Chewing Gum

       More Letters From Paradise
             Chewing Gum
" My mom gave me a nickel to buy a pickle, I didn't buy a pickle, I bought some chewing gum." "Chew, chew, chew, how I love chewing gum." That's how I remember the song. And there was another ad : "Double your pleasure, double your fun with double rich Double Mint Gum."

It seemed that almost everyone chewed gum years ago. Customers had a wide choice of flavored chewing gum. The Clark company offered the following choices: Teaberry, Blackjack, and Clove. There also was Dentine chewing gum, good for bad breath, and supposed to clean your teeth too. My favorite was Beeman's Pepsin Chewing Gum. Wonderful taste, and was said to aid indigestion. Grandpa was always good for a stick from a  pack, which he kept in a  pocket of his vest. Due to popular demand, this brand was brought back a few years ago, and then it suddenly vanished.

Chewing gum came in several shapes: Gum balls from machines, single wrapped chunks which sold for a penny. And flat sheets that came with baseball cards. Baseball players were chewing tobacco from a pouch, and kids could could buy a pouch of shredded bubble gum. There were bubble gum shaped cigars too. I  almost forgot Chicklets, candy coated gum shaken from a box. Naughty boys would sometimes substitute Feenamint laxative for Chicklets, as they were similar looking.

Did we dispose of our used gum properly? Probably not, if you looked on the underside of student desks. There were some teachers who made students wear their gum on their nose when caught chewing gum in class.

Sometimes it was not so wonderful. People chewing with their mouth open, like looking into a cement mixer. And some people who were able to create a pocket in the gum and then crush it causing a snap or a pop. Very annoying.

Dentists must have been kept busy filling cavities, and nobody knew about dental
floss.  But things are better now, you don't see many people chewing gum.

And there is one place where chewing gum is illegal, against the law, and subject to a big fine. That place is Singapore. My friend, Gene, who has lived in Singapore for thirty years, told me so.

Gene said that this all came about when a wad of chewing gum prevented an electric connection of MRT subway cars. The response was swift. The Prime Minister Lee Kwan Yew, ordered that all chewing gum would become illegal by the end of the week. This event took place on Wednesday.

The Wrigley Chewing Gum people were very upset as they were trying to gain a trade deal. So Lee Kwan Yew agreed for them to sell their product. But, after signing the deal, he informed the Wrigley people that the gum could only be sold with a  prescription  at a pharmacy. The gum would cost $5.00 a pack, and there would be a $20.00 co-pay.
And, if anyone was foolish to have gum on their person, or if spitting gum on the sidewalk, the fine was $350.00.
 
Lee Kwan Yew ruled Indonesia from 1959-1990. He died in 2015 at age 91.
Thanks Gene for a great story.

      Aloha
      Grant