Woman smoking outside my two sons school

[mum2threesons]

this morning!
She was surrounded by children and didnt seem to care.
Im not sure if reporting it to the school would help as she was not standing on school grounds. (and she did look too scary to approach!)

[Snowwhite22]

I'm sorry Grim I thought this thread was about smoking. I can't comment on fumes because there isn't a car parked right outside the school gate.

[hazeyjane]

grim, car fumes are foul, and yes are detrimental to health, but are a bit more unavoidable than smoking.

[Jsa1980]

Get a life. And schlock horror she didn't have a silver cross pram? Terrible mother.

[Tee2072]

There are always cars parked right outside my son's school gate. And people smoking.

Shall I freak out totally now?

[sashh]

That's nothing OP. Most of the local schools here seem to be on main roads. I mean who drives a car with all those fumes near children?

[RyleDup]

I know Sashh. Its disgusting. I think people should be banned from driving near schools. apart from me that is

[LucieMay]

When I was a smoker (three weeks given up), I always used to wait until I was safely away from the school before lighting up, purely cause I didn't want other parents judging me as a bad mother! Ha!

[ProPerformer]

YANBU at all!!! Sorry, I know it's not illegal or anything but it's damn inconsiderate to the health of others and highly rude to be smoking where there are loads of people, especially children!! I would (and have in the past in similar situations) have asked her politely to not smoke so near a school and children. If she had been rude I would've said... "Look, if you want to poison your own children and doom them to a life of breathing problems that's your choice but don't subject other children to the fumes!"
How ANYONE can smoke around kids AT ALL (or smoke anyway) is totally beyond me anyway!!

In my case I am hyper sensitive to cigarette smoke and even a tiny bit affects my throat and dries it out making it hard for me to speak, or sometimes even breathe. I have nothing against smokers as people but IMHO it should be banned everywhere public and only allowed in people's houses.... I swear I've breathed in more smoke since the smoking ban as it was easy to avoid smokey buildings but not so easy to avoid smoky doorways!!

[ProPerformer]

(btw, not judging her as a mum - sure she's fab.... I just font get how any parent can smoke knowing the risks to their kids ..... Cars are Unfortunatly more or less essential nowadays so those fumes are more unavoidable and cars have another practical use. The ONLY use for cigarettes is toxic fumes!! )

[FunnysInLaJardin]

oh Tee are you OK?

[ilovesooty]

If this has "reduced you to tears" you sound a bit soft to me.

[Tee2072]

HA! Wasn't really a personal attack. Well, maybe. A bit. But not really.

Someone's quick on the delete trigger today!

I'm fine, Jardin. How are you?

::head tilt::

[FunnysInLaJardin]

i'm fine. I assume you didn't say OP you sound like a fool and heres a convincing argument why?

tilt

[Tee2072]

No, I didn't. I won't say what I did say because I'll get deleted again.

What I should have said was, my SIL agrees with you. She's a bit of a twat.

[JaquelineHyde]

OP may I suggest that MN isn't the place for you if you are quite so easily upset and suggest you try NetHuns or some similar crap.

Or maybe just steer clear of AIBU and making first posts not unlike those of a troll.

[SoleSource]

There was once a woman chewing gum INSIDE the school playground.

[Beautyschooldropout27]

Actually chances are she will be dropping her cigarette on the ground after she has finished with it - that is littering which is illegal and you can report that to the school and your local council. Maybe say that you are worried about all the children she is around picking up the cigarette butt and hurting themselves? I remember my little cousin having her first puff on a cigarette when she was nine as she watched a friend's mum smoking and then picked up her still smoking butt off the pavement and took a puff - she coughed a lot of course. There is a reason why smoking has been banned in places like Central Park in New York and on the beach in California, they may be open air but people still don't want to be affected by the smoke, and the litter smoking causes. If you feel that strongly I would buy some 'why smoking is bad for pregnant women' leaflets and hand them to her next time you see her - although make sure she is pregnant and not just chubby!

[yousankmybattleship]

I once saw a mother eat a peperami in full view of a school age child. I reported her to the police.

[cory]

How is passing a smoker on your way into the school grounds any more damaging for your child than passing a smoker in any other road or public area? Or do you not take your children out in town at all?

[GossipWitch]

Probably not the best first post op, however if she was pregnant and had four kids in a car with the windows up chuffing away, I think people may have been more supportive of it.

[Mumsyblouse]

Surely the issue isn't the danger of the smoke, it's the modelling of smoking around primary school children.

I don't agree this is outrageous by the way, I'm just pointing out that the objections might be more than simply any perceived (incredibly negligable) risk from the smoke.

[ArielThePiraticalMermaid]

OP just think what kind of smoky conditions we were all faced with as children. Then compare.

This isn't going to harm your children and this is coming from a fairly militant anti-smoker.

I saw a very pregnant woman smoking outside the obs and gynae department at our local hospital (in a no smoking area) when I was in for some fertility treatment. Guess what: I couldn't do anything about that either.

[squishee]

I'm in the YABU camp. And I say that as a non-smoker. Is there a nicer way to say Get a grip?

mrskeithrichards your predictive text thing made me PMSL!