Midweek rant: Why pander to smokers? Just “cough up” 2,000 baht and don’t come back

[DM07]

54 minutes ago, GarryP said:

I am shocked, truly shocked. I was certain that the writer of the OP would be torn a new bumhole by the TVF brigade for daring to suggest that smoking be banned.  

Let me, please....

 

I am not a smoker myself- except when I am pissed out of my mind!

But I really couldn't care less, if someone smokes on a beach!

I have a lot of smokers among my friends and whenever they go to the beach, they an empty shell, a waterbottle, a coke- can...to dispose of their cigarette- buds.

These guys are less of hazard to the environment, than the guys who rant or rave about them and then go home in their overpowered vehicles, take 7 plastic bags for 8 items at TOPS or do other hazardous stuff!

The anti- smoking - hysteria is just grotesque!

Back in the old country I was at an (semi) open air- train station.

There was a yellow square, painted on the ground- the designated smoking area!

It has become silly to a point, that I find non- tolerable anymore!

In an contained environment, like a restaurant, you ban smoking?

Fine!

Even in bars, I am not against it! (Not really for it either, though!)

But on a beach!?

Get a live, for heavens sake!

[nausea]

I suspect Rooster might be an ex-smoker.

[dcnx]

3 hours ago, schlog said:

Let every man seek heaven in his own fashion.

We don't need more nanny state excesses here!

So then you don't mind if I spray your face with mace / pepper spray as soon as you light up?

 

Because we don't want a nanny state here. We should all be allowed to do as we wish.

[Kieran00001]

1 hour ago, car720 said:

Cannabis has now officially been shown to cure cancer.  Should cancer patients stop smoking too?  Would you tell Winston Churchill not to smoke cigars?  

The question I always ask is this:  If any substance is proven, key word  proven, to cause death then the selling of it constitutes the crime of murder.  So why is it still sold?  Quite simply because they cannot offer proof that it kills, only that it is statistically associated with people who die certain deaths.

I am not advocating smoking but I am ever against taking away freedom of choice simply to satisfy the vocal minority.  99% of this rant doesn't stand up or as they say, this dog don't hunt.

 

"Cannabis has now officially been shown to cure cancer."

 

No, it hasn't.

[Krataiboy]

Referendum.

[ThaiFelix]

Whenever I hear someone vociferously go out of their way to rant and rave about something I am always reminded of FBI founder J. Edgar Hoover.    Hoover was always voicing his strong opinions against gays and negros and yet it was found that as well as having negroid ancestors he was in a homosexual relationship with Clyde Tolson and like to wear bras, wigs, and fishnet stockings in private!!?? 

[car720]

1 hour ago, Kieran00001 said:

 

"Cannabis has now officially been shown to cure cancer."

 

No, it hasn't.

Yes it has.

[car720]

1 hour ago, Kieran00001 said:

 

"Cannabis has now officially been shown to cure cancer."

 

No, it hasn't.

• A laboratory study of delta-9-THC in hepatocellular carcinoma (liver cancer) cells showed that it damaged or killed the cancer cells. The same study of delta-9-THC in mouse models of liver cancer showed that it had antitumor effects. Delta-9-THC has been shown to cause these effects by acting on molecules that may also be found in non-small cell lung cancer cells and breast cancer cells.

[Kieran00001]

18 minutes ago, car720 said:

• A laboratory study of delta-9-THC in hepatocellular carcinoma (liver cancer) cells showed that it damaged or killed the cancer cells. The same study of delta-9-THC in mouse models of liver cancer showed that it had antitumor effects. Delta-9-THC has been shown to cause these effects by acting on molecules that may also be found in non-small cell lung cancer cells and breast cancer cells.

 

Oh, I thought when you said "cure cancer" you meant cure cancer, not that there are laboratory studies showing that cannabis can reduce the number of cancerous cells in a petri dish or show some reduction in the onset of cancer in mice.  Nothing you have posted claims to have found a cure for cancer.

[4MyEgo]

What about the restaurants that allow the farangs to smoke, just as my meal arrives, the ones that have lost this non-smokers business 555

 

Edited October 20, 2017 by 4MyEgo

[Nurseynutcase]

AS the OP is so anti-smoking perhaps he should consider moving to a less tolerant country?  Or maybe buying his own island.  Could consider a crowdfund page for this.

 

I spend over 1m baht per year in this country so if I left due to an outright smoking ban I am sure many other would follow.  This would have a serious effect on the economy of the whole country.

 

We are all entitled to our opinions and this forum is a great place to air them

 

However such a rant as this shows a lack of tolerance towards what others see as an enjoyment.  I hope I never have the misfortune to meet this individual.

 

Oh, wait a minute that won't happen - I smoke!!!!

[natway09]

Mr Rooster is just having a bad day!!!

[transam]

6 hours ago, Orton Rd said:

Smokers are weak minded, dirty drug addicts no better than other substance abusers

That is a daft post......

Edited October 20, 2017 by transam

[JGV]

As an ex smoker I know it is tough to quit but instead of all this fining why not set up a group to encourage people to quit like AA Most want to quit They just need help

[CG1 Blue]

I remember as a youngster before I was a smoker, the smell of tobacco smoke was actually quite nice.  In fact I'd say the smell of tobacco smoke outside is much nicer than inhaling the stuff. And on a big open air beach what are the chances of getting more than a faint whiff of smoke?

 

I can only imagine the OP has other issues in his life to make him so unhappy and intolerant.

 

I would suggest they rope off an area on the beach for over-sensitive snowflakes like the OP to sit and fester, while trying to think of something else to moan about.

Edited October 20, 2017 by CG1 Blue

[mrfill]

9 hours ago, jaltsc said:

"Why give these people anywhere to smoke at all...?

 

Along with alcohol, these two legal substances are responsible for more deaths than all the illegal substances combined. Tobacco has the added danger, through second hand smoke, of affecting people who don't even choose to imbibe in it. Yet, governments makes billions of (name any currency) off them in taxes. Basically, the governments are the biggest dealers in deadly substances in the world, and yet have the audacity to hunt, arrest, sentence, and in some countries, execute those doing the same thing. Prohibitions on substances need to be based on the amount of danger they pose to the general public, and not on what a government deems to be legal. 

I wonder how many times people have been threatened violently by someone who has just had half a dozen Marlboro or if anyone can recall the thousands of road deaths caused by smoking drivers. It is relatively easy to avoid a violent drunk, just as it is to avoid a smoker. Not so easy to know who is dangerously drunk when driving though. Get the priorities right.

[tryasimight]

Why not smoke in restaurants?  You expect me to go outside and breathe the smog? Can be hazardous to my health!!

[travelingman1959]

I wonder how many times people have been threatened violently by someone who has just had half a dozen Marlboro or if anyone can recall the thousands of road deaths caused by smoking drivers. It is relatively easy to avoid a violent drunk, just as it is to avoid a smoker. Not so easy to know who is dangerously drunk when driving though. Get the priorities right.

People who don't smoke think they are much better then smokers.at the end of the day when you have had a nice gallon off leo and 20tabs you cudant give a monkeys toss about the wingers could you .the only answer is let them winge and they might go away

Sent from my MediaPad T1 8.0 Pro using Tapatalk

[pattayadon]

8 hours ago, car720 said:

Cannabis has now officially been shown to cure cancer.  Should cancer patients stop smoking too?  Would you tell Winston Churchill not to smoke cigars?  

The question I always ask is this:  If any substance is proven, key word  proven, to cause death then the selling of it constitutes the crime of murder.  So why is it still sold?  Quite simply because they cannot offer proof that it kills, only that it is statistically associated with people who die certain deaths.

I am not advocating smoking but I am ever against taking away freedom of choice simply to satisfy the vocal minority.  99% of this rant doesn't stand up or as they say, this dog don't hunt.

You ARE advocating smoking!!!  Quit making lame excuses for yourself and other smokers.  Wake up my friend, It's 2017!

[MyFriend You]

8 hours ago, Kieran00001 said:

 

"Cannabis has now officially been shown to cure cancer."

 

No, it hasn't.

Right just take a look at Country Music Star Willy Nelson

[Kieran00001]

3 hours ago, TunnelRat69 said:

Right just take a look at Country Music Star Willy Nelson

 

What for?

[mommysboy]

18 hours ago, sjaak327 said:

Judging from taxes on tobacco, changes are the smokers paid for those themselves. 

The financial argument is always the one that tickles me- smokers pay far more in taxes than they take.

[mommysboy]

I don't see why people get so het up about smoking- it's not as if people are blowing the smoke in their face and it's barred in restaurants, malls, cinemas, etc.  Quite right to ban it from the beach because that too is a public space.  But to begrudge a couple of spaces so they can enjoy a puff... well, that's small minded.  I think a lot of this goes back to the days when it was common to spark up here, there, and everywhere- you even saw ashtrays in the bog for heaven's sake.  What were we like?  Yesterday's argument, that rather tellingly some people can't let go.  I suspect envy is at play.

 

What an irony?  next to the beach in Pattaya there is a three lane road, sometimes with nose to tail traffic chugging out dangerous fumes that are implicated in many diseases, possibly including dementia which is set to be the scourge of our times.  That's ok, though, isn't it?

[mommysboy]

13 hours ago, dcnx said:

So then you don't mind if I spray your face with mace / pepper spray as soon as you light up?

 

Because we don't want a nanny state here. We should all be allowed to do as we wish.

What a ridiculous, hysterical comment.

[ChiangMaiLightning2143]

Midweek rant: Why pander to smokers? Just “cough up” 2,000 baht and don’t come back
 

File photo
 
After last week’s farce of idiotic jail terms for smokers comes the complete opposite – appeasement that would have made even Neville Chamberlain wince.
 
While the British PM attempted to whitewash an evil regime along comes the ever so nice Thais showing absurd consideration for a modern day scourge in our towns, cities and countryside – smokers.
 
The sight of the authorities putting up ten – yes ten – expensive glass surrounded smoking areas equipped with extractor fans on Bang Saen beach beggar’s belief.
 
Why are you being so nice to them? Talk about a red carpet to smoke. How lovely and comfy – they’ll even be protected when it rains.
 
So who is paying for this groveling to smokers – the tax payer that’s who. You and me.
 
Why give these people anywhere to smoke at all – after all their noxious fumes are still going to come out of these soon to be filthy little dens of addiction and pollute the air my children and the rest of us breathe.
 
They should be told to go home – abroad if they are foreigners – if they want to smoke. And if Thai they should be made to build sealed rooms in their houses – or underneath in dungeons – so their children are protected.
 
If they give up – for at least six months – give them a certificate to go on the wall. The district chiefs can present them in televised ceremonies. Thais love a ceremony.
 
If they are seen smoking on the beach – or anywhere else for that matter - don’t give them a considerate warning and a smile. Just have a table set up to take their 2,000 baht each. If they don’t have money take their phones or jewelry. They’ll soon find the money.
 
If they admit the offence and don’t make a fuss it can be halved. That’s all the consideration that’s necessary for these addicts that imperil the rest of us and think they have the god given right to endanger us.
 
Use the money to sift out all the millions of butts that they have already tossed onto the beach and elsewhere.
 
Put some signage out with rotting lungs and malformed fetuses. Make the message as clear as day.
 
And before you start complaining that this is directed solely against visitors or tourists, it’s not.
 
There should be no distinction between Thai or foreigner, man or woman, young or old.
 
Smokers need to be treated like outcasts.
 
Not pandered to….not appeased….not shown consideration. Not paid for by the rest of us.
 
They are addicts…hooked on a dangerous drug…and they must be stopped…..not enabled.
 
So come on Thai government. Be strong. Shut down your tobacco monopoly.
 
Declare Thailand – not just the beaches and inside public buildings or in schools – as completely smoke free.
 
Take a lead. Ban the sale and importation of all cigarettes. Have bins at the airports.
 
Force them to go cold turkey – they’ll thank you in the long run. Their health will improve and the burden they place on the health care system will be lifted.
 
And the country will gain international recognition for all the right reasons.
 
Sure the tobacco mafia will kick up a stink – just smile and say no more, not here. Be strong.
 
Then watch how the tourists – even the Chinese – give up just so they can come to Thailand.
 
It might even inspire MORE tourists to come.
 
To a smoke free paradise where addicts don’t rule the roost.
 
Rooster
 
  -- [emoji767] Copyright Thai Visa News 2017-10-20

Best Post Ever.

[wakeupplease]

Rooster

 

i thinking of changing my life style can I have the next 9 recommendations in you list of a healthy lifestyle?

 

na just go to patt and find a balcony I think may be better for my health.

[hawker9000]

Yeah, it's taxpayer-financed I guess, but if a smoker has it so bad that he's willing to put himself in a glass jail in order to indulge his addiction, it's something so pathetic I'd want to make sure my kids see so that they know what being a smoker really means.  Having to consign oneself to a little room in front of the crowds like an animal in the zoo does send a message.  It's a 21st century pillory if you ask me.

 

The trend is obviously strongly against smoking in public.  Taxes and restrictions on smokers go ever upward because the pols grasp instinctively that it's open-season on smokers 24-7-365 with absolutely no downside.   Political catnip.  You really have to be addicted to be willing to submit to a scorn that so effectively unites elected politicians with their usually disgruntled constituents.

 

[adammike]

In the UK 19% of adult men smoke and 15% of women.to hell with the smokers they have to understand its the will of the people that they will have to buy their fags with the Euro,they will have to spend time in EU re-education camps on the German Polish border.when they return they will only get new cigarettes in exchange for the used butts. Brussels will bring new laws in next month and they will train refugees to police it.I read it on the internet so I know it's true. 

[car720]

13 hours ago, pattayadon said:

You ARE advocating smoking!!!  Quit making lame excuses for yourself and other smokers.  Wake up my friend, It's 2017!

If it was a lame excuse then you would have answered the question.  Why is it still sold?

[transam]

I like a ciggy the same as I like a beer...I never annoy anyone when having a fag..

I find it funny when non smokers come on here slagging smokers off just because they don't smoke. Yet many of the moaners drive diesel rides, use BBQ's and burn horrendous amounts of cheap fuel on cheap flights which to them is OK..

I don't particularly like looking at obese folk, but l don't tell them this is 2017 and the info is out there to become a normal size do l...

Folk should mind there own business and let folk live their own life..