#068 Auto Ferry (Smoking)

I live on an island, and I have to drive my car onto a ferry every day (I have mentioned this before). I leave for work very early in the morning, and most of the time it's kind of dark outside and the sun is just starting to rise. It's pretty peaceful most of the time, so for the most part I just want to sit there with my windows down and enjoy the fresh air and the quiet until the boat is ready to leave.

With three rows of four vehicles, everyone is in pretty close quarters; if someone has a strong air freshener and the windows are down, pretty much everyone can smell it. Apparently there is a US Coast Guard regulation against smoking on the deck of the ferry (even though I've even seen the ferry deckhands do it), so they ask that if you must smoke to do it in your vehicle. The problem with smoking in your vehicle is that a) you will likely NOT have all of your windows rolled up completely, so b) everyone can smell your smoke anyways.

This morning, I was sitting on the ferry waiting for it to fill up before we took off at 6am, when a guy (approximately 20-22 years old) pulled up next to me with his death metal music blaring out of his older model Buick sedan. It was about 5 minutes before the ferry was going to leave, and only a couple minutes later he decided to smoke a cigarette. I didn't even see him light it, but I could definitely smell it.

If such a USCG regulation exists, I wish it would apply to ANYWHERE on the boat. Because let's face it: if there's a fire on deck, and even though you're on the water, the chances of putting out a gasoline or diesel fire is pretty slim. If the boat burns down, everyone's going in the water and if they don't die of smoke inhalation, there's a pretty good chance they will drown anyways. Why risk it? Yet another reason I think smoking is disgusting.