A Politically Incorrect Postage Stamp

On Fri, 10 Oct 2008 16:18:04 -0400, Tracy_Barber wrote:

One very weird but VERY serious problem some people face is the intake
of perfume, deodorants or other "smelly nicey" things. There was such a
woman at a place I did some consulting. Talk about walk on tiptoes.

It was a very serious condition and although the in-house staff knew
about it, I wonder how many other people did? I heard she had at least
one "attack" while at work. This was nobody's fault - really - but how
do we know?

And just this past weekend, to go full circle, a friend at a stamp
meeting was very upset about a plane flight he was on in which he
couldn't *open* a bag of peanuts. He seemed not to be aware that
aerosolized peanut flour can cause fatal anaphylaxis in seriously-
allergic people.

It's all on a continuum. Presumably some people avoid parks where dogs
are allowed due to life-threatening dog allergies. I, for one, have to
enlist a friend to buy my dye- and perfume-free laundry detergent for me
because I cannot even walk down the aisle in the store without a serious
allergic reaction. And I can't really go on picnics either -- not even
semi-mandatory corporate picnics -- because I react to lawn grass the way
most people do to poison oak (and poison oak hospitalizes me.)

The main phenomenon with smoking is that the zeitgeist has changed. Yes,
it is true that the health risks of ambient smoke in public outdoor
locales is drastically overplayed -- but culturally, the mores in many
locales have shifted to the point that even non-risky smoke is eschewed.

For those who think I'm being insensitive to those who despise secondhand
smoke, note that I can't even *walk* *into* a grassy park, especially if
the grass has recently been cut, whether or not smoking is allowed
there. My tax dollars are contributing to the maintenance for that park,
and it would be insane for me to insist that all city parks be covered in
gravel for the benefit of those like me.

It is an irony that in California, where one is not allowed to smoke in
bars, the bartenders will continue to serve one drinks well past the
point of sobriety without inquiring as to whether the person has driven
to the bar or not. And I absolutely guarantee you that the risk from a
single drunk driver on a single night exceeds, nearly infinitely, the
risk of contracting terminal lung cancer from one afternoon in a park
where someone is smoking.

No, I don't like cigarette smoke either. But a bit of perspective is
called for, methinks.

--
Joshua H. McGee, Los Angeles, California, USA
Member: APS, ATA, ISWSC, AFDCS, MBPC, MCC, BPS
President: http://www.penguinstamps.org
Trade?: http://www.mcgees.org/stamp-offers/

"Joshua McGee" wrote in message
...


No, I don't like cigarette smoke either. But a bit of perspective is
called for, methinks.


And some tolerance and compassion for those who cannot quit too.

--
Victor Manta