Political Correctness Sucks Part VI

OK - let me begin by saying that the correlation between the topic of this article and political correctness is thin; possibly non-existent, but I'm including it in the PC Sucks series anyway, because I think there's a definite link.

So there.

...and away we go...

Thanks to political correctness it has become disadvantageous to be a non-smoker.

Disclaimer; be it known that this article is in no way, an endorsement for nor a condemnation of smoking.

Back in the pre-PC days, people were allowed to smoke cigarettes just about anywhere, even in hospitals.

There was no stigma attached to these people, they weren't considered to be offensive because non-smokers hadn't yet been granted permission to stand up for their "air-rights" by the politically correct crowd.

The phrase "second hand smoke" hadn't been coined yet, so smokers were not considered a health threat to those of us who chose not to partake.

There was nothing unusual about seeing people lighting up on airplanes, in restaurants and just about any other public place - especially at work.

Now smoking is taboo and things have changed quite a bit.

There are very few places left where a smoker can enjoy a coffin nail. I know smokers who can't even smoke in their own cars or homes (a rule usually imposed by a significant other). So when it comes to the work place, smokers have two choices; they can quit or they can take their habit outside.

Most opt for the latter.

So now, all smokers are required to leave the building, and in some cases they must move a mandated distance from the entrance, to have a butt. They can't be forced to quit, so the theory was to make smoking such a task that they would give it up voluntarily.

I don't think it's working very well. Granted, a 2007 report from the CDC claimed that the (estimated) number of adult smokers had dropped to 20% (down from 24.7% in 1997) but that's hardly a number that will have tobacco executives polishing their resumes.

The constantly rising cost of cigarettes hasn't discouraged very many people and it would appear that the ever tightening restrictions on when and where smoking is allowed haven't exactly been a huge deterrent either.

In fact, at times I think it has the opposite effect.

I have worked with people who smoke five or six cigarettes a day. If you allow ten minutes per, that means that these people are getting an hour of paid time-off each day. Compare that to a non-smoker who, in the typical office setting, usually takes two ten-minute coffee breaks per day. In fact, most people will drink their coffee at their desks.

Sort of makes me want to take up smoking.

I'll bet nobody saw that coming - people taking up smoking for the benefit of getting some extra time off from work.

We aren't talking chicken-feed here either.

A smoker, as stated earlier, gets 60 minutes off per day, compared to 20 for a non-smoker - leaving a net difference of 40 minutes.

Forty minutes per day - times five days per week - times fifty weeks per year (allowing two weeks for vacation) amounts to more than twenty days.

Some companies restrict smoke breaks to two or three per day, but generally speaking, in the average office setting there are no such restrictions.

I know that there are legitimate health related reasons for forcing smokers outdoors, but let's be honest, the biggest reason people started complaining about smoke was one of annoyance (primarily the smell).

How can I say that?

Easy. People have known about the dangers of smoking for a long time. The Surgeon General's warning started going on cigarette packages in 1965. It took until the nineties for the PC Nazis to enforce their "take it outside" policy; they just used the statistics about second-hand smoke to legitimize the argument.

So what we're left with is this...the non-smoking PC crowd has won their battle. The unpleasant atmosphere created by cigarette smoke has been moved to the great outdoors, along with the perpetrators. Non-smokers can work in a smoke-free environment, which is a good thing...because with all of the smokers outside puffing away, somebody has to get some work done.

If you've missed any of the other installments in my Political Correctness Sucks series click on the appropriate link...

Part IPart IIPart IIIPart IVPart V

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