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Crack Down on Cigarette Litterbugs
March 5, 2005 | Garnet Dawn/Alice Lenschmidt

Posted on 03/05/2005 6:41:32 PM PST by Garnet Dawn

Crack Down on Cigarette Litterbugs

Most people know that cigarette smoking can cause illness and careless smoking can cause burning of buildings, forests, animals and people.

But perhaps many don't know what damage is caused by the extinguished butts discarded anywhere into our environment. I hadn't known either until I read the article in the Feb. 17 Wausau Daily Herald entitled, "Toxic butts befoul outdoors." Lots of damage occurs. Please get a copy and read it. The other day I saw a pile of butts in a parking lot, left there by someone who emptied a car's ashtray. How can we stop this littering of cigarette butts? The perfect answer would be to stop the manufacture of cigarettes, but that will never happen.

So let's catch all the butt litterers, impose large fines, and the money collected can help to repair some of the damage caused to the environment. People are fined for not picking up dog feces, and I don't think that dog feces does damage to the environment. It's just messy and unsightly.

Alice Lenschmidt, Rib Mountain


TOPICS:
KEYWORDS: ashtrays; bans; cigarettes; damage; envionments; environment; fines; garbage; litter; pufflist; smokers; smoking; smokingbans
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I agree that a pile of cigarette butts in a parking lot are any ugly offense, and that people should dispose of litter in receptacles. However, why should the litter complaints be limited to cigarette butts? An empty parking lot, public parks, beaches and other outdoor areas are usually littered with enough fast food bags and cups, empty pop bottles and cans, beer cans and other various litter that the cigarette butts are hard to detect. Littering is disgusting, no matter what form it takes. Large garbage cans are provided everywhere for paper, plastic and metal litter. The same is not true for smokers, as most outside ashtrays no longer exist.

All buildings are aware, with bans on indoor smoking, that smokers are going to have to extinguish their cigarettes before entering. The smokers are respecting the non-smoking laws by doing this. It shouldn't require rocket scientists to reach the logical conclusion that, if there are no ashtrays provided at entranceways, people are going to have to put the remainder of their cigarettes out on the ground. Generally, trash receptacles are provided but no ashtrays.

All litter is toxic. Styrofoam does not biodegrade. Paper is ugly. Food and beverage container litter draw bugs, rats and breed germs. All these items are killing wild and marine life, when disposed in our lakes, rivers and oceans. I think you'll find most smokers more considerate than the average litter bug, who has no excuse with multitudes of receptacles available.

Non-smokers' trash also belongs in the same category with feces. So, let's provide reasonable receptacles for everyone and ALL try to be more considerate. If necessary, let's fine ALL those who litter. Forget about our police enforcing the law anymore, let's make them all babysitters for the adults they are supposed to be protecting.

______________________________
Garnet Dawn - The Smoker's Club, Inc. - Midwest Regional Director
The United Pro Choice Smokers Rights Newsletter - http://www.smokersclubinc.com
Illinois Smokers Group - http://groups.yahoo.com/group/illinoissmokers/
mailto:garnetdawn@comcast.net - Respect Freedom of Choice!

1 posted on 03/05/2005 6:41:42 PM PST by Garnet Dawn
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To: SheLion; Gabz

Puff ping!


2 posted on 03/05/2005 6:43:36 PM PST by annyokie (Laissez les bons temps rouler !)
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To: Garnet Dawn

This is nothing that RFID chips can't fix.


3 posted on 03/05/2005 6:44:52 PM PST by spycatcher
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To: Garnet Dawn

Oh puhleez! We have ALL seen smokers flick their cigarette butts out of moving cars, dump the contents of their car ashtrays in the middle of parking lots, and just throw their cigarettes down wherever they happen to be when they're finished with them. There could be an ashtray on every streetcorner in America and this would still be a problem! Smokers are the *worst* litterbugs on the planet.


4 posted on 03/05/2005 6:45:32 PM PST by totherightofu
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To: totherightofu

Oh, you mean like the beer cans, paper cups and bags of fast food that people fling out of their car windows? Some people are neat and some are slobs. They are not divided by their smoking or non-smoking preferences.

There would be a lot less cigarette butts on the ground if receptacles were provided. What is everyone else's excuse for other kinds of garbage?

If you are an anti, be sure you don't litter before you point your finger at someone else.


5 posted on 03/05/2005 6:54:06 PM PST by Garnet Dawn
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To: totherightofu

Actually, newspapers and beer bottles are far more prolific, especially in terms of volume. Ban those too, you think?


6 posted on 03/05/2005 7:04:58 PM PST by thoughtomator (Do I really need a sarcasm tag?)
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To: annyokie; Just another Joe; Great Dane; Madame Dufarge; MeeknMing; steve50; KS Flyover; ...
Puff ping!

Thanks for the ping!!!

7 posted on 03/05/2005 7:24:24 PM PST by SheLion (The America we once knew and loved ........................is gone.)
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To: Garnet Dawn
Oh, you mean like the beer cans

You can thank open container laws for that one. I grew up in Very Rural county in Ohio. It was common for people to toss empties in the back of a pickup truck or the back seat. At some point in the early 80s, the cops started enforcing open container laws, even in the bed of a pickup. Guess where the cans went thereafter?

Not excusing or advocating drinking and driving but if it is illegal to have certain trash in a vehicle, guess what happens to that trash?

8 posted on 03/05/2005 7:47:12 PM PST by Malsua
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To: totherightofu

You feel very strongly about this?


9 posted on 03/05/2005 7:50:53 PM PST by NautiNurse (Osama bin Laden has more tapes than Steely Dan)
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To: totherightofu
Smokers are the *worst* litterbugs on the planet.

Your proof, please.

BTW, this smoker spent two hours sorting out recyclables today to bring to various centres around my town.

10 posted on 03/05/2005 7:56:10 PM PST by Happygal (liberalism - a narrow tribal outlook largely founded on class prejudice)
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To: Garnet Dawn
I don't smoke ciggies, but my cigar butts go into an empty gatorade or Mtn Dew bottle if I'm driving.

Or an ash tray if I'm walking. I don't litter. I'm an outdoorsman.

11 posted on 03/05/2005 7:57:54 PM PST by Dan from Michigan (Living in the reddest county in East Michigan)
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To: totherightofu
Smokers are the *worst* litterbugs on the planet.

Then what the hell are those beer cans I see from field party litterers that drive down my dad's street? Or the fast food litter I see on the expressway?

Smokers do their part in litter, but I see as much from the others as well.

12 posted on 03/05/2005 7:59:18 PM PST by Dan from Michigan (Living in the reddest county in East Michigan)
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To: Happygal

When I used to sell my aluminum cans in the late 80's, I'd always get docked for the ones full of butts. Hey, at .90/lb it payed off.


13 posted on 03/05/2005 7:59:48 PM PST by digger48
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To: digger48

Well, I'm in Ireland, and they don't actually pay you to recycle.

But the local authorities do charge you 'by weight' to take away your refuse. So I guess it's in my interests to recycle. I don't mind that. I'm all for the polluter paying.


14 posted on 03/05/2005 8:03:08 PM PST by Happygal (liberalism - a narrow tribal outlook largely founded on class prejudice)
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To: Malsua

Same principle. I don't condone drinking and driving either, but I have to admit to drinking beer on occasion or mixing something a little more interesting into a coffee thermos on a trip. We are living in a police state. Seat belts remember? grrrr!

They are manufacturing autos without ashtrays now, which (in my opinion)is really a crime. Either that or they make the ashtray small and put it in an inconvenient place, so you have to bring you own anyway. Sure it cuts the manufacturer's cost, but even non-smokers could use an ashtray for toll way change. Nothing like anti's taking advantage of the politically correct on every front.

Still, I dump my car ashtray and garbage at a gas station or when I get home. Plus, throwing a lit cigarette out a car window while moving is a really good way to have it blow back in and burn the inside of the car...

Garnet



Oh, you mean like the beer cans
You can thank open container laws for that one. I grew up in Very Rural county in Ohio. It was common for people to toss empties in the back of a pickup truck or the back seat. At some point in the early 80s, the cops started enforcing open container laws, even in the bed of a pickup. Guess where the cans went thereafter?

Not excusing or advocating drinking and driving but if it is illegal to have certain trash in a vehicle, guess what happens to that trash?


15 posted on 03/05/2005 8:12:53 PM PST by Garnet Dawn
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To: totherightofu
We have ALL seen smokers flick their cigarette butts out of moving cars, dump the contents of their car ashtrays in the middle of parking lots, and just throw their cigarettes down wherever they happen to be when they're finished with them

Those are the ones you see.
The ones you don't see are the ones that discard the cigarette butts in ashtrays in their cars, which by BTW you have to special order now, the ones that empty their ashtrays in a litter receptacle, either at home or a public trash can, and the ones that field strip their butts when nothing is available.

Trash is trash, no matter the source.

16 posted on 03/05/2005 8:17:44 PM PST by Just another Joe (Warning: FReeping can be addictive and helpful to your mental health)
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To: Happygal

You can sell it here at some of the scrap-yards, aluminum is only about .25/lb now. Not worth the effort. Recycling spots closing 'cause no profit. All ours go to the dump now.


17 posted on 03/05/2005 8:19:06 PM PST by digger48
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To: digger48

Well, Ireland is a small little island. So we are rapidly running out of landfill/tiphead/dumps, and there are no incineraters in Ireland.

We're encouraged to recycle.


18 posted on 03/05/2005 8:23:28 PM PST by Happygal (liberalism - a narrow tribal outlook largely founded on class prejudice)
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To: Happygal

It's a real problem here too. I live 1000 miles from NYC, but we have New York and New Jersey trash dumped here everyday.


19 posted on 03/05/2005 8:35:43 PM PST by digger48
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To: totherightofu
Oh puhleez! Smokers pay more "sin" tax than anyone, use some of those ill-gotten gains to hire a few "guest workers" to clean them up.

BTW: I smoke plain ends and field strip them so it's all leaves and paper if you can find anything.

20 posted on 03/05/2005 8:43:36 PM PST by this_ol_patriot
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