[Olug-list] Re: Vurdert røykeforbud under OLUG-samlingene i bunkeren?

[Per Inge Oestmoen]

"Remco B. Brink" wrote:

> Per Inge Oestmoen <pioe@coldsiberia.org> writes:
> > It is not an argument. It is a _principle_. Those who live by
> > principles adhere to beliefs.

> And we all know that people who (fanaticly) adhere to beliefs have a
> tendency to become quite unreasonable.

The assertion that something is "reasonable" or "unreasonable" is in
itself a statement based on personal beliefs. The subjective and
therefore wholly personal expression "fanatically" is likewise
indicative of a personally held opinion. There is nothing wrong with
biting one's own tail, though. 

> I smoke, yet can understand that non-smokers might find a smokefree
> OLUG meeting more pleasant to attend. I guess that makes me more
> reasonable than you ;-)

That is an unsubstantiated inference. In theory, a lot of non-smokers
may find the smell of tobacco smoke quite a pleasant experience, yet
they may choose to view the habit of smoking in a negave light on
other grounds. Nobody said anything about what is pleasant or not. 

> > I personally believe in the superiority of tar-free lungs.

> Non issue. Tar-free lungs are ofcourse superior to the lungs of a
> (regular) smoker.

Wait a little. This may be statistically true. However, sports history
tells us that the Danish marathon runner Joern Lauenborg, an avid
chain smoker, ran the marathon at 2:14-2:15 at the peak of his running
(and smoking) career. So such statements need to be qualified too. 

> You were however not arguing about lungs but about the habit of
> smoking, which is a different issue all together.

At last, we may come down to reason. Granted that a certain habit
leads to inferior lungs over time, what can we then say about the
nature of its overall contribution to the general culture? 

Lastly: People with vastly more technical competence than myself
(forgive the little ad verecundiam here, it was an advice given to my
smoking brother) also state that the presence of microscopic tar and
soot particles from tobacco smoke shorten the life span of hard drives
because these particles will sift into the drives and ever so slowly
attach to the platters. 

I guess that we may _reasonably_ conclude that any habit that destroys
_hard_drives_ is most definitely _ukultur_. 

-- 
Per Inge Oestmoen, Norway
http://www.alpha-gruppen.com/