I don't think the weather and the mountains would allow me to do it there ;)

-Rudey

LOL. That's a nice balancing analysis, but what does it mean? Does the balance favor banning smoking in all public places?

Do you also favor stricter regulations for, say, factories that cause pollution? Or would you say that a factory has a greater right to be somewhere than you do? Your last sentence sounds pretty hippie-liberal, no?

Not all public places, just public places where non-smokers might go. There might be some need for smoking lounges or restaurants with seperately ventilated smoking sections (which is what we have in Oklahoma).

Quote:

Do you also favor stricter regulations for, say, factories that cause pollution? Or would you say that a factory has a greater right to be somewhere than you do? Your last sentence sounds pretty hippie-liberal, no?

Factories are different. First off, they are highly regulated as to their pollution, so I would first assume (probably wrongly) that they were making a good faith effort to do that. If not, shut 'em down. Secondly, factories do have social value. They create jobs and wealth. They are important to our economy. Factories must be located reasonably close to locations from which they can procure good workers.

Smoking on the other hand serves no social purpose beyond keeping tobacco companies in the black. The thing is that smokers can serve this positive social role creating profit by consuming cigarettes in locations where they won't be harming others by doing so. After a night of partying, I can either choose to chance it and possibly kill myself and someone else on the way home, or I can take the bus or a cab home. The law tells me that I have no right to use the roads that I paid for and the car that I pay taxes on burning fuel that I also paid for (which is all great for the economy) if it puts others at risk. Smoking is exaclty the same. When my law school finals are over, I'm going to get drunk. I'm going to kill a lot of brain cells, and I'm going to let off a lot of steam. The only person who is going to be inconvenienced by this is my fiancée. By being engaged to a law student, she has assumed the risk :) I don't expect perfect strangers to do the same.

there are people with asthma, lung ailments and allergies whose health is impacted when they encounter cigarette smoke. they should be able to breathe clean air when they are out and about.

recently i was at busch gardens in tampa. there are signs everywhere asking smokers to smoke only in designated areas(there are numerous areas all over the park, lots of benches and very shady), in addition to random announcements over the p.a. system.

at one point during the day, i was trying to find a place to sit down for just a minute or two, and the only available benches were-you guessed it-in the designated smokers area.the majority of people were smoking everywhere BUT the designated areas.

finally, a bench in the non-smoking area became available, and i sat down. a few minutes later a woman sits down on the opposite end of the bench, reaches into her purse and pulls out-you guessed it-a pack of cigarettes. she lights up and the wind blows the smoke directly my way.now my choices are A) leave or B) ask the woman to put out her cigarette and run the risk of a confrontation. luckily, her friend walked up and told her that she was only supposed to smoke in designated areas-then they looked around as if to try to find the designated area-they didn't seem to know where the nearest one was(it was directly behind us on a lower level) and the woman was starting to re-settle herself, so i was more than happy to chime in at that point and direct them to the nearest area(which was very near to where we were-and had considerable more shade.) maybe that is why we non-smokers have little tolerance for smokers.

Why do you automatically assume there would have been a confrontation? Just because she's a nasty dirty smoker? She probably just didn't realize where the area was.

See, this is the kind of intolerance and prejudice I'm talking about.

because the majority of the times i have spoken up and have politely asked a smoker to not smoke around me, because i am allergic to smoke, they have become indignant and reacted just like you did. incidently, i never ask a smoker to not smoke if they were there first;i move, but i feel that if i was there first, i have every right to NOT breathe in their smoke.

Politely is in the eye of the beholder.

So many times I've seen the other side of the coin - the person asking for the cig to be put out is straight up rude and the smoker is nice anyway. There are intolerant people on BOTH sides of this issue.

I'm in WI, smoking outside in the winter is just great. I find it funny when a smoker goes outside to smoke, -10 degrees, and takes that first puff, and hoks up a lung. If anything, winter gives you a reason to quit. It isn't really pleasant when the four-foot snowbank that sits right outside the front door to 'that public building' melts in the spring, and you see 5,000 ciggy butts.
Actually, in an ideal world, smoking wouldn't be allowed and we wouldn't have to worry about appealing our businesses to smokers.
I'll leave that at 'agreeing to disagree'. I enjoy debating.

It's your right not to go into a bar that allows smoking. It is not your right to tell a private company that they are not allowed to have a business that allows smokers to smoke.

I think that entire idea is stupid. Like it's been said before. Soon salt, sugar, alcohol, etc will be more strictly regulated.


...and yet the retards in CA want to legalize weed. WTF!

When the voters of a community vote on this issue and pass the law, it becomes a law and therefore must be followed. That's how America operates.

The retards in CA can't overturn a federal law by passing a municipal ordinance. Federalism. WTF!

Amazing but True.

Major Factories are given passes for Pollution in the air buy The OUR Federal Agencys.

The Cars that are driven put more pollutants in the air along with any Oil and gas driven engine such as lawn mowers, snow blowers or even cooking out on BBQ Grills at Home.

If anyone knows anything about Voting on a subject, most times it is not the People but the People who were Elected and who make a judgement only. They vote in Our Benefit, period.

Smokeing in the open air is not second hand smoke, it goes in the air and dissapates. Closed in rooms may be different. But dont may have smoking sections? If YOu are in such a hurry to eat, go some where else, You wont be missed, Not by Me at least!

It has been proven that the recycled air in Air Planes is full of "GERMS". So dont fly, dont go to a bar where they smoke or a dining establishment.

Tar and Nicotine do not go into the air that much as other Chemicals from Factories.

A bad law passed by the majority to curb the minority is does not make it a good law or one that does not limit freedom.