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The Disappearance of the Ashtray

clivethompson.medium.com

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Re: The Disappearance of the Ashtray

#3
I really miss ashtrays at restaurant and other public places, like the bus. When I'm sitting at a restaurant table and I want to get rid of my chewing gum (or any other small piece of trash), I can never find a place to put it. Growing up ashtrays were everywhere and you could always count on one being close by.

Re: The Disappearance of the Ashtray

#5
The plummeting rates of smoking in the US is one of the rare areas where this country really shines when it comes to social welfare. Even many European states that have what I'd consider much more progressive social welfare systems have smoking rates that are appalling, often 3x or more the US rates.

Re: The Disappearance of the Ashtray

#6
post #3

I really miss ashtrays at restaurant and other public places, like the bus. When I'm sitting at a restaurant table and I want to get rid of my chewing gum (or any other small piece of trash), I can never find a place to put it. Growing up ashtrays were everywhere and you could always count on one being close by.

> When I'm sitting at a restaurant table and I want to get rid of my chewing gum (or any other small piece of trash)

That's what the underside of the table is for ;-)

Re: The Disappearance of the Ashtray

#7
It's tough to portray just how ubiquitous smoking was to a modern audience. You would go to a restaurant and the first thing your hostess would ask is "smoking or non"? I remember standing in a checkout line in the 80s as a child and being fascinated with the billowing clouds of smoke an old lady blew. I remember coming home from bars reeking of smoke, even though I didn't. Even teachers had their own lounges that reeked of smoke (nowadays in some states you could be fined for possessing Tobacco products on school grounds!).

I often think about how much younger today's generation looks and I can't help but think it's due to the huge reduction in the amount of people who smoke. The people I grew up with who still smoke look 5-10 years older than their peers.

Re: The Disappearance of the Ashtray

#8

The plummeting rates of smoking in the US is one of the rare areas where this country really shines when it comes to social welfare. Even many European states that have what I'd consider much more progressive social welfare systems have smoking rates that are appalling, often 3x or more the US rates.

Too bad opioid addiction and deaths are way up.

Re: The Disappearance of the Ashtray

#10
Looking forward to the day where the rest of Not-New-Zealand goes "actually, yeah, let's just ban this nonsense, this industry does not need to exist", and then have that industry cease to exist over the course of a, really too generous, "only existing addicts can buy your product" period.
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