I believe that there should be designated smoking areas throughout Pierce’s campus.
Let me start off by saying that I absolutely hate cigarettes. They’re really bad for your health. The smoke they produce smells awful and, as someone who suffers from asthma, it also makes it harder for me to breathe. On top of all this, at almost six dollars a pack, they’re pretty expensive and a waste of good money. Personally, I see no benefit whatsoever to cigarette use.
That said I am not nearly egotistical enough to believe that my views should dictate what other people choose to do with their lives, nor do I wish to take it on as my responsibility. People who decide to spend money on cigarettes and smoke them will likely do so regardless of my opinions and, because we are free people living in a democratic country, that is to be expected.
Designated smoking areas would be beneficial to everyone, whether they smoke or not. Those who do will have specific locations to do so. Those who don’t would know where those areas are and could choose to avoid them if they wish.
This option is the only one that leaves everyone satisfied. The two alternative solutions otherwise are either banning smoking completely on campus or the direct opposite of that: allowing smoking everywhere and anywhere on campus.
The first alternative restricts students from smoking for the amount of time they spend at Pierce each day. For many, that could mean several hours on end each day. Restricting people who smoke regularly from smoking could bring about anxiety, anger, and overall uneasiness. More generally, this solution would cause the smoking population to feel prohibited from exercising their right to smoke while they’re on campus.
The second alternative would be inconvenient to anyone who doesn’t want to be around cigarette smoke. I hate walking through a cloud of second-hand smoke. My hair ends up smelling of tobacco and the smoke always makes me cough. Granted not every non-smoker will be bothered by this to the same degree, but there’s an easy way to simply avoid bothering anyone at all.
Lucky for us, the campus at Pierce is large enough that we can entertain the option of designated smoking areas without infringing on anyone’s comfort. The areas should be fairly secluded from main building entryways and food distribution areas so that people who wish to avoid the smoking sections won’t have to actively go out of their way to do so.
The administration could easily label certain sections on campus using paint or signs. Then the selected locations should be added to the school map so that everyone would know exactly where they are. All in all, I believe that having designated smoking areas on campus is the way to go.
