Image provided by: Clackamas Community College; Oregon City, OR
About The Clackamas print. (Oregon City, Oregon) 1989-2019 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 28, 2009)
4 the clackamas print Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2009 A smoking hot face off battles o Cleanse our campus of smoke Fight for our right to smok By Matthew Ostergren Arts & Culture Editor I have observed countless underage smokdrs on campus and it is a dis couraging sight. Smoking will affect their health for the rest of their lives. It creates all sorts of health problems that often don’t manifest until much later in their lives and because of this, short-sighted teens often pick up this bad habit. If teens are not able to smoke while on campus, hopefully they will not start smok ing at all. Around the smoking shacks one can find any number of discarded cigarette butts lying on the ground. Not only is this disgusting, as those butts have been in people’s mouths, it is also litter that someone will have to pick up. Well either that, or some squirrel or bird will try to eat it, and that is just not good. It costs the col lege much needed funds to pick up the shit that someone so carelessly tossed onto rogress is something that often comes slowly, butt whether it is social or tech nological, sit is often inevitable in its march. In an ideal world, people manage their habits not only to maintain their personal health but also out of consideration for others. There is currently talk on campus of banning smoking entirely. Already people are only allowed to smoke in restricted spaces on campus. This is certainly an improvement over Yiçivmg a tightly packed, group of smokers standing right out side the door every time you walk outside of a building. That being said, it would cer tainly be a further improve ment to the environment on campus if smoking were banned altogether. There are slew of reasons as to why smoking should be banned on campus, and I would be delighted to share a few of them with you. People can com plain how the cam pus is a public place, but it is a shared public place, and other people have to share the air. For someone who doesn’t smoke, it is rather unpleasant to walk past the cloud of smoke emanat ing from-the smoke shacks on campus. It leaves a bad taste in the mouth and a sense the ground. It also leaves the of disgust in the mind. air around, it smelling burnt and Beyond that, tobacco1- smoke foul. The litter and the money used doesn’t just affect the health of the to discard it do not make the college smoker; it affects the health of any look good when the college is look one who has-to breathe the smoke. ing to get grant money from the state It seems hardly just for' others to or find potential donators. be forced to inhale the smoke when Smoking is an expensive habit, they have made the health-conscious and students who attend CCC are ■decision to not smoke themselves. already poor enough. If their smok For those who have asthma; sec ing can be limited, it could free ond-hand smdkeis an. even greater up needed funds for much more concern. important things like rent, food and Some smokers, may complain that tuition. Those dollars spent on packs they need to get their nicotine fix in could go to something of so much order to function properly during the mo$e use to everyone. day, but it is not fair to those who Progress is important in an have no choice but to be around it. institution; but even more so in an My concerns extend beyond sec institution dedicated to education. ond-hand smoke however. ' If-you Clackamas can and should lead the haven’t noticed, there-are a large, way. The banning of smoking in number of minors on campus. Out various locations is not a new thing. of any demographic, teenagers are It is time for CCC to get on board, thé most susceptible to social pres and push for a healthier environment sures to start smoking. It is impor and lifestyle. The costs' are almost tant to maintain an environment that) nil, and the potential gains are enor •encourages teens to avoid smoking- mous. By John Hurlburt Co-Editor In Chief mokers better start stock ing up on Neosporin because, once again, we are about to get burned. 'As expected, Clackamas is now talk ing about making the campus smoke- free. The announcement comes as no surprise. Ever since the smoking shelters were implemented, it felt like the col lege was on the verge of sliding down a very steep slope towards ridding itself of the annoyance that smokers bring to the campus. Why wouldn’t we want to get rid of these cancerous tumors that are clogging up the campus’ collective lung? My only response is at this point, who cares if smokers stay on campus? When the smoking shelters were implemented, I absolutely despised the idea of herding tobacco partakers into tiny stables like a bunch of cattle for the slaughter. But the shelters grew on me; they gave S P smokers a dry place, sometimes with wind barriers, to practice in their habit. They also sectioned off the smok ers into areas where those who did not want to be bothered by the smoke could easily avoid its pungent smell. The situ ation felt like a win-win. The reality ultimately related more towards the cattle in a slaughterhouse. CCC had begun easing -smokers into realizing they had no more hope to keep their habit alive on campus. Was there really a problem with the shelters? Most would probably say no but in order to stay cutting edge and look good in the state’s eye, meaning more grants and more funding, right now Clackamas needs to establish itself as a progressive institution. This has led to great innovations at the school such as the Veteran’s Center, but there is always a negative to the positive and right now smokers are tak ing a knockout punch to the face in the school’s quest for visibility. Institutions such as OHSU and Portland Community College have already become smoke-free. Ev city of Portland has announced n to be a smoke-free city in the Ion The recent bar and restaurant] ing ban has only gone on to pro] smokers are the new object ufl public’s magnifying glass, and ij we are looking like ants in the sis a small boy. Even though it does give the] better visibility on the state’s mindless trend following almoa works out. Easily avoidableeva as the Salem witch trial, the] onment of Galileo, McCal the holocaust and “Twilighfl have been avoided if peopll more into independent fl than following the group. 1 The ousting of smoker] a public health concemjl fad. If health was the iss| would be expelling the] who spray too muci body spray or Gucq fume. We would pro] pie who don’t use I ant into broom closa lock them in thera they broke and boa stick of Old Spice.] Perfumes and] sprays are allergens] lar to smoke, and] smoking on camp] can be forced to sil to somebody whill choke off your wil with their injuriol grance. I Not only is the] ing ban a mindless! oppress one group I pie in order to get ■ for the institution as a wl also creates an academic disabili] the oppressed group. I Smokers do not work to the] potential unless they are able to I their right to smoke. Forcing sill to crowd into parking lots during] 10 minute break between biolog] Spanish will cause smokers to] be late to class, which would] instructors, or to skip the cigareti face class in a state of agitation. I Some smokers may quit or stall smokeless products such as snusin] but most will blitz to the parkin] attempt to consume their smoke ] inhale and run back to class sweaty] and late. I Students aren’t the only co] either. School staff and faculty] smoke will be forced into the] edges of the campus searching f] closest parking lot. Breaks will be] by marching away for a cigareti] overall efficiency will be lost due] time and effort taken to get a breaB
