4
Cljarlottc ^ost
LIFESTYLES
7A
THURSDAY
July 1,1993
People's
Behavior Is
Litmus Test
"Dear Dr. Faulkner:
I work with a person who Is
always talking about how he
goes to church. He Is always
telling people! how much of a
Christian he is. But, he Is one
of the worst, most dishonest,
manipulative and unethical
people I have ever met. He
has made me lose respect for
people who go around
preaching the gospel, but do
everything that they can to
destroy your life. This is
turning me against religion.
It all seems so phony." Ms.
T., Indianapolis, Indiana
Dear Ms. T:
There are
obviously as
many types
of
"Christians"
as there are
other groups
of people.
1 Everyone
'oping has met a
person who
CHARLES
_ . church regu-
FAULKNER igrly and fol
lows the
golden rule completely. We
have also met people who at
tend church "religiously" but
are among the most horrible
people on this earth.
It Is obviously unwise to put
any group into any single
category simply because the
groups do the same thing. I
know someone who Is a
church official and is an
evil, abusive, manipulative
individual.
My position is to Judge peo
ple by their behavior. I also
judge them by the way that
they treat other people. I am
not Impressed by a person's
affiliation. It is not neces
sary for a person to belong to
church, or to any organiza
tion, m order to respect a fel
low human being. Some peo
ple have never been to
church, yet they are among ▼
the most respected (and re
spectful) people to exist.
What exactly do people mean
when they say that they are
Christians? Does it mean
that they go to church some
times? Does it mean they re
spect other people? Or, does
it mean that they are hiding
their bad deeds behind the
Bible? ▼
Now, here is a question for
you. Can you be successful
applying the principles of
Christianity in the tough
world in which we now live?
For mstance, if you are com
peting for a job against a per
son who uses "dirty" tactics.
See BEHAVIOR Fa^ 8A y
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The Woes Of Smokers:
They're Ordered Outside
New County Policy Forces Some
Employees To Change Lifestyle
By Cassandra Wynn
THE CHARLOTTE POST
Oh the woes of smokers!
They have been waved out,
asked out, and now outlawed
out.
This week, a new policy
which requires employees m
most Mecklenburg County
buildings to go outside to
smoke took effect.
That cigarette lit after a
meal, during a conversation,
while trymg to concentrate
on important work is no
longer something done as
second nature. Now smokers
have to get approval from co
workers, find smokmg are
as, or go outdoors to do what
used to be thought of as a
constitutional right.
The county policy is a
change from one implement
ed in March 1988 that pro
vided designated smoking
areas. "The new policy is m-
tended to reduce the enor
mous health consequences of
smoking and provide a safe
and healthy work environ
ment for all county employ
ees and client," according to
the Mecklenburg County
public service and informa
tion department.
The assault on smokers
has affected the habits of
Leon Givens, recruitment di
rector for the county. He
vows that he is not going to
go outdoors just to smoke.
"I've decided not to bring
my cigarettes to work," Giv
ens said. "I started preparing
for this four months ago.
With the designated smoking
areas, I began making chang
es m my lifestyle. I'm not go
ing to let any habit control
me."
Givens said, "There were
times 1 would want a cigar
ette after meals. Now ^ter
lunch, I don't even think
about a cigarette."
Until this week, Givens
would take a break four or
five times a day to smoke, he
said. A kmd of camaraderie
developed among smokers
gathering m break areas to
take a relaxing draw.
Now to go outdoors is just
too much. "To go up and
down the elevators is a waste
of time and inconvenient,"
Givens said. "The policy is
intended to make it difficult
to smoke." Unlike Givens,
some people see the new rules
as a hlnderance to productiv
ity.
Smoking helps Delores
Foster think. As a budget and
resource management ana
lyst for the county, she
spends hours poring over
numbers.
"I like to smoke when I'm
doing deep concentration,
for accuracy," Foster said.
"It's lightmg up and holding
the cigarette that helps. That
enhances my concentra
tion." She is willmg to go
outside for now. But the wm-
ter will be another story. "I
know I won't go outside m
the cold. My attitude is that,
maybe. I'll stop smoking."
Although she feels that the
new policy is unfair to smok
ers, Foster said she has
"elected not to let it bother
me. It should be just a desig
nated place to smoke. There
probably should be some
where employees and the
public could go. It's a real
strange thmg to happen in a
state where tobacco is the
main product. I'm finding
fewer places that I can
smoke. Maybe it does cause
cancer. I don't know. 1 do re
spect non-smokers. If I go
into someone's house and I
don't see ashtrays, I go out
side to smoke."
Foster said that she can
empathize with non-
smokers. "Sometimes it
bothers me too. There are
places that I go in that I have
to leave because I don't want
to be in all that smoke."
The rigid rules seem to
have an effect on how many
cigarettes smokers consume
a day.
"It reduces the amount of
smoking I do," Foster said. "I
don't smoke as much as I
used to. That's to my advan
tage. I smoke about a half of
a pack a day. I used to smoke
three-fourths of a pack."
Givens' smokmg habit has
been cut considerably. At one
time, he smoked a pack a
day. "Now I smoke a pack
every three, sometimes four
days," he said.
Many smokers are appar
ently accepting that they
may become extmct as a spe
cies. "I can understand peo
ple not wantmg to smell any
smoke." said Tony Hairston,
a salesman at Southland
Chevrolet. He smokes a pack
to a pack and a half a day.
Hairston craves cigarettes
after he eats, when he drives,
after he talks to customers. "I
can think of anytime to
smoke. A lot of people in
sales smoke. I try not to
smoke around people who
don't smoke. And I try not to
smoke in front of my chil
dren. It's the worst habit that
I have. Smoking is not as ac
ceptable as it used to be. It's
fair to me to have to go out
side."
Blac'
55^
&
Adversely By Tar And Nicotine
By Cassandra Wynn
THE CHARLOTTE POST
Even with the emphasis m
America on healthier life
styles, blacks are still not
kicking the smoking habit
fast enough, according to ex
perts in the health field.
And health experts like
Louis Sullivan, former secre
tary of the U.S. Department
of Health and Human Servic
es, have criticized tobacco
companies because they have
aimed their products too
much at the black communi-
ty.
"Cigarette companies ad
vertise heavily in popular
black magazines, and they
also successfully target the
African American commu
nity by sponsoring enter
tainment, sporting and cul
tural events and political
and literacy campaigns,"
according to Centers for
Disease Control (CDC) Of
fice on Smoking and
Health.
So concerned is CDC
about the harmful effects of
smoking that it will launch
an antl-smoklng campaign
next month aimed at Afri
can Americans, according
to Nowell Berreth of CDC.
The worry is that blacks
are more likely to suffer
and die from smoking-
related diseases than
whites.
Smokmg rates are higher
for black adults than those
for whites, CDC found.
"Black smokers are more
likely to smoke higher tar
and nicotme brands than are
white smokers: and smoking
higher-tar brands is asso
ciated with higher lung can
cer incidence and mortality
rates," a CDC report said.
Blacks are more likely to
smoke mentholated cigar
ettes. The most popular
brands - Newport, Kool, and
Salem - represent 55 percent
of the market among blacks,
according to CDC.
Not only is the death rate
for blacks from smoking-
related Ulnesses higher than
whites, but the loss of years
of productive life Is greater.
CDC reports that "blacks
tend to become ill from
smoking at younger ages
than do whites. In 1988,
bla- ks lost an estimated
268, 37 years of potential
life to age 65 due to smok
ing," said CDC.
Studies show that the prev
alence of smoking is related
to occupation. "Smoking
rates are generally higher in
male and female blue-collar
workers than in their white-
collar counterparts. In 1987,
26.1 percent of white collar
men and 26.6 percent of
white collar women smoked
cigarettes. Among blue-
collar workers, 42.1 percent
of men and 36.6 percent of
women smoked during that
year," according to CDC.
Socioeconomic categories
also have a significant bear
ing on smoking and preg
nancy. "In general, women in
the lowest age and socioeco
nomic categories are most
See BLACKS PageSA
• • •
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