Unwelcoming; now posted on all entrances; contains vague threatI don't smoke. Nor do I like to smell second-hand cigarette smoke (although I occasionally find pipes aromatic).
Yet I think the local college's new anti-tobacco mandate extremely extreme. Smoking is not even permitted outside the campus buildings (away from the common entrances or areas).
Here's the 'zero-tolerance' - cough, cough - policy:
"North Central Michigan College is dedicated to maintaining a healthy work and learning environment for all students, employees and visitors. Effective August 1, 2011, the College prohibits the use of tobacco products by employees, students and visitors on the Petoskey campus except inside individual automobiles. The prohibition applies to all buildings and facilities, and all outdoor locations owned or controlled by the College. For purposes of this policy, tobacco is defined as any tobacco product that is smoked, chewed or consumed in any other fashion. Also included in this policy are electronic, nicotine-containing devices commonly referred to as 'e-cigarettes.' "
I wonder how these same health Stalinists would react if I mounted a crusade for a profanity-free campus? You know, as a way to cut down on noise pollution and create a less toxic environment.
The Iconic MM
7 comments:
Planet UMass is going one step further and banning it INSIDE private automobiles. And including mere possession, not just use.
You know, of course, that this policy will only apply to the students....
And you wonder why there are riots...
Whaaaa?
Sounds like a legal challenge waiting to happen.
0ne more thing -- as much antismoking as I am, the simple fact remains that nicotine is a potent psychoactive drug that works on what is called the "nicotine receptor" in the brain.
It is highly effective for women with ADHD -- I have no idea why only women but I have seen it work with enough different women to believe it. And it is not the placebo effect because it takes 5-15 minutes for any drug to get into the bloodstream and fully through the CNS -- and there is such a delay with this, it is not just the women saying it makes them feel better, I can objectively see improvements in the cognitive processes.
Yep, give the girl the cigarette and the boy the beer -- student affairs crisis management after midnight -- but I have seen the cigarettes help women in a variety of contexts and this is real.
Izzy -- it is worse than you think -- the same BOT policy (Newman Doctrine circa 1977) that gives the Faculty Senate the right to govern academics gives the Student Govt the right to govern student life. Hence this policy should have gone through the student govt - not faculty senate.
But UMass does not care -- they just lock up all dissident students in the psych ward just like the Soviets did. This place is expedientially more fascist than when you were here -- only a hateful parent would send a child to UMass Amherst...
one more thing -- when I was working for the housing authority, I dealt with a lot of DMH == Mass Dept of Mental Health -- caseworkers, all but one of whom was incompetent. But the one who wasn't said something that I suspect to be true -- nicotine also is helpful for people with Skitz -- she said "it quiets the voices in their head" -- I can't imagine what "voice in your head" *are*, but hey, if it works it works. and the various client did smoke one cig after another, all day..
Great article, glad I stumbled upon this.
Thanks, Mike, for visiting!
Post a Comment