they really oughta show this one on TV
you dont always die from tobacco

Agreed regarding the obesity. Cigarettes are taxed out the ass already.
As far as the "extra" breaks, I got that line a lot when working in restaurants from the few people who didn't smoke. My advice to them was simple, take the same number of breaks as the smokers (if you get flak about it from the boss, explain it calmly) otherwise shut it. Seemed to work out ok as most people can see that it's the same.

Try it. I've had others try it and it worked out just fine (yeah, in the corporate world too). I wouldn't be shocked at how much I spend as this ain't my first "smokers are evil" thread

Mike Judge is a nice guy.

But he cut my scene. Fucker.

Forgive me if I postpone testing this theory. On my current 5-person shift, the only 2 smokers are the supervisor and senior officer (also technically a supervisor).

Smokers aren't evil, other than the arrogant "I'll smoke wherever I damn well please and if that's two feet from your dinner table, too bad" types. Smoking is evil. Those who made billions of dollars while people died horrible deaths from smoking-related diseases the tobacco companies knew about and refused to acknowledge are evil. And so on. Don't take anything I say personally. My take on smoking is accurate - it has horrific effects and people, clothes, homes, and vehicles reek because of it - but having never smoked, it's easier for me to be objective. And never having had an addiction, I can only imagine how frustrating it is to want to quit and not be able to.

Since it fits the thread, let me share a story. The first airline I worked for was by coincidence the nation's first non-smoking airline, Muse Air. It flew from 1980-85, at which point Southwest bought it. Southwest's leader is a big smoker so the non-smoking policy went out the window.

One of our mechanics told me they were puzzled at first when butterfly-type air return valves in the aircraft a/c systems started sticking closed. Investigation revealed a thick brownish gunk on the valves - yep, from the newly-permitted smoking on board. Know what it took to clean smoking's byproducts off the valves?

Carburetor cleaner.

Well, for starters, if it is illegal for employers to discriminate against sexual deviants who have AIDS or could very easily contract AIDS, it should also be illegal to discriminate against smokers.

Both are behaviors that could have adverse health effects.

What's next, discrimination against people who eat too many foods with trans-fatty acids? Discrimination against fat people who don't exercise or watch their diets?

Tobacco is a legal product of which government makes tons and tons of money off of taxes. It is hypocritical for government to allow discrimination against smokers when other forms of human behavior are protected and could be potentially even more hazardous to health.

Is health insurance now to be used as a weapon to limit people's freedoms? If that is the case, then their is no end to those limits on freedom.

This was also supposed to be a thread about cigarette prices. Not hijacked with your personal thoughts about smoking.

Booze is legal too, but companies don't allow it in the workplace, and they don't allow employees to take regular breaks to drink up. I wonder if they could get away with a "no cigarettes, cigars, or pipes in the workplace" policy?

You could argue that smoking doesn't affect the performance of your job, but from what I'm reading in this thread and from my own experience years ago working in a cubicle environment when you could still smoke in them, smoking did indeed affect my performance on the job. It stank, it made me stink, and I had to face customers, etc...

The discrimination against smokers is not about smoking on the job or taking breaks to smoke.

Some employers are moving toward hiring only non-smokers. Meaning anyone who smokes at home and on their own time cannot be hired. There was even a major lawsuit regarding this issue. The employer required a medical exam and blood test to determine new hires were non-smokers.

I understand the employer wants to save costs and all...but wouldn't that be a major invasion of privacy?

By the way...for all you smokers - don't get stuck in Indianapolis if you are travelling. Starting in June, smoking is prohibited on ALL airport grounds unless you are in your car.

Its been a while but I definitely remember seeing that cowboy commercial on tv here in Texas. I really even think they showed it in movie theaters before the movie back when they had started to make you sit through commercials before the previews.

I have a thicker skin than that I don't anything anyone says on the interweb personally...life's too short. As far as smokers that will smoke anywhere...I'm not one of them. In fact, I'm one of the most considerate smokers I've met. If there are non-smokers around, I ask if they mind. I even had a non-smoking friend who told me it was OK to smoke in his car, but I never did because I didn't feel it was right. I know it's bad for my health and I try my damndest not to inflict it upon others.

I salute your consideration of others.

Now, since staying on topic is apparently extremely important to certain XOC members, let me address cigarette prices here in Georgia.

They're quite expensive.