Dear Non-smokers of America,

Listen. I smoke. I don't care if you do or don't. I know lots of people who do regularly, and just as many who would never touch one. But I have a problem with some of you self-righteous non-smoking assholes. I am an American. I was born here. My mother and father were born here. I have certain unalienable rights which the founding fathers instilled in me over 200 years before I was even alive. I understand smoking is not a right guaranteed by the Constitution, but I do have the right to freedom, liberty and personal happiness. And I feel this is being intruded upon by cock-smoking pieces of shit who can't stand walking by people smoking a 1/16th of a mile from a door.

Don't tread on me, mother fuckers.

I am no less of a person than you because one of my habits happens to kill people. People die. If they die of lung cancer, then it's a sad story. But no more sad than being killed in a car crash, heart failure or murdered brutally. When you tell me to walk away from the door, I nod and peacefully go about my way. Then you ask me to walk 15 feet from an entrance. I may snarl or object, but once again, I go on my way. Suddenly, us smokers are pushed back hundreds of feet from any other people. We obliged, whether or not we felt it necessary. But when I follow all your bullshit stipulations just so I can calm down between feminist rants, teachers preaching the pros of LSD and other shit I disagree with or just don't care about in class, you still insist that isn't good enough. How long will it be before smoking is banned outdoors completely? Before we as a nation are completely controlled by government "looking out for us" as if they know what's best for everyone?

Of course, this isn't the first time a government has taken a large step to stomp out smoking. In the 1930's and 40's, a brilliant man attempted to ban smoking from his nation. That man was named Adolf Hitler. Congrats non-smokers, you're in good company. Some piss poor decision makers who smoked? Roosevelt, Churchill and Stalin. Wow. 1. Hitler believed smoking would have killed out his perfect race known as the Third Reich. If only we could have been so lucky. Also, tobacco was a devilish gift from the Red Man (American Indians) as revenge for giving them whiskey. God damn.

Furthermore, here's a comparison of the anti-smoking campaigns by Nazi Germany, and the current campaigns by America.
-- Hitler attempted to price out smoking for Germans, levying huge taxes on cigarettes.
- The Nazis banned tobacco advertising and financed huge public relations campaigns to propagandize people into giving up smoking.
For more, go here.

This all came about after a year of dealing with this. Being herded like sheep into bus shelters because the covered canopies are reserved for smoke-free citizens (who aren't even outside unless going to or from class). I've been warned with $250 tickets, referrals from the Dean of the college and more. I've been told by people who I've never met I'm disgusting and a bad person. I've been yelled at by over-zealous cunts who couldn't even walk the distance we have to just to smoke without stopping for a breather.

But in all honesty, why is this such a big deal? It smells? It will kill you? I'm sorry to say that walking through a cloud of smoke outside for half a second will not give you cancer, no matter how many times in your life you do it. According to studies, 50% of people who don't smoke don't even mind second-hand smoke. Some people actually enjoy it (why I can't say). Am I the only one who feels almost oppressed by this? I feel shunned, out-casted and down-trodden. I refuse to be governed by this overly liberal bullshit. I want to be the first man to go to jail for disobeying smoking laws. I'll gladly martyr myself for the 76,000,000 smokers in America. If women can have abortions, then I can fucking smoke where ever I please. The government can force its smoking bans on businesses who disagree with it, with hundreds of patrons who disagree with it. Am I the only one who finds this whole idea fucked?

But the next time you see someone smoking, and it irritates you, suck a dick. I don't give a fuck what you think or feel about what over 20 percent of the population does for relaxation and leisure. This is America, you mother fucker. Land of the free. Home of the smokers who have to walk a thousand feet at Joliet Junior College to smoke.

Get real, America. Propaganda shouldn't so easily convince you of what you're now using to wreak havoc upon a large minority in the population. I'm not Rod Blagojevich, so I won't compare my plight to that of Gandhi or blacks around the turn of the century and before, but it feels like this is some what like what they went through. Their literal hangings being traded for our figurative crucifixion.

a lack of anything interesting to say

Tonight I decided I'm going to start going to work out every night for 2 hours. So far, I've made it one day, and it's miserable. But, my new years resolution was to better myself in any and every way, so this is the start. I'm going to stick with it until at least summer, and if it's working well, I'll, of course, continue on for the rest of my natural life.

I realized now that that valentine's day post made me seem like a bitter old man. Well shit. I guess it was kinda tongue in cheek. I mean, i said Valentine's day was a tool for mass brainwashing. Who could take that shit seriously? Not me. I'm all for love if it makes you feel more complete, but I completely disagree with the idea everyone needs love to survive. And that's enough of that. In other news...

I've been trying to be more open lately. I've been told too often I'm impossible to figure out. I just want to be a consistent, boring person for once. I think life would be easier if I let myself be more normal. On the other hand, I don't really care. As a few hundred thousand wise men once said: "You only live once".

I only have 1 year and 2 months till I can legally frequent local bars. I'm so pumped. I want to be the biggest fucking bar fly ever. I want to go straight from my shitty job (or classes, depending on what my life is like in that time frame) and drink for 6 hours straight, and pick up the dirtiest skanks on the face of the planet. I wanna be like a less-ugly Bukowski with more sass. And without the news papers and novels. What it boils down to: I want to be a major drunk. Deal with it.

Valentines

Sup blogworld? I'm pretty hung over right now. I have a fake mustache on my face and on my pillow. I have "10 cans 4 AM Friends" proudly scribed on my arm.

It was a good night.

But either way, I didn't even know today was Valentine's Day. Valentine's Day always gets a little depressing. Especially from an anti-capitalist point of view. Free enterprise has created a holiday where 50% of the world has to deal with the fact they are alone on a day when they're supposed to share all their love with another similarly-opinionated, equally uninteresting person. But life's funny. I'm always happier alone. I have more money. I have more time. And I have no one to answer to but myself. (aside: I have no money right now anyway)

I don't see why kids these days feel the need to drag themselves down with these sad, borderline-sickening relationships when they're young, strong and wide-eyed. It seems like for the most part, the shit fails miserably or ends in pregnancy. Really, what is the point?

This Valentines is made even more upsetting this year because so many people I grew up with are getting married, thinking about getting married or are already married. It's cute, ya know? It's exciting to stroll over flower pedals in a big white dress. Plus your parents got married right out of high school! So why shouldn't you? But as a free spirited young man, I have to run against the wind. Marriage is (get ready for this) another institution for government to keep its populous in control. It ensures people have babies. It ensures people have to get better jobs to support their families, meaning more goes to the man in the curtain. Not to mention it keeps people from getting venereal diseases. For about two years. While they're still faithful.

Do I believe all that? Hah. Maybe. But it makes sense. Maybe I'm just bitter and that's my justification. Who knows.

Really. I haven't had a valentine in about two years. And that's completely alright when you have friends who are just as useless as you. I do miss being able to buy flowers and go to a nice restaurant (Olive Garden is nice when you work a part-time job and go to school!)

But after my nice little diatribe, I've decided I'll just end it with some infinite wisdom. No body needs anyone else for any reason. Don't simply conform to American standards and go steady with someone only because you're afraid of being alone or not being able to find someone. There's 7 billion people in the world. One million in Chicago.If you can't find one, it's because you're trying to hard.

Take care. And Happy Valentine's day.

Alex "I Love you baby but I don't have time" Simotes

uh huh

A lot has happened lately. I can't say much of it was good in any way. My brand new, beautiful fucking guitar got stolen from the last place I would've imagined. A guitar I searched for for years, finally found, and now, apparently, lost it. It's a conflicted feeling, knowing that someone is blatantly lying to your face while probably laughing at you behind your back. Fuck that. Have some decency you piece of shit.

I also came down with strep throat and a 104 fever for a few days. Talk about insult to injury. I missed two exams at school, had a very good chance I could've been permanently damaged, and still can't smoke or eat right. Fuck my life.

I don't see a lot of people anymore. I guess sometimes I take a backseat to everything else. Which is cool. It's just a rough patch in my overly long life. Shit happens.

My mood, bank account, health and guitar owning is piss poor at the moment. The only slight consolation right now is the fact that it's almost 60 degrees out in February.

This post is terrible, but I haven't been able to really do anything well for the past few weeks. Deal with it.