Claiming Straight Edge is an Wise Economic Choice

In these extremely tough economic times, it's hard to find money, a job or even a little help sometimes. And it seems that with less money to go around people are actually spending more money on the things they don't actually need. Americans are spending more money on cigarettes and alcohol than before and the numbers are rising. As a nation we are driven to vices that we think will make us feel better rather than logically trying to find ways to actually make our lives better. Basic math will tell anyone that giving up smoking and drinking will put so much more money into your savings that you won't need to live paycheck to paycheck, which is all to common these days. Even looking at really old data on spending for cigarettes it's so obvious that you can retire on the money you'd save in 30 years.

In the end, not only would you be saving money, but you'd be saving your self from all the harmful effects if you claimed Edge.

New York should learn a little something from Tokyo

I recently got back to NY from Tokyo, Japan. My wife and I went there for our honeymoon. I was amazed at how clean their city was, how respectful people were to others, and people (no matter what job they held) were courteous and helpful to everyone.

Tokyo is a very clean city, there are no cigarette butts on the ground, no gum on the sidewalks, and no trash anywhere. Surprisingly they have no trash cans on any street corners, like you find in NY. People just wait till they find a place with a trash can instead of throwing things on the street. Japanese people have respect for their city.

Almost no one in Tokyo smokes. And when they do, they follow the laws and smoke in designated areas. They don't throw cigarettes on the sidewalk or out their car windows. Japanese people don't blow smoke in your face, or walk with a lit cigarette (something that the oblivious and disrespectful europeans truly we saw didn't get.) We were eating on a bench along the sidewalk one day and these four european women came up sat down next to us and just blew their smoke right at us; exactly what I want when I'm eating.) The week I was back in New York, I was on the subway to work and this businessman in a decent looking suit pulled a cigar from his pocket, bit off the end and spit it on the subway car floor. I looked at him with a look of surprise and he responded with a gruff F-You in an abhorrent New York accent. I retorted with a request to him to pick it up and throw it out properly, to which he replied that it was biodegradable. Of course I then needed to remind him that biodegradation only works when your outside and you have a proper place for it to degrade into. He says F-You again, and asks me if I'm from New York, and that since he's from New York he has some (I can only assume) constitutional right to be a disgusting pig and throw sh!t on the ground. I told him he was disgusting and then he just tried to intimidatingly stare me down. Japanese people have respect for their city.

Employees of the Tokyo JR transit, employees of the post office, and every store we visited were very courteous. And it's obvious it's not just cause I'm a foreginer spending money there, you can see how they interact with their own people and even when they are just doing their normal jobs. JR transit employees were nice, neat uniforms with clean white gloves. Could you imagine if an MTA employee wore white gloves, they'd be black in a week if they even wore them. Everyone in every store we visited, even those we just were window shopping in, were very polite and helpful. In NY if you need help from people in a store, they often won't help you, or even know what your talking about or even speak English (granted there are exceptions.) In Tokyo many store clerks know enough English to help you (which is nice since my Japanese isn't the best, but I at least try and they appreciate that.) Japanese people have respect for their city.

It's just plain nice to go someplace and feel that you aren't going to be treated like crap because that person thinks that they deserve more.

When is Aggravation Worth It?

When leaving my local subway station there was an MTA employee smoking in the station, underground.  Besides the obvious illegality of this, I was pissed cause it invades my lungs with his choice of suicide.  I wanted to say something to him, but would it even matter?  Would it make a difference if I called 311?  I needed to have a car towed once that was blocking the driveway to my apartment building, and after 6 hours the police never showed up, the jackass finally moved his car, and I could finally park my car in the damn spot I was paying for at the time.  So does the NYPD or 311 employees ever give a shit about anything?  My neighbours smoke, some smoke cigarettes others pot.  I can smell it in the hallway, or if I open my windows at night as well.  Then I'm forced to smell the shit and inhale, or turn on my A/C and hope it filters out the shit while I have to pay electircity for it instead of having clean fresh air.  So is it worth the aggravation to ask these jerks to stop smoking near windows?  Is it worth telling the cops that my neighbors smoke pot?  I want to be a good neighbor and not rat them out, but then they should be a good neighbor and not smoke pot.

I hate people.  I hate people that smoke.  I hate people that smoke pot.

Smoking, the MPAA & the American Lung Association

The MPAA announced that they will give new movies R ratings for showing images of people smoking (however the rating isn't mandatory.) Granted I agree with the American Lung Association that smoking in movies and TV shows is sometimes portrayed as sexy and cool (almost every episode of America's Next Top Model (my girlfriend watches it) shows the models lounging and smoking), but I'm not sure that it warrants an R rating. Definitely no G or PG movie should portray it in a cool way, but what about Cruella Deville, she's certainly not the image of beauty she thinks she is, and the fact that she smokes is a sure indicator of her unatractiveness (pretty much only adults think she's cool.) I think the context and situation should indicate the rating. I don't think an X-Files movie that features the smoking man should automatically be rated R, but if a new Bogart movie was to be shot today any character he would play shouldn't smoke unless it's an R movie. I know that parents are supposed to teach their children right from wrong, but as a country we need to also say that certain things are just not right for anyone.

I would like to know what the rules are for movies that feature alcohol and drunk driving. I'm going to have to do a little research, cause I think that's something that warrants stricter ratings in my opinion when you take into account underage drinking.

Update: I wanted to add something else to this. MOVIE RATINGS ARE NOT CENSORSHIP!!! People can watch any movie they want. Movie ratings only disallow children from viewing certain movies until they are adults and are capable of making decisions for themselves.

Brain Damage is a Cure for Smoking

Now don't take this news the wrong way and go around smashing smokers with baseball bats. But it seems that brain damage is a cure for smoking addiction. Now I'm sure brain damage is a cure for a lot of things like stress (imagine how less stressful life would be if your brain was damaged and you didn't understand anything anymore.)

Hopefully this will lead to figuring out how inhibiting a certain part of the brain can lead to ending nicotine addiction. Now we just need a cure for ignorance and the vile evil that is the tobacco industry and their devil worshiping lobbyists.