A few weeks ago, I mentioned to some friends that Obama is a smoker and they were aghast - didn't fit their profile of him. Though much discussed, O has (wisely) not smoked in public. Though it would make an interesting photo, let's face it. I do appreciate that this nasty habit (which I infrequently dabble in when drunk or upset) gives him a more human quality and takes him down a notch or two on the deity scale.
I/We would make a huge mistake in making this guy into some perfect god and quite frankly, the cigarettes help with this. He's going to do his best at this President thing and sometimes, he's going to fuck up and when that happens, dude is going to need a cigarette - big time.
My favorite TV newsman, Tom Brokaw, succeeded where Barbara Walter failed and got O to fess up during last weekend's 'Meet the Press' interview. When asked if he'd quit, O stammered:
“You know, I have, but what I said was that, you know, there are times where I’ve fallen off the wagon. Well…”
“Well, wait a minute,” Brokaw said. “Then that means you haven’t stopped.”
Totally BUSTED!
“Well, fair enough,” O said. “What I would say is, is that I have done a terrific job under the circumstances of making myself much healthier, and I think that you will not see any violations of these rules in the White House.”
Who set these no-smoking rules anyway? None other than Hillary Clinton who will be around to enforce, no doubt.
Still, O can always take a tip from Willie Nelson and head up to the roof:
"I inhaled frequently. That was the point."
--Barack Obama, when asked if he had inhaled on a marijuana cigarette
10 comments:
I'm apart of this little book club in my neighborhood. At the last get-together, someone mentioned the almost didn't vote for Obama because he was a smoker. It sent my favorite FemiNazi neighborhood into a tizzy, that someone who base their vote on one 'small' issue. Turns out this neighbor's mother is dying of a smoking related illness, and her chest is opened in the ICU now. So obviously it's a hot topic for her.
In the end, she voted for Obama, but it was almost a deciding factor for her.
As one who has quit myself, i hope he doesn't try to kick the habit while in office. It's a vile, disgusting addiction and anyone who works in or supports the tobacco idustry has blood on their hands. But that being said, to quit - you become a maniac for six months straight (I almost chewed flesh off my hand twice becasue I wanted to crawl out of my own skin so badly) and i don't want the president of our nation going through that while trying to acomplish other imporatnat business like leading us out of economic collapse, war, and global ecological ruin.
hugs, muffin
God, I have the best readers in the world - these are both fantastic points.
HDW: Yeah, you never know what issue each voter is going to hold personal. I think that gal had all the right to feel the way she did.
Muffin: Well said! I'm glad you did not crawl out of your perfect porcelain skin for a bunch of cancer sticks. I agree and hope that O gets a private smoking porch - he can quit when he leaves.
How bad is a few smokes anyway?
Like you, H, I smoke when I'm inebriated or stressed out. I went most of the year without smoking, but there were a few times when I succumbed to the temptation.
I wonder what other bad habits of mine Obama might share w/me ...
and I'd like to point out that I apparently typed that comment whilst riding high on the codiene. Yay for spellcheck!
Hotrodwife, I like the cut of your jib.
MD: Totally agree - a few smokes should not a sin make. As for other habits that O might share with you, maybe he also does ventriloquism with cats?
HDW: Whoa. You earned the coveted 'cut of your jib' award from Fang. You're in the big time now, girl!
My own 2 shekels? I tend to think less of a person that smokes....keeping in mind that most of my family smokes and I LOVE them to death.
For me, I just loathe the smell of cigarette smoke...it turns my stomach and hurts my nose like someone jammed a torch in my nostrils. And my mind equates that to if you are a smoker, I don't want to be around you when you smell of smoke...cause it physically hurts me.
So yeah...he drops a couple of notches down the scale for me too....but I still want him as my President.
Kath: Duly noted!
While I didn't vote for Obama, I totally think that his smoking shouldn't be an issue. God bless 'im, he could be a perfect president, start to finish, and he'd still have one of the most stressful jobs in the world. It won't take mistakes that he makes to give him stress. I'd think the intelligence briefings alone would do it!
I hope, for him and for his family, he's able to quit at some point in his life. But I can think of a lot of great thinkers and leaders who were good friends with cigarettes, pipes, and cigars.
(He should probably steer clear of making policy statements about the tobacco industry, though ;)
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