New York statewide smoking ban signed into law

[strikeeagle]

zammer,

I understand your position. You are in the minority, your bad habit has inflicted expense, illness and death on the majority far too long, and you are being shut down. It can't be easy for you.

And so far as our favorite restaurant goes, don't you get it - I don't want to leave, I WANT THE SMOKERS TO LEAVE!!!

And equating smoking to window tint and speeding, well, peanut butter kills too, but come on...

 

[whitehot84]

OK so smokers can carry a garbage bag with them and when they feel the urge to light up in a "public" place they can put the bag over their head and have the benifit of all the smoke. First and second hand.
Smokers rights???? Is that the right to poison the air everyone near them is breathing?
I do believe that restaurants whould be able to supply a separate are with separate ventilation for those who just can't wait a minute longer to breathe some carcenogenic acrid air. Just don't ask me to enjoy it with you, if that's the word for it.
We are all non-smokers until the day we decide that it's cool or just so grown up to light something on fire and breathe the smoke from it. I'm glad I don't know what it's like to have to include something as small and insignificant as a cigarette in my daily endeavors.
Shall we say flame suit on.??

 

[TurboJunky]

Originally posted by TurboTer
Sorry, but it doesn't work that way.

Ummm, yes it does. Rights are not absolute but fluid. Your right to do XXXX cannot interfere with my right to XXXX. That's the way it works.

Cigarette smoke is the by-product of a habit and infects everyone in the immediate area. Urine is the by-product of of beer drinking (such as in a bar). How would anyone near a beer drinker like to be urinated upon? Take a tobacco chewer. He has to spit on occasion which is the by-product of his tobacco habit. Would anyone appreciate being spit on by tobacco laden saliva?

There is no difference no matter how you slice it. You want to drink, smoke, chew or blow your brains out go ahead, just don't get your by-products on those who don't want it.

 

[strikeeagle]

whitehot,

I live in a place where by law we have separate, ventilated areas for smokers. It's a lot of bull poop - it flat out doesn't work. It's nothing more than a half azzed attempt to shut people up. If it did work states like NY wouldn't be pushing for a complete ban.

 

[Vendor Defendor]

i am personally not for or against the ban (they passed it in florida too, but it dosent go into effect until june or july) but i think that smoking/non smoking areas should be better seprated.. for example (mostly looking at it from this point of view) is that my dad for some reason is extremely allergic to the scent or something in ciggerette smoke.. when he gets a good whiff of smoke he gets puffy, cant breathe and has to get away from it or else we will be calling the paramedics (which a restraunt has done in the past when he ran out of the restruant unable to breathe because they put us too close to the smoking section for him) he personally has learned to live with this allergy and knows when he sees some one light up he stands upwind from them. but sevral times in the past we have had to move seats in a restraunt due to smoke creeping into the non smoking area..

so what i think is that they should seprate the smoking and non smoking areas better, i mean for the most part all they have is a little half wall... or provide better ventlation so non smokers dont even know people on the other side of the place are smoking...

what i find weird about the situation is that my dad smoked for 20 years, (he quit in the early 80's)... the whole thing is kinda weird but a BAN on smoking i dont think is nessary, just better sepration.. anyways smoking is bad in genral, i mean i did smoke for a couple years and i can feel it now.. so i quit... i think what they are trying to do in genral is make people quit smoking..

i think it would be cool if they would legalize

-neil

 

[TurboJunky]

Hah! Smokers respectful??

I take issue with the fact "most smokers are respectful". Take a walk down a city or suburban street and look down at the ground. Nothing but cigarette butts. They're tossed out of car windows as if they dissolve within minutes. Look at the car ashtray of a smoker, is it dirty?...no. That's because they use our community as an ashtray and not the one the manufacturer engineered.

 

[Pronto]

The Museum of Science in Boston has a display of a lung from a smoker. It speaks for it's self. Don't bother me with your smoke unless it's from your tires.

 

[lp2]

The area I live in has had a no public smoking ban for almost two years now, and man is it ever nice. One of the main arguments here was that it wasn't fair to the employees who have to work in a smoke-filled environment.

I always thought 2nd hand smoke didn't bother me, but now whenever I travel I really do notice it and it bothers me a lot. As for the arguments about how non-smokers can leave, well, the same argument is being applied to the smokers (which works now as smokers are a minority rather then a majority like the past).

 

[orion681]

i guess i would have to kind of revamp my opinion and say that I don't think that the gov't should tell public places that they can't allow smoking. I can honestly say that I have never been to a bar with a non smoking area, but if more bars did that, that would be great. I'm not saying that there aren't bars like that, just none around me at all. I do feel bad for smokers that have to stand out in the rain a snow, but at the same time, they did choose to smoke. It's a teeter-totter situation in my head

 

[zam70]

Ok..ok..everyone has rights and I respect that...

I went a little off topic there so I'm actually going to delete my prior rant.

My general point was, If you allow "Big government" to start regulating your personal freedoms, when will it (they)stop?

SURE, you might favor a smoking ban...what about when they outlaw alcohol? old cars (emissions)? Pitbulls?

It's the big picture, like i said, I HATE guns...I see no reason to have one or for anyone to have one BUT, I will fight for them NOT to be illegal because it is a constitutional right...If the government is allowed to change ONE thing, they will never stop.

I'm still trying to figure out WHY there are seatbelt laws.

 

[GN One Day...]

Re: Hah! Smokers respectful??

Originally posted by TT/A1233
I take issue with the fact "most smokers are respectful". Take a walk down a city or suburban street and look down at the ground. Nothing but cigarette butts. They're tossed out of car windows as if they dissolve within minutes. Look at the car ashtray of a smoker, is it dirty?...no. That's because they use our community as an ashtray and not the one the manufacturer engineered.

Yeah, you got me there. Seems like I saw a statistic about how the butts can remain for 30 years or something crazy like that. Some intersections I drive through look like it's been snowing b/c there's so many white butts on the ground.

 

[TurboJunky]

Now that the Constitution has been brought up I wonder which amendment the "right to smoke" is in? Probably the same one that has the "right to drive" and the "right to cable TV".

Hey, I'm all for smoking, drinking, chewing, banging your head into a wall or calling Jack Kevorkian for help. Those are all personal choices one makes in THEIR OWN life. I just don't want someone else's personal choices to involve MY LIFE. I'm all for personal freedom 100%, just keep your choices to yourself.

I refer back to my analogy about habit by-products a few posts back....

 

[orion681]

Originally posted by TT/A1233
Now that the Constitution has been brought up I wonder which amendment the "right to smoke" is in? Probably the same one that has the "right to drive" and the "right to cable TV".

very tempramental stuff.

 

[gn1220]

Originally posted by strikeeagle
Come on guys, this isn't about communism, it's about idiots killing innocent people. If these idiots want to kill themselves I could care less - so long as they don't leave their houses, and don't solicit medical services...

No offense here but I hate when people say stupid things like this. My Dad is a smoker and I don't consider him an "idiot" and I really don't want to see him die. He knows it's not good but it's HIS CHOICE. Times are MUCH different than they were when my parents grew up. Back then it was just fine to smoke, totally acceptable. Today, people can't even drink a cup of coffee without somebody telling them it might be hot. People today are totally unwilling to take any responsibility for their own actions. Can't even fart without reading a warning label first

I agree though, I don't enjoy the smell of smoke but if somebody else does, so be it. Most people don't like the smell of burning rubber so should we just sit back and let them close all the race tracks? How many tires do the NASCAR teams waste, I mean use in one day? Let's get rid of that. Get rid of racing all together. I mean, they're not even going anywhere!! Do we really need to waste gas and pollute the air cutting our lawns? Heck no. That grass will only grow so tall. Let's stand up for the Personal Freedom of Grass! WHERE DOES IT END?!?!?!?!?!
I am so sick and tired of all this PC bullcrap. It really blows me away to think at one time we could turn on the TV and watch shows like "All in the Family" Could you imagine how they would destroy a show like that today? And I think it's pretty sad when we can see people having sex on local TV but we can't watch "Road Runner" WTF? And that is OK? No wonder girls in GRADE SCHOOL think it's OK to have oral sex.

To quote a line from TOOL: " It's not a war on drugs, it's a war on personal freedom." Remember that.

 

[Little6pack]

I too don't smoke.. I don't see any big problem in letting Smokers smoke in Bar's, pool halls, strip clubs, ETC.

But I truly would like it banned in resturants. It is not often that I can afford to take the wife out with 4 kids. But when I do go out for that special occasion I don't want to taste smokey food. YUK! That is where I draw the line. Or anyplace childeren might be near.

 

[whitehot84]

You have the right to smoke but where you smoke can and should be regulated. When you smoke everyone around you is affected. You also have the right to drink but only in certain environments. You can't walk down the street or in the mall drinking a beer in most cities.
And how does what you drive affect others? You have the right to urinate too but not in public.I'm also alright with that law.

 

[tc86gn]

I am a smoker and used to live in NY state. Man, I sure am glad I live in louisiana. Don't get me wrong I know it is bad for you but have not found the will power to quit. I know i should but just haven't done it. Under a little stress right now. not a good time to try it.
The government says we can buy em but now wants to tell us where we can smoke?? think about it. the foot is in the door now!! What comes next. We can still drink and kill each other but thats ok. Why have we not banned drinking in public???

 

[gn1220]

"Why have we not banned drinking in public?"

Just wait, it will happen We are only stupid humans. We need someone to think for us and tell us what to do.

 

[strikeeagle]

gn1220,

I didn't mean to offend you, but think about this:

Suppose your Dad never smoked a single cigarette his life, and you had him around and healthy until he was 100?

Suppose all the money and medical talent directed at treating smokers was directed at keeping your non-smoking Dad alive and healthy until he was 125? Imagine living long enough to see your great great great grandchildren grow. To dance at your 100th wedding anniversary.

Now suppose your Dad was a non-smoking bartender, and died when he was 55 from 2nd hand smoke?

You get the idea...

 

[TurboTer]

Originally posted by strikeeagle
GN One Day...

I DO NOT buy the argument that non-smokers don't have to patronize establishments that allow smoking. For example, we have a favorite restaurant that (regretfully) allows smoking. Should we stop going because a few pukes insist on smoking? I say let the few pukes go home and set themselves on fire in their beds, like they seem to like to do.

If it allows smaoking, it shouldn't be your favorite restaurant. That's a stupid arguement if I ever heard one. It's like saying you're straight but your favorite bar is a gay-bar.