“Thank you for Not Smoking. Cigarette smoke is the residue of your pleasure. It contaminates the air, pollutes my hair and clothes, not to mention my lungs. This takes place without my consent. I have a pleasure, also. I like a beer now and then. The residue of my pleasure is urine. Would you be annoyed if I stood on a chair and pissed on your head and your clothes without your consent?”
~Sign from Ken’s Magic Shop
No matter how you may feel about smoking, this No Smoking Sign Ashtray also known as Patent# US D500166 is sure to make you smile. It reminds me of an article I once read in which the author, a devout smoker, referred to no non smoking signs and their significance in the face of all the non smoking signs that encroach and invade. The design patent for this invention came up for review in 2004 two and-a-half weeks before the New York City Council voted to ban cigarette smoking from bars and restaurants. The designer created this ashtray to simulate the sullen, silent outrage of city smokers.
For those among you who may want to buy a No Smoking Sign Ashtray, alas, for they are not for sale and may never be (at least in the United States). Where would one use this seems an appropriate question. Would it be a place that allows cigarettes but frowns upon smoking?
When the smoke clears, consider these two most interesting articles by Steve Levenstein about tobacco smoking in Japan. “Japan Tobacco’s Delightfully Disturbing ‘Smoking Manners for Adults’ Ads, Part 1” and "Tobacco’s Cheerfully Chiding ‘Smoking Manners for Adults’ Ads, Part 2" .
