Sickening nerves had me reaching for everyone’s favorite poison– Not alcohol, or meth, but kindly tobacco. Simultaneously, Thailand was on fire. Slash and burn agriculture set the entire country literally ablaze. Already pollution-choked cities like Chiang Mae and Bangkok produced beyond emergency levels of smog, or so the State Department told me in email alerts suggesting I stay inside. Public health workers stood by the side of streets handing out masks from the backs of pick-up trucks. I’m from Houston. I didn’t give a fuck.

Cigarette packs in Thailand sport grotesque real life photographs of black lungs, gunky teeth and emaciated citizens on respirators. Good for them, but when a day in the life of your everyday Thai person is like smoking three packs a day, why suck the joy out of it? Under such circumstances, smoking an extra menthols made me feel clean

Cigarettes don’t give you cancer. Livining in Thailand gives you cancer.

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Posted on Tuesday, March 27th, 2007 at 6:06 pm in Culture Wars, Media. Follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Leave a response, or trackback from your own site.