# I Pit "I'm Sick Of The Smoke" **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [August 8, 2005, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-im-sick-of-the-smoke/316196 "2005-08-08T22:03:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2005, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-im-sick-of-the-smoke/316196/101 "2005-08-09T20:29:25Z")
> [@Queen Tonya](#): > > Agreed, if **tdn** were actually being that way, I wouldn’t have any sympathy either. “If” being the operative word. I hope I have explained my position a little more clearly, and my impending reputation as horrible monster that delights in burning down hotels for orphans has, ahem, gone up in smoke. ---
**Author:** ![DiosaBellissima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@DiosaBellissima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiosaBellissima)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2005, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-im-sick-of-the-smoke/316196/102 "2005-08-09T20:33:48Z")
In the hotels I’ve stayed in (the ones I can clearly remember, that is) “smoking” or “non smoking” is a preference and is NOT guaranteed. Much like I may prefer a king room with a view and that may be what is reserved to me, but things happen. Sometimes I have to settle for a full with a view of the parking lot. Certainly the hotel tries to accommodate you, but there is no guarantee (and therefore no _contract_). If a hotel signed some contract guaranteeing you a smoking room and you received something else- I would sue (Exaggeration of course, but I would at least raise some serious hell). Pretty sure you can’t break contracts in a business. It ought to be repeated: > [@](#): > > As I said, crappy service is crappy service and it is up to the comsumer to call a business on that. And your examples aren’t germane. I already conceded that it is indeed a special situation when the owner/manager/whatever told you to smoke anyway. You’re beating a dead horse with this point. And taking all things into account and making a decision based on factors is pragmatism. Certainly, a rational person is pragmatic, but courtesy is a huge factor in being logical, rational, and hell-even pragmatic. ---
**Author:** ![Q.N.Jones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/3da27b/32.png) [@Q.N.Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.N.Jones)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2005, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-im-sick-of-the-smoke/316196/103 "2005-08-09T20:41:46Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > Are you serious with this? You honestly think that smokers are requesting non-smoking rooms just to stink them up? > > The reason people smoke in non-smoking rooms is simple: There is no such thing as a smoking room anymore. Say what? The motel where I worked still has 40% smoking rooms, even though that’s way more than the percentage of the population who still smokes. It was a trial trying to get the extra ones rented. And that’s definitely typical in this area. Plus, I do know some smokers who hate smoking rooms, for a few reasons. One is that the bedspreads, blankets, upholstery, etc. often have cigarette burns, and it’s unattractive. The rooms are often dingier, and the smoke smell builds up so heavily in there that it can even be too much for smokers to want to deal with. Besides, a truly courteous smoker stuck in a smoking room would either go outside to smoke, or open a window and smoke out of it. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2005, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-im-sick-of-the-smoke/316196/104 "2005-08-09T20:44:51Z")
> [@DiosaBellissima](#): > > In the hotels I’ve stayed in (the ones I can clearly remember, that is) “smoking” or “non smoking” is a preference and is NOT guaranteed. Much like I may prefer a king room with a view and that may be what is reserved to me, but things happen. Sometimes I have to settle for a full with a view of the parking lot. Certainly the hotel tries to accommodate you, but there is no guarantee (and therefore no _contract_). I’m not sure of the law on this, but I would expect a reasonable hotel to make an exception or look the other way. If they don’t, they might expect to lose my business. Also keep in mind that the last time I truly broke the rules, the world was a somewhat different place. Some people were rabid-antis back then, but not as draconian. They cared, but they didn’t, if you know what I mean. > [@](#): > > And your examples aren’t germane. I already conceded that it is indeed a special situation when the owner/manager/whatever told you to smoke anyway. You’re beating a dead horse with this point. Why aren’t they germane? They are what they are. They are my experience. But we seem to agree, in an odd sort of way. I’ll drop it if you will. > [@](#): > > And taking all things into account and making a decision based on factors is pragmatism. Certainly, a rational person is pragmatic, but courtesy is a huge factor in being logical, rational, and hell-even pragmatic. I don’t want to turn this into a hijack, but where do you get this from? Being courteous may be rational or pragmatic in some cases. But one does not have to be courteous to be rational. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2005, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-im-sick-of-the-smoke/316196/105 "2005-08-09T20:50:23Z")
> [@Q.N. Jones](#): > > Say what? The motel where I worked still has 40% smoking rooms, even though that’s way more than the percentage of the population who still smokes. It was a trial trying to get the extra ones rented. And that’s definitely typical in this area. We must be staying in vastly different types of places. Smoking rooms are a dying breed where I stay. > [@](#): > > Plus, I do know some smokers who hate smoking rooms, for a few reasons. One is that the bedspreads, blankets, upholstery, etc. often have cigarette burns, and it’s unattractive. The rooms are often dingier, and the smoke smell builds up so heavily in there that it can even be too much for smokers to want to deal with. OK, now _that’s_ irrational! Unless these smokers go outside, in which case it makes more sense. Is that what you mean? If I choose to take a smoking room (in theory, as they ain’t no such critter), I’m happy to deal with whatever burns and smokiness I have to deal with. It’s part of the package. > [@](#): > > Besides, a truly courteous smoker stuck in a smoking room would either go outside to smoke, or open a window and smoke out of it. Do you mean a non-smoking room? ---
**Author:** ![lisacurl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/41988e/32.png) [@lisacurl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lisacurl)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2005, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-im-sick-of-the-smoke/316196/106 "2005-08-09T21:03:15Z")
> [@Hung Mung](#): > > It’s very possible to be a considerate smoker. > I developed a nasty habit in college of blowing smoke directly at people who liked to do the fake cough thing. Just come say something, don’t be a whiner. I was at an outdoor concert this summer when a fellow came in late, sat in front of me and my hub, and lit up a cigar. My husband wanted us to move to another place, but I leaned forward and gently said, “I’m so sorry but your cigar smoke is really bothering me, do you mind?” The guy immediately put the cigar out, and I continued, “I’m really sorry…” He smiled and said, “Don’t apologize… I’m glad you said something.” I was so impressed. ---
**Author:** ![Helen\_s\_Eidolon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Helen\_s\_Eidolon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helen_s_Eidolon)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2005, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-im-sick-of-the-smoke/316196/107 "2005-08-09T21:42:25Z")
I do want to make something clear. There are, apparently, regional differences. If the smokers around me were like the ones around **lisacurl** , or **calmkiwi** or **Q. N. Jones** , I would be extremely thankful. But not all places and societies are so enlightened. Maybe this is why we have such conflicts here - those of us who live in inconsiderate-smoking places still have something to complain about, while those considerate smokers who only see other considerate smokers think we’re being ridiculous. Also, **Q. N. Jones** ’s post made me laugh. Voluntarily smoke-free bars and restaurants! I wish. In Montreal, a city of about 3 million people, I think there are maybe 10 such establishments, none at all near me. ---
**Author:** ![Nocturne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/9fc348/32.png) [@Nocturne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nocturne)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2005, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-im-sick-of-the-smoke/316196/108 "2005-08-09T22:44:01Z")
> [@Troy McClure SF](#): > > Because the way you live your life makes things smell bad and triggers allegeries in some people and annoys the shit out of a lot of the rest, yet you get bent out of shape when someone calls you on being a douche about it. Well, I’m allergic to a lot of the stuff used in cheap perfumes and lotions, so maybe that should be banned too! And cheap perfume REEKS! Or I could just mind my own business. The only time I’d ever ask someone to tone down the perfume would be if I had to work/be in close quarters with them. And I’d ask politely. I smoke occasionally, but I have an excellent sense of smell. The habitual smokers I know don’t tend to stink, unless they smoke inside. Then everything they own stinks. So no, not all smokers smell terrible. But the ones that do? AWFUL. ---
**Author:** ![Q.N.Jones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/3da27b/32.png) [@Q.N.Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.N.Jones)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2005, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-im-sick-of-the-smoke/316196/109 "2005-08-09T22:58:47Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > OK, now _that’s_ irrational! Unless these smokers go outside, in which case it makes more sense. Is that what you mean? Nope. When working a front desk, I confronted smokers who deliberately rented non-smoking rooms, then smoked in them, about three times. These were their reasons: “Non-smoking rooms are nicer! Why should I pay the same for a gross smoking room?” “I want to be by the pool, and all those rooms are non-smoking!” “The smell is too bad in a smoking room! I’m a smoker, but Gawd! (Or, my non-smoking family member hates it!)” These folks represent a minority of smokers, I think, but they exist. > [@](#): > > If I choose to take a smoking room (in theory, as they ain’t no such critter), I’m happy to deal with whatever burns and smokiness I have to deal with. It’s part of the package. As would most smokers, I imagine. > [@](#): > > Do you mean a non-smoking room? Oops. Yes. ---
**Author:** ![Q.N.Jones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/3da27b/32.png) [@Q.N.Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.N.Jones)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2005, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-im-sick-of-the-smoke/316196/110 "2005-08-09T23:02:22Z")
> [@LaurAnge](#): > > Also, **Q. N. Jones** ’s post made me laugh. Voluntarily smoke-free bars and restaurants! I wish. In Montreal, a city of about 3 million people, I think there are maybe 10 such establishments, none at all near me. Seriously? In my area, more and more places are phasing out their smoking sections. I would think Montreal would be more progressive about voluntary smoke-outs than Iowa would be. I find that stunning. I don’t know any places that are “strictly bars” or “mostly bars” that are non-smoking, but there are a lot of restaurants here with nice bars in them that are non-smoking. ---
**Author:** ![Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troy_mcclure_sf/32/4150_2.png) [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troy_McClure_SF)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2005, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-im-sick-of-the-smoke/316196/111 "2005-08-09T23:28:35Z")
> [@Nocturne](#): > > Well, I’m allergic to a lot of the stuff used in cheap perfumes and lotions, so maybe that should be banned too! I proposed a ban? > [@](#): > > And cheap perfume REEKS! Yep, and it’s rude to wear it. I really don’t understand why someone whose odor is offensive should be tiptoed around lest they be offended. I don;t go around yelling at smokers myself, out of politeness, but I certainly can’t blame someone else for doing so. ---
**Author:** ![joazito](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/7feea3/32.png) [@joazito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joazito)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2005, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-im-sick-of-the-smoke/316196/112 "2005-08-10T00:14:33Z")
> [@LaurAnge](#): > > I love people who ask me if they can smoke. Once in my life I heard that question and replied “no, I’d rather you didn’t”. It was from a guy who was sitting opposite me in a table in a restaurant. But my idiotic cousin told him “haha, very funny, OF COURSE you can smoke”. “No, actually, no you can’t. I really don’t want you to.” He went on and smoked. Funny hmm? ---
**Author:** ![Binarydrone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3da27b/32.png) [@Binarydrone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Binarydrone)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2005, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-im-sick-of-the-smoke/316196/113 "2005-08-10T00:21:46Z")
> [@joazito](#): > > … Funny hmm? Fucking hilarious! So funny that I want to renounce my considerate ways and go light up in a hospital nursery after kicking some nuns just so that I can see the look on people’s faces. I want to renounce all efforts to be considerate at all. After all, I belong to an evil class of people and so I might as well go with it. It sure sounds easier than trying to take into consideration the feelings of wilting little pussies who seem to get all bent out of shape about any adversity life throws their way. ---
**Author:** ![Queen\_Tonya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/4491bb/32.png) [@Queen\_Tonya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Queen_Tonya)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2005, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-im-sick-of-the-smoke/316196/114 "2005-08-10T00:25:43Z")
> [@Binarydrone](#): > > Fucking hilarious! So funny that I want to renounce my considerate ways and go light up in a hospital nursery after kicking some nuns just so that I can see the look on people’s faces. I want to renounce all efforts to be considerate at all. After all, I belong to an evil class of people and so I might as well go with it. It sure sounds easier than trying to take into consideration the feelings of wilting little pussies who seem to get all bent out of shape about any adversity life throws their way. As long as you do it in Portugal, apparently they’re used to it. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Helen\_s\_Eidolon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Helen\_s\_Eidolon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helen_s_Eidolon)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2005, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-im-sick-of-the-smoke/316196/115 "2005-08-10T00:42:53Z")
**Q. N. Jones** , one of the ways in which Montreal is more ‘European’ than most of North America is that smoking is still really big up here. [StatsCan](http://www40.statcan.ca/l01/cst01/health07a.htm) states that a full 25% (okay okay, 24.9%) of age 12-and-up Quebecers are smokers. ---
**Author:** ![adhemar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@adhemar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adhemar)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2005, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-im-sick-of-the-smoke/316196/116 "2005-08-10T00:48:41Z")
> [@Binarydrone](#): > > adhemar, More to the point, where do you live that there is an smoking area inside? I haven’t seen something like that since the 80s. I live in the Southen United States and work for a privately owned company. They can apparently make their own rules. ---
**Author:** ![Q.N.Jones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/3da27b/32.png) [@Q.N.Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.N.Jones)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2005, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-im-sick-of-the-smoke/316196/117 "2005-08-10T01:35:09Z")
> [@LaurAnge](#): > > **Q. N. Jones** , one of the ways in which Montreal is more ‘European’ than most of North America is that smoking is still really big up here. [StatsCan](http://www40.statcan.ca/l01/cst01/health07a.htm) states that a full 25% (okay okay, 24.9%) of age 12-and-up Quebecers are smokers. In Iowa, it’s 20%. [Iowa 2004 Smoking Study](http://www.idph.state.ia.us/tobacco/pdf/ATS_ExecutiveSummaryFinal_ATS4-05.pdf) Doesn’t sound like a big difference, but maybe it is significant in the way businesses perceive their clientele. 😕 ---
**Author:** ![adhemar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@adhemar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adhemar)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2005, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-im-sick-of-the-smoke/316196/118 "2005-08-10T01:47:53Z")
TDN! Move to the South U.S. I don’t know of a single non-smoking restaurant or bar. The motel I stayed in was 50% smoking rooms and since it seemed someone had been smoking in the non-smoking room I was in, that makes it 51% smoking rooms. I HAVE been asked if it was ok to smoke near me and then that person got huffy when I told them I preferred they didn’t. I have also been told by smokers who were in a group of people I was dining with that I was not welcome where they were smoking since I ask them to not blow smoke in my face and as you say it is their legal right to smoke it is apparently also their right to wave cigarettes in my face and to pay no attention to where theur exhalations have gone. I have gotten up and left since that si the only right I have in this situation. Lastly, “So when calm kiwi is on her break time at work, huddled under a tree on a footpath far away from the door indulging her legal habit, it’s okay for coworkers to cast withering glances and make disparaging remarks?” Um yeah, if I can be forced to huddle in all the bad weather far away from the door etc etc because I don’t want to spend my breaks inhaling smoke. ---
**Author:** ![Q.N.Jones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/3da27b/32.png) [@Q.N.Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.N.Jones)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2005, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-im-sick-of-the-smoke/316196/119 "2005-08-10T01:51:13Z")
> [@adhemar](#): > > TDN! Move to the South U.S. From this link: [CDC report on regional smoking differences](http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/00001003.htm) . > [@](#): > > When ranked according to smoking rates, the states in the highest tercile were all clustered east of the Mississippi River, primarily along the Ohio River Valley. Maybe you can at least vacation there. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Rubystreak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Rubystreak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rubystreak)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2005, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-im-sick-of-the-smoke/316196/120 "2005-08-10T02:10:27Z")
> [@Binarydrone](#): > > Fucking hilarious! So funny that I want to renounce my considerate ways and go light up in a hospital nursery after kicking some nuns just so that I can see the look on people’s faces. I want to renounce all efforts to be considerate at all. After all, I belong to an evil class of people and so I might as well go with it. It sure sounds easier than trying to take into consideration the feelings of wilting little pussies who seem to get all bent out of shape about any adversity life throws their way. I don’t understand this reaction. Someone posited that smokers have gotten more polite. Others have not experienced this politeness, and told their stories to rebut. This makes you want to be a total fucking dick? Why? Because you’re so oppressed? No one is saying you shouldn’t smoke. Smoke all you want. Why can’t you understand that people who don’t smoke don’t want to deal with your smoking? It really smells bad. The stench lingers-- you have to launder your clothes and wash your hair to get rid of it. You have to get coats dry cleaned to get the smell out-- you gonna pick up the tab for that? I don’t think it makes you a wilting little pussy if you don’t want to smell like someone else’s bad habit. That’s why people don’t want smokers near them. It’s not about an urge to make you feel bad or castigate you. IT’S NOT ABOUT YOU AT ALL. It’s an attempt to protect themselves. How about this, since you made the analogy? The next time a smoker gets smoke on me for more than a minute, can I spray him with some really reeky perfume? While he’s eating, especially? If so, then that’s fair. Otherwise, they should go somewhere they aren’t ruining someone else’s day. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-im-sick-of-the-smoke/316196.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-im-sick-of-the-smoke/316196.md?page=7)