Seeing through the smoke

Cigarettes are bad. There is really no debate on that issue. Not just for the smokers themselves, but also for those around them. And as we currently live in an age where this knowledge has impressed upon us as a society the need to take measures limiting the damages of tobacco, Portland State should follow suit and ban smoking on campus.

Over a year ago Portland Community College took it upon itself to ban smoking on all its campuses, which span far and wide across the greater Portland metro area. At every PCC location, smokers now must make the trek off campus to light up.

Mount Hood Community College has also taken a smoking ban initiative just this year, joining PCC as well as Oregon Coast Community College. All three colleges now enforce a smoke-free environment on their campuses.

However, PSU boasts a rather unique smoking scenario with its campus located in the midst of downtown Portland. We’re not exactly like other schools that can enjoy a sense of seclusion—enclosed in their own academic corner of their city. Unlike other institutions of higher learning, our campus is not separate from the communities that surround it—we are interwoven with them. In many instances, there are no distinctions between the city and PSU grounds.

Another issue is the South Park Blocks that run directly through the center of campus, posing a significant obstacle for any smoking ban here. How can the school enforce such a prohibition when public land runs all around and through it? After all, smoking on the sidewalk is perfectly legal and won’t change anytime soon.

But it is perhaps these obstacles that make PSU a prime candidate for a school with a smoking ban—such complications could actually make it a whole lot easier to institute one here.

It is because PSU is surrounded by public land that we can ban smoking. Smokers can simply go there, having an obvious location where enjoying a cigarette would be allowed. If you’re standing on any property that is strictly PSU’s, then take your cigarettes elsewhere. And this is why a ban at PSU won’t pose a significant issue—smoking-friendly land is a mere few steps away from PSU grounds. Instead of concentrating efforts on making more smoking shelters—honestly, who can even find them?—the emphasis would shift to creating smoke-free areas.

This actually doesn’t impose too much difficulty upon both groups. Essentially, what would be created are non-smoking havens instead of smoking shelters—non-smoking zones that happen to be PSU property.???????????????? It may seem a minor solution, and some may ask, “What’s the point?” The point is that,?????????????? for once, there will be clear non-smoking zones.

A byproduct of a ban would be that litter from tobacco products, including the more disgusting “waste” from chewing, would be diverted elsewhere, keeping PSU’s property free from clutter—at least from tobacco waste.

This, of course, doesn’t solve everyone’s issues with smokers in one clean sweep. There are always going to be smokers and they are always going to pass you on the street. This is just part of life and, frankly, folks should just get used to that. If you want to avoid every little inconvenience or health risk then there is one solution for you—stay inside your home and never leave.

It may seem funny, but in general I actually don’t support smoking bans. For example, I consider banning smoking in bars to be one example of mass-hysterical stupidity, sufficiently proving that sometimes our system fails to draw an intelligent vote. Going off on a frenzy that can only be likened to a religious crusade—to ban smoking from existence—is a ridiculous notion. What then? Are you going to ban alcohol? How about artificial sweeteners? Or what about the air pollutants coming off of everything from car exhaust to air conditioners? Somewhere, common sense has to come in—you can’t completely avoid every health risk posed on a daily basis.

However, it should be understood that specific communities, such as the one here at PSU, should be able to determine minor standards of health, comfort and safety—standards that appropriately fit their communities. PSU has the right and the ability to take on such an initiative. Banning tobacco on campus isn’t difficult, and it doesn’t inconvenience anyone. So why wait?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? ?