DON'T HATE ME
I am truly obsessed with the warnings
written on objects and places that try to dissuade people from doing
something. For me, the most
memorable warning was the one about the grass. In the parks that I used
to go to when I was about 6 or 7 (the time when I was learning to read),
I always used to see the warning: "Thank you for not stepping on the
grass." In a very naive way, I didn't think I deserved that, because I
had already stepped on the grass. No need for a thank you, then:)
Anyway, other warnings that are very common
in Turkey are ones about littering, such as: "Anyone who throws trash
here is an animal." How polite is that? There's another one, in
restrooms: "Leave it the way you would want to find it." Well, some
people might want to find it different from the way others would. How
about the one on toys: "Do not eat." If a small child is literate, s/he
will of course take that advice.
These are old clichés. There's also a newer
one that we run into many times every day. I'm talking about the
warnings on cigarette packets. I watch a friend of mine smoking with
great pleasure on his/her face, while at the same time I see that the
packet has a crying face on it. (It probably costs a lot of money to
design these unattractive packages.) "Cigarettes cause slow and painful
death," "Cigarettes cause lung cancer," "Tobacco use can make you
impotent"....
Most of the people I asked say that the
warnings affect them. However, they don't bother others. I have a friend
who pulls off the warnings and writes nicer things on the packets, such
as "Cigarettes are good for your health." Perhaps it's a way to not feel
guilty.
As a nonsmoker who has never smoked, I'm
influenced by the warnings. They make me aware of these kinds of harmful
effects and ensure that I will continue being a nonsmoker. But even if
they're capable of convincing nonsmokers like me, I've never met a
person who has decided to quit smoking because of these warnings! People
who smoke do it because they enjoy smoking--otherwise, they would have
quit already. At least, that's how it seems to me.
Don't hate me, but in my view, a cigarette
is a thing that you carry in your hand and keep in your mouth. It causes
you to blow white smoke into the air, which smells bad. It makes your
hair weaker, your skin older, and your teeth worse. I don't like
cigarette smoke coming towards me on a bright sunny day outside, and I
don't like it in closed areas, either--it makes it harder to breathe.
Again, don't hate me, but if addictive
drugs are forbidden, cigarettes should be forbidden, too, because they
have a direct effect on other people: drugs are bad only for you, the
user. Or at least (don't hate me), you should have to carry a huge bell
jar covering your head when you smoke. It will make you look stupid, but
both of us will be happy that way--you still get to smoke, and I get
protection from the harmful effects.
P.S. Congratulations! Turkey has more rules concerning smoking than EU
nations do. I love this country!
P.P.S. Maybe credit cards will soon have warnings on them, too, like, "Don't
be fooled by the installments, you'll have to pay them soon."
I wish everyone a week of fresh air and
good health!
Gülay Acar (COMD/III)
howtoreachgulay@yahoo.com
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