Letter to the editor

Issues besides smoking on campus need addressing

I am a custodian here at UWRF and I honestly enjoy coming to work each day. I will be the first to agree that a smoke-free campus would provide a pleasant environment for anyone.

I visited Winona State this summer and it was very nice, and easy to obey the rules.

However, when you state that you want the campus to be tobacco-free you fail to mention anything about smokeless tobacco products—of which I’m sure a number of student athletes use. On a daily basis, I clean it off the walls of residence halls and find in bottles in the lavatories.

So before you kick me to the curb and make me stand on the other side of the street, be sure you mean what you say and say what you mean.

Last time I checked, I still live in America and pay my taxes, especially on cigarettes - what cost $5 last year now costs me $8.

I would abide with any decision the University makes, it’s just that I take umbrage with the idea that smokers appear to be made out to be modern day pariahs, while binge drinking and public urination seem to be the accepted norm by some of the people who want me to go smoke somewhere else.

Tom Uldrich