The Collegian Thursday, March 30
Opinion
Letters to the editor
Rob Misuses
Word 'Beg'
Dear Rob,
In response to it's a white
world after all, I have this to say:
Your choice of the word "beg"
regarding government aid should
be demeaning to all, liberal or
consevative. First, all people
receiving government money are
consumers, so business gets that
Non-Smokers Empathize
With Smoker's Plight
Dear editor,
With an effective date of April
Ist, it would be tempting to
dismiss Behrend's new smoking
policy as an elaborate April
Fool's joke. It is not. However,
along the way it has made a joke
out of some cherished American
principles such as tolerance and
freedom of choice.
The decision - by the - powers
that be in their ivory towers to
ban smoking in all indoor areas
has been undertaken, ostensibly,
in defense - of the public health.
We applaud their concern, public
health should always be of the
highest priority. Furthermore, we
agree that second hand smoke is,
in fact, a proven risk to the
public health, and indeed we also
agree that non-smokers have
every right to be protected from
this risk. This new policy
certainly accomplishes that but
along the way it tramples on the
American citizen's right to freely
pursue a legal activity.
The real question here is
whether a total ban on indoor
smoking is necessary to
accomplish the goal of this
policy. Our grotp, Penn State
Students on Smoking Policy (we
are non-smokers) believes it is
not. A room with proper exhaust
ventilation, which could be used
by smokers, would accomplish
the same end wihtout creating the
spectacle of friends and
classmates huddled together out
in the cold rain and snow every
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government money. So,
conservatives, no need to
dehumanize here. Secondly, with
choice words like "beg", it's no
wonder some people feel
intimidated by their needs. So,
"liberals" relying on aid for and
education, don't forget the Lion's
Pride!
Becki Salibrici
time they want a cigarette. if we
can ventilate a chemistry lab then
this challenge should be easily
met.
We think that this suggestion
would make for a reasonable
compromise, one that protects
the rights of both sides of this
emerging controversy. Since the
time of our forefathers,
Americans have- sought
harmonious solutions to
polarizing issues. through
compromise... those responsible
for this decree have yet to make
that effort. We urge them to do
so.
Without an honest and sincere
attempt to find a reasonable
meddle ground, this policy
becomes increasingly difficult to
stomach as having been adopted
solely for the purpose of
protecting the public health.
Rather, it would appear, in what
has sadly become a mark of the
80's, that this is nothing more
than another attempt to impose
personal morality on others; in
this case masquerading as a
public health issue.
If the leaders of this university
are seen as rigid autocrats
zealously pursuing a hidden
agenda then the last laugh might
just be on them. There is no
more time for jokes. Let's find a
fair, mutually acceptable solution
to this serious problem now.
Sincerely,
Lyman D. Hunt
Kim Bender
April 3rd Fools
by Rob Prindle
I like salt a lot. I like salty, greasy wings
with a passion. Buffalo style, hot, screamers,
butter and garlic. I like deep fried, fat-filled, artery
hardening unhealthy wings and they are killing
me.
I also like beer. The alcohol is rotting my
body and the beer itself is making me fat. I like
things that hurt me. I am a true masochist. I
would fight to the death to preserve my right to
kill myself with alcohol, fat and salt.
As I write this article I can look at my left
hand and see the KR insignia that has branded
me. With that stamp of black ink, which I
purchased for $3.75 at the King's Rook Club, I
was entitled to graze to my hearts content and
demise at the all-you-can-scarf wing and greasy
pizza bonanza. Yahoo. The beer was extra, of
course.
I also believe that I should be able to smoke.
I believe that any time I want to puff gm a
cigarette, I mean a real powerful cigarette like
Camels or Marlboro, I should be able to. You
would never catch me puffing on a cigarette with
a flower on it. And you would never catch me
with that low tar, extra filter, pansy-type
garbage. When I want a cigarette, I want a real
cigarette.
Camels are my brand of choice. Something,
in maybe a former life, draws me to that
smoking camel mascot. 75 going on 76 years
and still smoking. That slogan never fooled me. I
know that they are trying to imply that people
can smoke those tar machines for a long time
without having a problem. That sounds like crud
to me. I am not a patient man. I want immediate
results. I know that with a good pack of Camels
I can turn my lungs black in a matter of hours
and I appreciate that. Quick and now.
We live in a fast-paced world. We
also live in a world which is not
very understanding. Can you
believe that on April 3rd Penn State
is going to take away our right to
smoke in most campus buildin ss?
We live in a fast-paced world. We also live in
a world which is not very understanding. Can
you believe that on April 3rd, Penn State is
going to take away our right to smoke in most
campus buildings? No way. Say it ain't so Rob.
Sad but true. Where is the human compassion?
Before I get any deeper into this I should
explain why I like to smoke. Three of the people
that I admire most smoke, and they smoke very
well. My father also smoked, but he died of
smoking-related heart disease when I was 6, so I
really didn't know him well enough to respect
him. - My mother also smoked - all the time.
When I was sick, when I told her how hard it was
for me to breath when she smoked, when all of
my grandparents and her husband died of some
form of smoke-related cancer or heart illness and I
feared for her life, she still smoked.
But let me get back to those people I admire.
The first is easy. Mr. David - Late Night -
Letterman. He smokes cigars on national TV
every night. The man is a comic genius, and he
smokes.
The second is a teacher from high school who
was very influential in my life. Mr. Swabb was
and is a teacher who likes to teach. His English
classes were the high points of my high school
Love Rob
Rob Prindle
career. He is a nice guy and a great teacher and he
smokes. He is a positive role model in most
ways.
The third is a Female professor here at
Behrend. An outstanding and gifted teacher and a
widely-published author. She has a doctorate. She
also, of course, smokes.
So, I gave in. Everyone smokes. And why
shouldn't they? They are only hurting
themselves, right? Unless that crap about second
hand smoke is true. Unless there are many people
with allergies to cigarette smoke. Unless pre
born babies really are affected by the drug
nicotine. Unless the people they leave behind
when they die are really hurt.
So, maybe smoking doesn't hurt anyone but
the smoker. I know that killer chicken wings
don't hurt anyone but me. I do have to admit that
the smoke from the burning end of a cigarette
does leave quite a cloud, and people do have to
walk through it. People generally are not forced
to eat chicken wings, but I have been forced to
eat smoke all my life. That is probably the main
reason I like to smoke. If I am going to be killed
by smoke, at least I should have some control
over it.
People aren't allowed to drink alcohol in
public, they usually go to bars. That system
works fairly wall. Maybe smokers at Behrend
could help me out and start a smoker's bar. That
way I could always spend my weekends bellying
up to the bar and buying my friends rounds of
Camels. Maybe even doing shots of nicotine.
Well that is all just a happy dream. I really
fear that smoking might become so socially
unpopular that I might have to stop. God, I sure
hope it never comes to that, even though I really
don't smoke very much. My life would be a
waste if I couldn't leave my mark on this world
by showing some children, who look up to me,
that they too can become smokers.
~~~
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