November 10, 1994: Vol26n10: Letters

Dear Editor:
UB's administrative decision to become a non-smoking campus is both
unfair, insensitive and repressive. The minority rights of smokers are
being denied in the vague name of public health and alleged safety.
	If that decision is rational then the administration should
also:
	1.) Have the health clinic suspend all students from class
attendance and campus participation if they have an influenza or cold.
	2.) Administer disciplinary notices to any student who coughs
or sneezes in public proximity without covering up their mouth.
	3.) Prohibit the sale and dispensation of caffeined coffees on
campus, the example of hospitals who know that caffeine negatively
effects both the central nervous system and causes high blood
pressure.
	4.) Contract all food service operations with a company that
will guarantee complete use of "lite" foods, polyunsaturated oils and
100 percent organically grown fruits and vegetables. In this instance
we combat heart disease and the poisoning of lakes and waters by the
use of pesticides. Local natural food co-ops would gladly supply food
service.
	What rational public health and safety does a campus with two
nuclear reactors really represent? A legacy of nuclear waste, perhaps
by the waters of Little Valley, where real public health and safety
are jeopardized.
	The Bulls football team had bigger attendance in the
libertine, smoking atmosphere of Rotary Field days. In the fresh air,
no one was hurt, damaged or offended by the breezes that blew away
some occasional second-hand smoke.
	Unless the administration amends its policy, my last
homecoming has been had, and I will simply not attend any future
games.
A. J. Purens