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| -Short Attention Span Theater- |
| Fag butt law leaves staff fuming |
| 2004-10-01 |
| Made you look! And, no, this has nothing to do with the recently defeated gay marriage ban amendment either. For Ken Livingstone the idea seemed simple enough. Under a new drive for a cleaner London, smokers would face £50 fixed penalties for dumping cigarette ends in the street. The Mayor was keen for his staff to lead by example. There were to be no excuses - the latest newsletter made that clear. They were not allowed to litter the pavement outside City Hall. Those staff members who wanted to smoke would have to use the heat-resistant "Stubbi" cigarette pouch given to them to dispose of the offending item. The small pouch comes with step-bystep instructions. Step one: put cigarette, lit-end first, into Stubbi. Step two: close flap and press button (leave closed for 20 seconds). Step three: ensure cigarette is extinguished before storing or disposing of Stubbi. Step four: empty Stubbi when contents are fully extinguished. But as details emerged of Mr Livingstone's latest campaign, staff at City Hall seemed to be struggling to comply. In only half an hour the Evening Standard saw 19 workers come out of the building, light up, enjoy a cigarette then stub it out on the pavement. "It's ridiculous," said one. "Look around you - there's nowhere for us to dispose of our cigarettes apart from the pavement. Ken won't give us a smoking room so we have to come out here, endure all types of weather and now we're being told not to litter the streets. "Where does he want us to put our fag ends, in our pockets? We've been given these little pouches which only hold five butts and yet Ken won't let us empty them in the office bins. We have to take them home." In minutes, a cleaner was out on the concourse sweeping up. But as soon as he left other workers appeared - apparently oblivious to Mr Livingstone's wishes. "These Stubbi pouches are rubbish," said one. Her colleagues agreed. A line manager said: "As you can see, no one is taking a blind bit of notice. Employing 750 wardens to enforce Ken's new policy is going to cost tens of thousands of pounds. Can't he spend the money on something better?" Mr Livingstone has written to 300 firms warning them that their staff who smoke outside should not throw away cigarette ends. To make it easier for smokers to comply he spent ?30,000 on 15,000 pouches. His officials claim 2,700 tons of cigarette waste including packaging, matches and butts are dumped on London's pavements each year. Under the 1990 Environmental Protection Act, council enforcement officers can issue ?50 fixed-penalty notices for littering. Offenders have the option to pay the penalty within a few weeks or they can go to court. For once in his life, Livingstone may be on to something here. When you multiply the number of tobacco smokers in the United States by between five and ten, you get the number of cigarette butts left on the ground or otherwise improperly disposed of EVERY DAY. Most people smoke more than ten cigarettes per day, the lower number is intended to account for those few ethical smokers who do not litter. Add up the numbers and you get TENS OF TONS of trash being littered into the street and onto our sidewalks every 24 hours. This figure disregards the number of forest and brush fires caused by goons who whip still-smouldering cigarette ends out of their car windows whilst driving. The cost to taxpayers is enormous. Cigarette filters take a very long time to decompose and are extremely unsightly to boot. I wish there was some way to charge a deposit on them so that they had to be returned for reimbursement. In my entire life, I have run into only a very few scrupulous cigarette smokers who took even the least pains to ensure that they did not litter. The rest are among some of the most thoughtless swine I have ever met. |
| Posted by:Zenster |
| #6 #3 No Zenster, I didn't think this was a subject on gays. But your title is a clever play on words. Some titles go well beyond the most warped imaginations, Bryan. Did you click the link? That was the article's running masthead. As to Livingstone, note how I said "For once in his life, Livingstone may be on to something here." I think old Ken is brain dead meself. I just happen to detest habitual litterers. Especially those who tend to start brush and forest fires with impunity. |
| Posted by: Zenster 2004-10-02 2:53:00 AM |
| #5 Red Ken strikes again! |
| Posted by: mojo 2004-10-01 12:14:47 PM |
| #4 LOL as an ex-smoker who always packed his butts and trash home I can assuere you there is nothing worse than a reformed smoker except a bleeding heart liberal who know whats best for you in all respects. Anyone could safely however be the opposite of Ken Livinstone and be in very good company. Having read some of the total crap that has come out of his mouth over the years I am suprised he is still with us. How he has come to be the mayor of the most populated city in the EU is beyond me. Human stupidity still amazes me. It would be like making Willie Brown mayor of Los Angles. As far as thoughless swine go, aholes who shoot up road signs quite easily out match thoughtlessness of some smokers. At least the smokers are addicted. |
| Posted by: Sock Puppet of Doom 2004-10-01 7:51:01 AM |
| #3 No Zenster, I didn't think this was a subject on gays. But your title is a clever play on words. I'm an expert at giving up smoking - I've done it so many times. I'm currently weed-free and have been for a gestation period of nine months. so I can appreciate both sides of the argument. In terms of sheer obnoxiousness, however, I think the PC non-smoker with his cast-in-stone regulations and conditions has the edge over the smoke-in-your-face butt-flinger. |
| Posted by: Bryan 2004-10-01 7:28:40 AM |
| #2 I'm all for fining litterbugs - there's not excuse for not putting your rubbish in a bin (and if there isn't a bin, take the stuff home with you, for heaven's sake), but at least fag butts are biodegraded relatively quickly and insignificantly small, so there's worse rubbish to deal with out there. (Fly tipping, for instance - how many butts would you have to drop to equal one mattress? But I digress...) I'm inclined to agree with SPoD. It's a good rule of thumb to oppose whatever Red Ken advocates. And why doesn't he provide a bin for his own staff, who he's obliged to stand outside for their fix? I wonder how many rooms he's dedicated to private religious (read: Muslim) observance in City Hall? Intolerant bugger. |
| Posted by: Bulldog 2004-10-01 7:01:47 AM |
| #1 Anything that commie waste of skin Livingstone is for I am against. Just to be a prick. He certainly is one a horrible outrageous jerk. |
| Posted by: Sock Puppet of Doom 2004-10-01 6:01:01 AM |