me that they don't truly respect their lives or those around them.