Fri 05 Jul 1996 09:36
smoke.wri (actual date unknown)

Smokers on the University of Washington Campus,
    By smoking anywhere non-smokers are affected by your smoke, you show a lack of respect for other humans. You smoke outside, and as I walk by I must smell your smoke. You smoke outside, but your smoke wafts in the open window; I get a headache instead of fresh air. The smoke clings to your clothes; if you sit near me, I try not to breathe from your direction. You smoke near the entrance of buildings, and the hallways fill with fumes. Cigarette butts surround benches on campus. I cannot often enjoy a greenspace on campus free from the smell of smoke.

It is sad that non-smokers are so quiet about your intrusion in their daily lives. I do not value my freedom to smoke more than my freedom to breathe smoke-free air, a freedom I do not have on this campus.

I wish a letter like this were enough. It will be hard to relegate all on-campus smoking to special smoking rooms with fume hoods. It might be hard to get smokers to wear lab coats while smoking, to keep the smell of smoke off their clothes. But, what else can we do?

Where will the funding come from? I would pay $50 per quarter to be able to open a window and have fresh air. I would pay $50 per quarter for a campus free from the distraction of tobacco smoke.

With the support of smokers and non-smokers, the construction of smoking rooms and the enforcement of the relegation of smoking to those rooms is possible. You will be able to enjoy smoking with a clearer conscience.

Please support this solution.

Colin Leath

Smokers and non-smokers, voice your opinion on this issue by

emailing smoking@u:
In the "Subject: " header type:
    "0" if you do not support this plan.
    "1" if you do.
    "2" if you would pay $50/quarter for a smoke-free campus.
    "3" if you have a better idea.
    "help" if you would like to help work for a smoke-free campus.

You may put all those things and more in the subject header, but you may only send email to smoking@u once and be counted.

Results (if there are any) will be printed next week in The Daily.

Also consider emailing Dick McCormick, pres@u and The Daily: thedaily@u.


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