On Thu, Sep 19, 2013 at 11:13:15PM +1000, Russell Coker wrote:
or maybe you could learn not to be so intolerant. you're in a public place and have no right to inflict your own personal prejudices and likes and dislikes on everyone else. It's not actually harming you, you just find it distasteful.
Why can't people just obey the law?
0. for the same reason that YOU - and everyone else - selectively choose which laws are worth obeying and which are not. 1. because some laws are just plain stupid. 2. because the people who whinge about it will still whinge about it if you're 2', 5', 10' or even 15' away from the bus shelter. 2a. because being 2' outside the shelter is legally OK but effectively exactly the same as being just under it, except you get a little more wet or sun-burnt depening on the whether. 3. because it's raining. or 35+ degrees. and even sub-human smokers deserve shelter from the elements. 4. because it's discriminatory - non-smokers are capable of offensive or distasteful smells too. and many of them are more than capable of loud and offensive whingy sounds.
Why do smokers who are decent people even oppose such laws? It's not as if there's a shortage of places to smoke other than bus stops.
i have no objection to anti-smoking laws that serve a useful purpose - banning smoking indoors, in restaurants, in workplaces, and the like. in fact, i support them 100%. in fact, i used to go outside to smoke years before it was legally required - it's just being polite. quit-wowsers and the sane non-smokers won that fight because it makes sense. unfortunately, they didn't and have no intention of stopping there, because they're moral crusaders - pretty much the worst kind of human plague on any civilisation. pushing for even more laws banning smoking outdoors in public places just because you don't like the smell or find it distasteful does not serve any useful purpose, it's just wowserism.
OTOH, i'd love to see the McDonalds near one of the tram stops (near the corner of Albion & Nicholson Sts, Brunswick) I use fined for the vile stink emanating from the place - it's truly repulsive, makes me want to puke. i gag at it even driving past it with the windows down.
There's currently ongoing legal action to prevent McDonalds from opening in Tecoma, you can sign one of the petitions if you wish. It seems that in most other places people are reasonably happy to have a McDonalds.
been there, done that (in pascoe vale). it went the same way as almost every other time community groups oppose mcdonalds - local council blocks development, mcdonalds appeals to VCAT or State planning minister, council ruling gets overturned. hooray for democracy.
On Thu, 19 Sep 2013, Craig Sanders <cas@taz.net.au> wrote:
nicotine is a fairly strong central nervous stimulant, it aids in concentration and focus.
it's a lot less effective than than methamphetamine for these purpose, but also a lot less harmful.
Wouldn't something like Codrol do some good in that regard?
ephedrine or pseudo-ephedrine? only if you like taking such a huge dose you get the shakes with your stimulant. it's a very different effect, anyway. so, nope. craig -- craig sanders <cas@taz.net.au>