On tolerance

I smoke. Not exactly proud of it. But neither am I ashamed of it. I just do. I am a smoker and will continue to be so in the foreseeable future. Will I try to promote smoking as a lifestyle? No. Will I go to elementary schools and say that smoking is an acceptable lifestyle choice? No.

I make this statement, again, not to make smoking appear cool or a thing, but simply to make a point. And that is, I know a thing or two about discrimination.

Even with the president of the republic, an incorrigible smoker, city ordinances even national tax laws continue to be promulgated discriminatory of smokers. I get it. Second-hand smoke is bad. Ok, I will not smoke in our shared space then. But do not invade my own little private space with your self-righteousness. When I get out of my way to smoke in some nook where they store the garbage, you can not go there specifically just tell me all about your anti-smoking agenda. Unless you are there to collect the trash, that is my space. And from experience those guys hardly ever complain. They usually bum me for a cigarette actually.

The thing about tolerance is, you can not preach it by being intolerant of contrary opinions. You can not promote tolerance towards lesbians-gays-bisexuals-transgenders by going hammer and tongs whenever someone like Manny Pacquiao expresses his own honest opinion. So what if Manny Pacquiao does not like you? Does he have to like you? And you would impose that he like you? He is not allowed to have an opinion whether it be intelligent or dumb?

Look, us smokers have it worst. I've had numerous religious nuts tell me that smoking is a sin. This is how society in general thinks. They even named that discriminatory law "sin tax" -- now a "certified urgent bill". I ask the LGBT community, what was the last anti-gay tax legislated? But that's ok. I get it. We are a minority. But I dare the bible nuts to quote me that verse wherein Jesus said, "Thou shall not smoke."

I rant, ironically, to send out this message to everyone: chill. Look hard enough, and you will find that there are people who will never approve of whatever lifestyle you choose. Be it vegan, smoker, gay, environmentalist, conservative, progressive, liberal, etc. That's just intolerant people being intolerant. That's how they choose to live their life. My thing? Live and let live. And I really don't give a damn what these people think of me or how I live my life. That, my friends, is tolerance. Not giving a damn about intolerance. And yes, you are allowed your opinion.