BANDITS! The VisMin Head of Ayala Malls called me up minutes ago. I will not mention her name for now as a form of courtesy. But I will when I praise her later on if she turns this around. And if not, God knows what I will do next. First I asked her about why Ayala built The Terraces, this redeveloped area with beautiful gardens surrounded by multiple layers of restaurants all with verandas that overlook the lush greenery accentuated by subtle lighting and meandering pathways. Impassioned my speech was, I proceeded on to tell her that this inner park supposedly for families, for children, for the aged, for everyone who loves to take deep breaths of Gods gift of clean air for all, this sanctuary has been desecrated by the biggest assholes of this modern world --- SMOKERS! With a hint of surprise in her voice, I moved on to describe to her how all the restaurants surrounding the gardens have all their al fresco zones converted into Smoking Areas! And then I reminded her about the Republic Act against smoking in public areas, how businesses like them are required by law to clearly designate smoking areas and to label them explicitly. I also reminded them of the local ordinance detailing how entrances cannot ever be designated as smoking zones. I think there is a 10m zone from which entrances are supposed to be protected from these assholes. And then I described how each of every restaurant around The Terraces all have the filthy smell of smoke or the filthier faces of smokers greeting us non-smokers upon our entry! All because the al fresco tables have been infiltrated by these demons. I think the Cebu City Council had this in mind when that local ordinance was passed! And oh yes, I used those scathing words to describe these bastards all through our talk. And then I challenged her to go the extra mile, to go beyond whatever law of the land there is today. To be the mother that she is and simply do what is right. I told her that what is happening to Ayala in Cebu is unimaginable in the US or Europe, where smoking areas are either completely inexistent or are clearly designated in those Gas Chambers of death. I went on telling her that in Davao and in Makati and in Taguig, Ayala Malls in these cities (and surely the gardens confined within its walls), and the al fresco areas must all be non-smoking as the local ordinances in those cities have more teeth than say Cebu (sadly). At some point she mentioned that smokers have rights too. So imagine me exploding in passionate prose and poetry, lecturing her about freewill, liberties and responsibilities. That the only right these smokers have is their right to choose to die early, to smoke in places where there is no one in a room where no one enters but them. Why so? Because third hand smoke, the one that sticks onto wood and upholstery, is as deadly if not deadlier! I think she spoke on that to tell me that indeed, they may have to designated smoking areas. And still speaking about rights, I reminded her that the more primordial right is the right of the vulnerable amongst us to have access to the environment as it was created by the Almighty for all of us to enjoy and not for a few smokers to contaminate and tamper with. I also painted for her a picture of a pregnant woman. Does she or Ayala not care about the baby in her tummy who is exposed to all the smoke when the mother walks along the Ayala gardens or their verandas. How about those with COPD and the aged? And then I mentioned how the ashes from those assholes smoking from the upper verandas would even fall onto the lower verandas, as in right onto our heads and shoulders. Apparently imagining the reality of that picture, for the first time in our long chat, I could hear that she was sorry. And then I demanded for her to do something asap as in asap. Because my next move would be to call and meet the Mayor. And that I will use her statements as the basis of my complaint. She requested to be given a chance to do something about my complaint. I threatened to sue them if no action happens within the next few days. I told her that I am pikon and unpredictable when it comes to the most primitive and fundamental of human concerns, especially that which jeopardizes life. I further said that in essence the gardens at The Terraces must be fundamentally evil as it is supposedly nice and it is a magnet for people like us who love natural architecture and beauty. And then when we go there, cigarette ashes fall onto our shoulders, and we inhale the bad breaths of these assholes, and then we retreat and go back inside the malls. So in essence, The Terraces is one humongous death trap! So apocalyptic this picture because we, the clean-loving creatures of God, we now have to incarcerate ourselves indoors because the outdoors have been contaminated by the most reckless of bandits! Oh yes, these smokers are the bandits, the biggest of thieves. Foremost, they steal many years of the very life that they have, a life that they do not own. And worse, they steal days and years from us each time they do their evil deed in our midst. Evil. Just plain evil. So she must do something in the next two days. Because in this case, I vow to do everything in my power to never allow evil like this to triumph like this forever. Bandits!
Posted on: Mon, 26 Jan 2015 08:17:46 +0000
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