Smoking

[TexasRangersFan]

I too started smoking again after arriving here in the Philippines in March of 2011. It was the low low cost of the smokes compared to those in the U.S.A. that got me. I love smoking. I quit due to the extremely high cost as well as the insane laws in the U.S.A. I am now up to 2 1/2 packs a day. I went thru the VA stop smoking program 3 times. I had no desire to quit all 3 times. I only went because I was ordered to by the doctor. Seems every time I coughed at the VA they sent me to the program. I finally quit on my own using patches and gum I bought at a certain large department store. It took several attempts but I finally quit. for a couple of months that is. I spend around 2500 pesos a month here on smokes. Compared to 4 to 5 hundred USD in U.S.A. it is a lot less here. When in the good ole U.S.A. I was stopped by the police in California near Berkley and given a 50 dollar ticket for smoking in my car while driving. I was also stopped by a security guard on campus there and given another 50 dollar ticket for walking on the sidewalk and smoking. When I left Texas to come here I could no longer smoke in my favorite restaurant. I thought it was bad enough with the stupid laws when they banned carrying guns into restaurants. Its changed now. You can carry a gun into a restaurant as long as you have a permit and you don't show it to anyone.As long as there is a sign stating that.

However. If you don't have a permit and carry your gun into a restaurant and someone sees it... well I tell you what. they make you take the gun back out to your vehicle and leave it there. That is unless you point it at someone. Just DON"T SMOKE. Light a smoke and BUZZERS and BELLS and FLASHING LIGHTS go off people start screaming. The next thing ya know the police are there, guns out, yelling " HANDS ON YOUR HEAD, MOVE OUT OF THE BOOTH, LAY FLAT ON THE FLOOR WITH YOUR HANDS OUT AWAY FROM YOUR SIDES". By the way. They mean that your arms should be out away from your body at a 90 degree angle or they step on your hands. It hurts. Then they grab and touch every part of your body. Including trying to shove their thumb up your butt. They even take your gun out of your shoulder holster. They do ask if you have a permit tho. They then yell at you and tell you how you endangered the lives of all the innocent people there at the restaurant. Not for having a gun tho. For Smoking.Then they grab you by the handcuffs and pull you off the ground, nearly pulling your arms out of socket. Then they take you outside and make you stand in the hot sun while they take statements from the people in the restaurant. Then they tell you your rights and have the balls to ask you why you did it. "Why did you do it sir?" As if you had just done something so horribly unforgivable. Then its a trip to the local jail in handcuffs ( which hurt after having your hands stepped on ) in the back of their wonderful police car ( which by the way smell like vomit ). Then they tell everyone there what you are being arrested for and they actually LAUGH, can you believe that they actually LAUGH. Then they put you in a nice room with windows that look like they have chicken wire inside them along with rapists, murders, thieves, and drunks, Then an attorney shows up, at least some guy saying he is an attorney, and tells you will see the Judge as soon as the judge has the time and there are no beds to sleep on, which is probably a good idea considering the other guests at their private little resort they have there.

They only have a plastic picnic table bolted to the floor with round seats. Along with a big fricken sign that says. NO SMOKING!!! . Then your attorney comes back in and tell you that since its Friday you will have to wait there until Monday to see the Judge. While you wait they offer you a wonderful choice of meals, which includes egg salad sandwich on wheat bread or tuna salad on wheat bread and tap water, but only during certain times of the day. 3 times a day. Then they come in just before you get your chance to see the judge and give you an orange jump suit to put on that is way too big and put on a new set of handcuffs with a matching set for your legs with a connecting chain from hands to feet to complete your new look. Then they take you out the back door of the jail accompanied by 4 armed police officers, one carrying a shotgun, one carrying an assault rifle, and the other two on each side holding your arms so tight you can no longer feel the pain from the handcuffs. Then they walk you across the street in full few of all the people and even stop traffic. Then they take you into the court house by way of a side entrance and make you wait in a little room where they use yet another pair of hand cuffs to chain you to a bar that is bolted to the wall. Then after standing there not able to sit, lean on the wall or even scratch yourself they unhook ya from the wall and lead you into the courtroom where you meet your attorney who tells you to plead NO CONTEST, and before you get the chance to say "what is that" the judge says " How does the defendant plead" to which your attorney reply's for you with " NO CONTEST your honor".

Then you look around the room. There is the waitress from the restaurant there with her attorney, the attorney for the city, an attorney for the restaurant, the little old lady that was clear on the other side of the restaurant with her attorney.

Then the judge says " I find the defendant guilty on all charges" All charges? what? So you ask your attorney what the Judge is talking about, unfortunately he is busy looking at some papers and says to not worry. Then the judge says he fines you 500 Dollars and time served with 3 years probation and you are banned from ever going to any of the restaurants owned by that company ever again, not just in that town but in the entire world. Then you are escorted by the same 4 police officers to the cashiers window in which the cashier then has the balls to ask you " Will that be cash or credit card sir? ". Then if you say you don't know the cashier will politely tell you " We have a payment plan option if you would like". " We have to forms of payment plan. 1 you come in every week and pay 50 dollars, however you are not allowed to leave the city. or 2. you can be sent to the county holding facility and earn 12 dollars a day towards your fine until it is paid in full". Then you can offer to pay with your credit card as soon as it is returned to you. By the way you will find out at this time that your attorney has your wallet with your credit card in it. You will then take the reciept for payment of your fine back with you across the street to the jail where you will be allowed to change back into your clothes and released from jail. Then your attorney will meet you as you leave the jail and tell you that by pleading, no contest, you avoided a felony charge due to being given 2 tickets for smoking in the past. Being the 3rd time it would make it a felony. Then he will tell you that you were also charged with endangering the life of an elderly person, however, by pleading no contest you avoided the 2 year mandatory jail sentence.

So I really don't think the laws here are too bad about not smoking. I have been to Davao where you are not supposed to smoke in the metro area of the city or pay the police officer at the time 10000 pesos. I never had any trouble there at all. I have also been to Luzon, Leyte and here in Cebu. I smoke almost everywhere. I don't smoke in the malls or in the Taxi's tho.

Edited June 1, 2012 by Jollygoodfellow
broke up long text as could not read it

[jode]

please tell me your post was sarcastic and not literally true. Wow its a crazy world . in the fifties we grew up in a cloud of smoke and it didn't hurt us...cough cough well we're still here anyway.

[ekimswish]

Just got back to Taiwan from the Philippines, and the Philippine smokes are longer than here in TW. Is that the same as compared to other countries?

[Jollygoodfellow]

I too started smoking again after arriving here in the Philippines in March of 2011. It was the low low cost of the smokes compared to those in the U.S.A. that got me. I love smoking. I quit due to the extremely high cost as well as the insane laws in the U.S.A. I am now up to 2 1/2 packs a day. I went thru the VA stop smoking program 3 times. I had no desire to quit all 3 times. I only went because I was ordered to by the doctor. Seems every time I coughed at the VA they sent me to the program. I finally quit on my own using patches and gum I bought at a certain large department store. It took several attempts but I finally quit. for a couple of months that is. I spend around 2500 pesos a month here on smokes. Compared to 4 to 5 hundred USD in U.S.A. it is a lot less here. When in the good ole U.S.A. I was stopped by the police in California near Berkley and given a 50 dollar ticket for smoking in my car while driving. I was also stopped by a security guard on campus there and given another 50 dollar ticket for walking on the sidewalk and smoking. When I left Texas to come here I could no longer smoke in my favorite restaurant. I thought it was bad enough with the stupid laws when they banned carrying guns into restaurants. Its changed now. You can carry a gun into a restaurant as long as you have a permit and you don't show it to anyone.As long as there is a sign stating that.

However. If you don't have a permit and carry your gun into a restaurant and someone sees it... well I tell you what. they make you take the gun back out to your vehicle and leave it there. That is unless you point it at someone. Just DON"T SMOKE. Light a smoke and BUZZERS and BELLS and FLASHING LIGHTS go off people start screaming. The next thing ya know the police are there, guns out, yelling " HANDS ON YOUR HEAD, MOVE OUT OF THE BOOTH, LAY FLAT ON THE FLOOR WITH YOUR HANDS OUT AWAY FROM YOUR SIDES". By the way. They mean that your arms should be out away from your body at a 90 degree angle or they step on your hands. It hurts. Then they grab and touch every part of your body. Including trying to shove their thumb up your butt. They even take your gun out of your shoulder holster. They do ask if you have a permit tho. They then yell at you and tell you how you endangered the lives of all the innocent people there at the restaurant. Not for having a gun tho. For Smoking.Then they grab you by the handcuffs and pull you off the ground, nearly pulling your arms out of socket. Then they take you outside and make you stand in the hot sun while they take statements from the people in the restaurant. Then they tell you your rights and have the balls to ask you why you did it. "Why did you do it sir?" As if you had just done something so horribly unforgivable. Then its a trip to the local jail in handcuffs ( which hurt after having your hands stepped on ) in the back of their wonderful police car ( which by the way smell like vomit ). Then they tell everyone there what you are being arrested for and they actually LAUGH, can you believe that they actually LAUGH. Then they put you in a nice room with windows that look like they have chicken wire inside them along with rapists, murders, thieves, and drunks, Then an attorney shows up, at least some guy saying he is an attorney, and tells you will see the Judge as soon as the judge has the time and there are no beds to sleep on, which is probably a good idea considering the other guests at their private little resort they have there.

They only have a plastic picnic table bolted to the floor with round seats. Along with a big fricken sign that says. NO SMOKING!!! . Then your attorney comes back in and tell you that since its Friday you will have to wait there until Monday to see the Judge. While you wait they offer you a wonderful choice of meals, which includes egg salad sandwich on wheat bread or tuna salad on wheat bread and tap water, but only during certain times of the day. 3 times a day. Then they come in just before you get your chance to see the judge and give you an orange jump suit to put on that is way too big and put on a new set of handcuffs with a matching set for your legs with a connecting chain from hands to feet to complete your new look. Then they take you out the back door of the jail accompanied by 4 armed police officers, one carrying a shotgun, one carrying an assault rifle, and the other two on each side holding your arms so tight you can no longer feel the pain from the handcuffs. Then they walk you across the street in full few of all the people and even stop traffic. Then they take you into the court house by way of a side entrance and make you wait in a little room where they use yet another pair of hand cuffs to chain you to a bar that is bolted to the wall. Then after standing there not able to sit, lean on the wall or even scratch yourself they unhook ya from the wall and lead you into the courtroom where you meet your attorney who tells you to plead NO CONTEST, and before you get the chance to say "what is that" the judge says " How does the defendant plead" to which your attorney reply's for you with " NO CONTEST your honor".

Then you look around the room. There is the waitress from the restaurant there with her attorney, the attorney for the city, an attorney for the restaurant, the little old lady that was clear on the other side of the restaurant with her attorney.

Then the judge says " I find the defendant guilty on all charges" All charges? what? So you ask your attorney what the Judge is talking about, unfortunately he is busy looking at some papers and says to not worry. Then the judge says he fines you 500 Dollars and time served with 3 years probation and you are banned from ever going to any of the restaurants owned by that company ever again, not just in that town but in the entire world. Then you are escorted by the same 4 police officers to the cashiers window in which the cashier then has the balls to ask you " Will that be cash or credit card sir? ". Then if you say you don't know the cashier will politely tell you " We have a payment plan option if you would like". " We have to forms of payment plan. 1 you come in every week and pay 50 dollars, however you are not allowed to leave the city. or 2. you can be sent to the county holding facility and earn 12 dollars a day towards your fine until it is paid in full". Then you can offer to pay with your credit card as soon as it is returned to you. By the way you will find out at this time that your attorney has your wallet with your credit card in it. You will then take the reciept for payment of your fine back with you across the street to the jail where you will be allowed to change back into your clothes and released from jail. Then your attorney will meet you as you leave the jail and tell you that by pleading, no contest, you avoided a felony charge due to being given 2 tickets for smoking in the past. Being the 3rd time it would make it a felony. Then he will tell you that you were also charged with endangering the life of an elderly person, however, by pleading no contest you avoided the 2 year mandatory jail sentence.

So I really don't think the laws here are too bad about not smoking. I have been to Davao where you are not supposed to smoke in the metro area of the city or pay the police officer at the time 10000 pesos. I never had any trouble there at all. I have also been to Luzon, Leyte and here in Cebu. I smoke almost everywhere. I don't smoke in the malls or in the Taxi's tho.

So what we hear about Texas here In Australia is true, everything is so much bigger???? :tiphat: