Friday June 5, 2009

Stop smokers from making us stupid

MALAYSIANS continue to amaze me time and time again. We call ourselves civilised, hospitable and caring but we are no more than a bunch of hypocrites with our sweep-under-the-carpet attitude.

If we are indeed civilised, we should realise the dangers of smoking,

If we are indeed hospitable, we should realise that causing others to inhale second-hand smoke, knowing that it’s slowly killing them, is not an act of kindness.

If we are indeed caring, we should realise the damage second hand smoke can do not only to other people but also our children.

Countless times I’ve been at a restaurant with my baby daughter enjoying a meal when suddenly, some guy sits down nearby and starts smoking with no regard for other patrons with young children even though there is a no-smoking sign glaring from various positions.

What am I to do? Do I go to him and ask politely if he could kindly put out his cigarette and thus, suffer his animosity? Or do I sit silently and hope he’d realise how uncomfortable he’s making us feel?

Or perhaps I should fan the air in front of me furiously, hoping he’d notice and put out his cigarette?

I’m not suggesting that these smokers should stop killing themselves. By all means, carry on but please, don’t take us down with you.

In Jewish society, smokers are shunned and treated abominably because smoke from cigarettes when inhaled contain chemicals that actually kill brain cells and thus, slowly diminishes one’s intellectual capabilities. In short, it makes people more stupid.

This explains why the Jews are among some of the smartest people on Earth.

They are smart enough to recognise the dangers of smoking and they are smart enough not to tolerate smokers in their society.

In doing so, they are making sure their people, especially their children, are not exposed to the dangers of smoking which kill brain cells.

I am sure this information is not new to us but we are religiously ignoring it. We blissfully turn a blind eye to things that make us uncomfortable or cramp our lifestyle. We’d rather raise children whose intellectual capabilities are reduced by our action than take the bull by the horn and deal with the problem.

Look at the various eateries all over the nation. The staff in many of them do not care if a patron smokes in areas where families with young children are having their meals.

This perhaps explains why Malaysians are not so smart. Not surprising, since our kids are fed second-hand smoke regularly.

Yes, the Government has banned smoking in shopping malls and government offices. However, there’s more that they can and should do.

They can enforce laws which make people unable to smoke in restaurants. Having no-smoking signs alone is not enough. Other members of the society should also act to stop smoking in restaurants. This should be done not only for us but also for our future generation.

ANNOYED & DISGUSTED,
Shah Alam.

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