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From: laura@utcsstat.UUCP (Laura Creighton)
Newsgroups: net.flame
Subject: Re: what is it about smoking
Message-ID: <933@utcsstat.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 21-Aug-83 18:21:34 EDT
Article-I.D.: utcsstat.933
Posted: Sun Aug 21 18:21:34 1983
Date-Received: Sun, 21-Aug-83 19:06:14 EDT
References: <1574@hp-pcd.UUCP>
Organization: U. of Toronto, Canada
Lines: 36

Nothing about smoking. If you do not remember how I got into this
discussion, it was because I thought that people's hatred for Tim
Maroney was getting in the way of listening to him, so I could do a
bettter job, by virtue of not being hated so much. Some people have
written to me saying that they did not understand Tim, who they
loathe, but understand me. Therefore I have been successful to some
extent in my purpose.

My gripe is not with smokers/nonsmokers/I-dont-care-about-smokers
but with the legal system. (See Tim Maroney's article in net.politics,
or write to me (i have it saved) if it has been deleted on your system).

I do not want a legal system based on restrictions, taboos, don't do this
or mommy will slap you, however you want to think about our current legal
systems. I find them dangerous, because they do not encourage people to
aspire beyond the moral level of five-year-olds.

From where i stand, the question of Blacks becomes entirely relavant.
Militant non-smokers are using the societal consensus (which they
claim is in their favour) as a basis for their legislation. If this
is their basis, and you support their basis, then you must support
other cases where societal consensus had a strong opinion -- for
instance, Slavery in the South. I could use other examples, but I
deliberately choose obvious examples so that I do not need to indulge
in long discussions about whether my example was 'right' or 'wrong'.
Most people these days believe that slavery was wrong. Also, the
idea that societal consensus is not sufficient basis for law is
likely to be very repugnant to many people, and they may try to
avoid thinking about the issue unless it is slammed home very hard.
I have no compunctions against giving people hard lessons, most of
which I have learned has come hard, and i do not believe that there
are easier solutions. Nobody is being forced to read these articles
in any case.

Laura Creighton
utzoo!utcsstat!laura