I KNEW there was something big happening in London that I didn't cover. England has now banned smoking in enclosed spaces. They call it a smoke-free England but it’s more like smoke-less. We still have a lot of smog and people can still smoke just not in clubs, pubs or public buildings. I went out last Saturday or so and I must admit it was odd (and great) to have the club smoke-free – well almost, with the kind of clubs I got to, people don’t tend to abide by the rules until they’ve been caught at least once. Anyway I should say it was nice to have the club mostly smokeless. My hair didn’t smell of smoke and my clothes didn’t either, not too much anyway.I went onto the Smoke Free England website to check it out. It just basically lists the rules and regulations regarding business, community and individuals. It also lists the effects of smoking on the smoker and others which I’m sure ALL smokers (and others) know about already. The fines are quite high actually mostly to businesses or owners of the smoke-free property - £2500 is the highest.
People smoking never really bothered me. I have few friends that smoke so I’m rarely around smokers often. What does bother me however, is the amount of times smokers at work go for a ‘cigarette breaks’. Why the hell should they be allowed to take timeout to go kill themselves a bit more when you’ve got people like myself who DON’T smoke sitting at the computer working? Can I get a ‘snack break’ where I go get some snacks from the shop or a ‘can’t be bothered break’ where I just can’t be bothered to work for 10 mins or so? Giving employees the chance to go on cig breaks is more of an encouragment than anything else.
The ban will hopefully encourage more people to give up smoking. I’m sure it’s not easy and we have a lot of company’s exploiting smokers with their chewing gums and patches when all they really need is Will power. You decided to start smoking and you can also decide not to. For the rest of us, we can only hope to enjoy a slightly cleaner air.
9 comments:
No holds barred:
"What does bother me however, is the amount of times smokers at work go for a ‘cigarette breaks’. Why the hell should they be allowed to take timeout to go kill themselves a bit more when you’ve got people like myself who DON’T smoke sitting at the computer working?"
Real Talk for 2007!
I take 'can't be bothered breaks' all the time. Just dont tell my boss. I would've protested about the injustice of cig breaks but I couldn't be bothered.
I also take:
'toilet breaks'
'stoll around the building breaks'
'check my email breaks'
'update my blog breaks'
and my favourite
'if i leave it some one else will do it break'
; )
Lol serious! Those are som good break titles man.
Yes in Oz where getting quite similar laws, or are they already here, I'm not much of a pubs and clubs bloke so its hard for me to notice. I always loved the 'vodka break', ussually results in the 'toilet break', then later in the day, the 'fight in the car park break', and the 'take the rest of the day off cause your fired' break....
Hmmmmm, smoking ban...
Im just glad they don't smoke near the bus stop anymore...well, not inside..I remember once i was at the bus stop..and a women sat beside me smoking..i gave her a look and she apologised and went away...
Treat them as flies and they shall flee hopfully..
why don't they make th prices of cigerettes higher and something USELFUL Lower huh??
Beats me
I remember when I quite smoking when I was 22 - the one thing I didn't want to give up was the 'smoko' (Aussie slang for the cigarette break). So when my colleagues all trotted downstairs for a smoko, I took a cup of coffee and went down as well.
Our manager passed by us on the way to an appointment, saw me without a cigarette and asked what I was doing. I said, 'taking a smoko', to which he replied 'where's your cigarette?' When I told him I quit, he told me I should get back to my desk, but even as he said it he knew it was strange.
I got tired of going down for breaks every hour, and eventually didn't take smokos, but I still remember that event, to this day.
I do all my high-powered thinking and have all my great ideas on my ciggy breaks (I can't think sitting at a desk).
That's my excuse, anyways.
See Ozlady? so unfair that h said that to you.
Chertiozhnik lol a new one I call a 'thinking break'.
I am whole lot more concerned about the pollution from gigantic coal burning factories and generating plants and the horrendous pollution from all of our gasoline and diesel sucking vehicles. It's far worse than a cigarette sucking. But as usual, our federal government has sold the people one more bill of goods that isn't the real truth. So light up smokers. Just stop all the dang driving.
Car fumes are definately the bigger problem but smoking isnt helping more is it?
Without vehicles to transport food, clothes and other products to fit our basic needs,life will be very different...and difficult.
Post a Comment