Spud media

I hate safety. I hate wearing a seat belt. I hate wearing a helmet. I hate using safewords in the bedroom. I hate it because I hate being stagnant. Above all, I hate people who enforce safety on others. They really only want safety for themselves, but they get all high and mighty about how, actually, this is what’s best for society. They stifle the adventurous with false solidarity. They hide their insecurity behind a screen of altruism. Christ, how I hate them.

Staying safe all the time makes you physically and psychologically weak. That means you have to depend on others for protection against the forces of the world. That protection always comes with a price. The price isn’t always obvious. You might follow all the basic guidelines for a safe and secure life, suddenly you’re up to your tits in debt with a degree you didn’t want doing a job you hate. You’ve lived your whole life depending on a system that doesn’t like you. Whoops.

Getting into problematic situations really puts you on your toes. You have to think creatively to get out of it. That’s a skill that translates into any of adverse situation life throws at you. In other words, if you’re willing to face danger voluntarily, you’ll be able to face danger when shit hits the fan. Ultimately, it makes you free- which is what the church ladies just can’t handle.

Life is a game. If you take it too seriously, you’ve missed the point. If you don’t play at all, you’ve missed the point. Break rules just to see what happens. It makes the game more exciting while building your skills so you can keep getting better at it. Or, you know, follow all the guidelines and get to the end wondering why it was so boring. Justify your misery with moral high-ground. Project your banality onto people who are having fun. It’s your choice.

The Tobacco Issue

This very special issue of Spud Underground is dedicated to the chain-smokers, cigar-chompers, vapers, pipe-puffers, gum-masticaters, big and little dippers, sniffers-n-snuffers, and patchwork-quilt applicators. All the people who know that tobacco is “one of the biggest public health threats the world has ever faced” (thus sayeth the World Health Organization) and just don’t care. In these pages you’ll find the history of tobacco; Smash or Pass: Cigarette Ads edition; the surprising health benefits of nicotine; handy guides and tricks; and much, much more.

Smoke ‘em if you’ve got ‘em! Stay dangerous, my friends.

-RJ Jenson