h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

excuse me while i rant:
to all those smokers out there, please don't flick your butts out of your window while you're driving along - please, i'm begging you - it makes the poor driver behind very worried as for a brief moment something hurtles towards them - it's even worse at night, when something red andglowing is flying at you. besides the world is not your ashtray

sorry, i just had to get that off my chest. phew. feel much more sane and rational now.

ta
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True, true.

But then when you're driving whilst tripping on some mean acid, it makes a great Light Show!

in a cautionary tale:

i once knew someone who lost an eye in an accident he had whilst drying stoned - he was leaning over to pick up the joint he had dropped when he lost control of the car. which is probably not actually related to being stoned, but the way he lost his eye on the corner of the rearview mirror was pretty gross


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Rear view mirror? Oooh - "nasty". Although I do not advocate throwing rubbish of any description out of the window (except at people I really don't like), don't you find
that bouncing cigarette shows on long dark highways is sometimes the only thing that keeps you on your toes?

If you can catch the butt, its really very effective to ride up next to the scum who threw it and stick it back in their window. I've never managed this, but I know people who have.

Failing this, I >>WILL<< either break windows or wing mirrors. I, and many other bikers, carry a large metal lock close to hand.

My personal fave was when I was riding to work one morning. I was being happy, the sun was shining, and I was quietly following a small car. Till she threw her ciggie butt at me. I came up next to her & gave her wing mirror a quick slap. Result! The mirror completely exploded, shards of glass in her open window, under the tyres, over the bonnet everywhere.

As Span says, don't throw your ciggie butts out the window, it may cost YOU an eye!

H&K
Z

lol, zed- but that could just be the mild hysteria setting in

besides if cigarette butts contain carcinogens and they're sitting on the side of the road dissolving, where are all those carcinogens going?

Okay, okay - so I butt my cigarette out in the car ashtray. But then what happens? Being "responsible", I empty that into a normal bin once I get home. The dust-dudes come and collect that and do what exactly? Chuck it back into the earth! Doesn't that equate to the same thing? The same goes with all manner of toxic rubbish. What practical and biologically-friendly suggestions does anyone have?

yep, good call, all credit in uncovering the major flaw - once toxic stuff is made i don't know that there is any totally safe way to dispose of it. although there must be some way using manipulation of the atoms to transmute substances, i mean they do it in labs to make harmful stuff all the time (eg radioactive stuff)so surely we should invest some time and money into reversing the process, which frankly i would have thought was more important than creating it. gosh i'm going all green around the edges
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