Smoke Free At The Casinos

[Bill Mattocks]

TRUE STORY TIME: Flew to Vegas once ( and only once) on a gamblers junket..The wife and I were spelling each other for smoke breaks outside..Coming back inside once the wind carried the smell of the cigarette with me, a older woman that was standing between the inner and outer doors gives me the standard non smoker speech about the smell, yadda, yadda, yadda..I give her a whatever comment and get back in line...Later that night I find this same woman seated 2 machines down from me in Harrahs in the smoking section..I lit one up and purposly blow smoke discreetly in her direction...She is oblivious to it..

True story time: I was a member in good standing of the American Legion. I support the right of people to smoke, and the right of the various American Legion posts to set their own smoking policies as they see fit.

But when I moved to Michigan, I found that I could not even walk into the local post, due to the massive blue haze of cigarette smoke that hangs from the ceiling. Used to not bother me, now as a former smoker, it does. No one's problem but mine, I know. I don't complain. But neither do I tolerate it - it gives me a massive headache almost instantly.

I contacted the American Legion HQ and asked them if they could provide me with a list of non-smoking AL posts in SE Michigan or even any that had non-smoking sections. There are none. So I resigned my membership.

They send me pleas for financial support and beg me to rejoin. I no longer send them money. I'm sorry, but they have their choices to make and I have mine.

I don't stand and deliver any anti-smoking lectures to anyone. But I vote with my wallet, and my wallet stays with me - in areas free of cigarette smoke.

 

[Drac]

I must be the ONLY PERSON here that cigarette smoke never bothered when I didnt smoke..Even when I quit smoking and walked into a room of smokers it never offended me..

 

[Bill Mattocks]

I must be the ONLY PERSON here that cigarette smoke never bothered when I didnt smoke..Even when I quit smoking and walked into a room of smokers it never offended me..

Does it seem to you that we're all lying?

When I quit, I was smoking 2+ packs a day. I never did like the smell of other people's cigarette smoke all that much, but my own smoke smelled great. I could not smell the smoke residue in my car or on my clothes.

After I quit, I did not have the situation others have reported - where the smell of other people's smoke made them crave a cigarette. I craved cigarettes, all right, but not due to breathing other smoker's smoke.

About a year after I quit, I began to notice that breathing smoke would give me a pounding headache that approached the pain of the migraines I used to get when I was in my 20's (they went away, yay, me). I could also smell every smoker in the company I worked for just by them walking past in a hallway 20 feet from my desk. I ended up apologizing to my wife, because I had no idea how bad my clothes stunk when I smoked - I do now. I can't believe she put up with it all those years.

Smoke did not bother me before I became a smoker, and it did not bother me when I was a smoker. Now it does. Not the smell so much - I can put up with or ignore that. The instant blinding headache that comes with it.

Like I said, I don't insist that others change their behavior to suit me - but I also don't go to places where smoking is allowed. If that hurts businesses when people like me stay away, sorry. I won't spend money where I can't go.

 

[MJS]

TRUE STORY TIME: Flew to Vegas once ( and only once) on a gamblers junket..The wife and I were spelling each other for smoke breaks outside..Coming back inside once the wind carried the smell of the cigarette with me, a older woman that was standing between the inner and outer doors gives me the standard non smoker speech about the smell, yadda, yadda, yadda..I give her a whatever comment and get back in line...Later that night I find this same woman seated 2 machines down from me in Harrahs in the smoking section..I lit one up and purposly blow smoke discreetly in her direction...She is oblivious to it..

Now THAT is too friggin funny!! LMAO!!!

 

[Drac]

Does it seem to you that we're all lying?

I NEVER said that....

 

[Bill Mattocks]

I NEVER said that....

Didn't answer the question, either. But no matter.

 

[Drac]

Does it seem to you that we're all lying?

No, I dont think anyone here is lying....

 

[Jade Tigress]

I must be the ONLY PERSON here that cigarette smoke never bothered when I didnt smoke..Even when I quit smoking and walked into a room of smokers it never offended me..

Nope, I'm with you here Drac. I was a heavy smoker for 10 years. I quit cold turkey for 17 years. During the time I quit, the smoking of others NEVER bothered me. Yes, my clothes would smell, I washed them. But it didn't give me headaches or anything and I never chastised anyone. It just didn't bother me and as a former smoker I sympathized with the addiction.

Then I went and did something stupid. Two years ago this July, I began smoking "socially". Well, as you can imagine, "socially" became a bit more frequent over a period of months, and now I'm addicted again and kicking myself. I have a love/hate relationship with smoking.

I will quit again, when? I don't know. I'll do it when I'm ready just like I did the first time around, and I'm not ready yet in spite of the fact that I'm disappointed in myself.

All that to say, Drac is not the only one that secondhand smoke didn't bother as a former smoker. For the record, my husband was the same way. We both quit together the first time and we both started together the second time. During our smoke free years, secondhand smoke didn't bother either of us.

 

[Flea]

So if this law passes, you can drink yourself into a stupor while you gamble the rent money away.....but you can't smoke because that's bad for you.

The state is a poor nanny.

BINGO!! :lol: I think the irony is hysterically funny. As long as we're passing legislative judgment on people's vices, wouldn't it make more sense to force gamblers into church the following morning?

Since tobacco is sacred among most NA cultures, it seems that the most "virtuous" to allow smoking. Heck, maybe it should even be encouraged.

 

[crushing]

So if this law passes, you can drink yourself into a stupor while you gamble the rent money away.....but you can't smoke because that's bad for you.

The state is a poor nanny.

How sloppy of a drunk do you have to be to pass on second hand alcohol?

 

[Jade Tigress]

How sloppy of a drunk do you have to be to pass on second hand alcohol?

You just have to get behind the wheel of a car.

 

[grydth]

How sloppy of a drunk do you have to be to pass on second hand alcohol?

Sloppy enough not to be able to control your vehicle on the way home from the casino.

In 2007, the "second hand" victims of drunk driving numbered 12,998 according to MADD.

 

[Rich Parsons]

BTW, cigar smoke is just as nasty as a cig, but I too am less bothered.

Well, from the studies I read a few years ago, the chemicals on the tobacco for cigarette and pesticides is different then used for cigars.

Also the "Processing" of the Tobacco for cigarettes happens with chemicals, to allow the to last longer and have a bigger kick and also to have a better addiction reaction.

Its still bad to breath. I mean if people commit suicide by means of letting the car run in an enclosed area.....sounds deadly to me. As for the garages....they have an exhaust method, so that helps.

Given a modern car that is ULEV or SULEV the amount of CO that could kill you is so low, that one would run out of O2 first and would die from lack of oxygen before the the CO poisoning. But, most people just wake up with a horrible headache and brain damage from the lack of oxygen (O2).

The laws of the EPA and CARB have done something to improve what comes out the tail pipes of vehicles.