So last year my city council narrowly passed a smoking ban. Since Jan. 1 this year everything has been smoke free, including restaurants and bars. And it has been wonderful. I can now go to a bar with friends without having to hold my breath when somone walks by (in case they are a smoker) or if I need to go use the bathroom or something. You see, I have asthma. Normally, its well controlled, but smoke is one of those triggers that can really aggravate it. It can start me up coughing or wheezing or worse. Plus, I just hate the smell of smoke. I don't wear strong perfumes or scents or anything-- I try to be considerate too. So the ban was passed. And it has been nice. Also if DH goes out with friends after work he no longer smells when he comes home!

We recently had city council elections. The Mayo, a piper smoker, is planning to call for a vote to immediately repeal the smoking ban. Unfortunately it will probably get repealed.

I think this is very silly for a couple of reasons. No. 1: My state is waiting on a signature from the govenor to pass a Statewide smoking ban starting in Jan. The Gov said he will probably most likely sign. No. 2: If the buisinesses and everyone had six months to prepare for going smoke free, shouldn't they have six months to prepare to go back to smoking? And since it has been five months, aren't they used to it by now. They claim it is hurting buisiness, that smokers are going elsewhere. Maybe a few people-- I don't see that when I go out. Places look just as crowded to me as they always did. Besides, we only have small towns immediately around my city (pop about 180,000) There aren't many other places for people to go unless they are willing to travel.

So what are they going to do, repeal a ban so they can smoke for six more months? How bad is their nicotine craving? This just seems crazy to me.

Any thoughts?

As a few others mentioned, I also lost my father at 51 to lung cancer (when I was 14), my stepfather to several forms of cancer, and then my mother at age 64 when her heart stopped. All of them were heavy smokers since their late teens.

After being exposed to second-hand smoke for decades, I frequently get upper respiratory infections and have allergies. I hope I never develop lung cancer due to this exposure like Dana Reeve did recently (a life-long non-smoker).

It still bothers me to this day that my dad never got to see me graduate from high school, be the first in the family to graduate from college, he wasn't at my wedding to walk me down the aisle, and he never got to meet my son.

After watching my father and stepfather waste away to 130 pounds or so, I'll never understand why anyone would want to start smoking in the first place (if you're already addicted, that's one thing--it's hard to quit).

IMO, if a person chooses to smoke, they can go ahead and smoke because it was their choice to puff away, but I shouldn't be forced to inhale their smoke since I have made a conscious decision not to smoke.

That seems like a fair arrangement to me!

Yes you are right , smoking kills even the people who don't smoke it directly. Such a waste of human life.

I think people who want even more gov't involvement than we have now should be sent with Bush packing to a country where they will gladly run their lives for them.

Of course, we should also send those responsible for telling me not to use my hair dryer in the shower should be sent with those that believe "I NEED more gov't in my life to protect me from myself".

When I wrote about the tax on crap food I was making a point. I'm starting to reconsider. I'm with you Lauren, if we don't NEED it, it should be taxed. Fruits and veggies... no tax. Dead critter... small tax. Anything with white flour or sugar should be $1.00 per carb and $10.00 per trans fat gm.

More gov't! That's what we need. Those that don't do at least an hour of cardio a day.... put them in fat prison.

You might just be on to something here!

It's always easier to point to the addiction of another and cry, "More gov't!!!" It's not so sweet when it is your own addiction. Or as you say, THAT is different. :car:

Now to me THAT is the most scary and the thing we should be outcrying about. I shudder to think by the time my grandkids or great grandkids are adults they will have NO FREEDOMS at all at this rate. Because <Insert current social problem> its bad for your or it offends someone.

I can't understand why smokers think it's okay to force what's killing them on the rest of the world. Yes, it is that addicting to them the way food is to us so I see why they can't stop. But imagine if we shoved plates of steamy pasta in front of a smoker who wasn't hungry, or sat down in a bar with smelly hair dye soaking in, or whip out our nail products and do a full set while people are eating as they choke over our fumes? I understand why smokers have to smoke just not why they want us to die along with them. When I was a smoker I could never do that to others so I didn't even smoke in my own house. Smoking indoors causes disgusting yellow walls and dank horrible permanent damage to furniture, carpets and drapes. How can that be okay for anyone, including smokers, to want to be surrounded by?

Uh, how do you pronounce your name? Tits laroo? Cool.

Excellent point - a woman next to me pulled out her nail polish on a plane one time and very quickly the flight attendant rushed down the aisle and told her that she would not be permitted to open it during the flight.

Also, I returned from England once with several large men who were dressed in long robes. One of them kept going to the back of the plane to the rest room. Everytime he came back, the perfume was stronger. After about the 3rd time, everybody around him (and me) was gagging because it was so strong! It stung my eyes! I don't think the flight attendant said anything to him though but I sure wished she had. It's a long flight from England to the U.S. Talk about miserable!

Ban everything, sez Green. :ranger: Fossil fuel use is bad for the environment.

I'm with Green - BAN EVERYTHING. No wait a minute. I don't mean it. I think what we need is a good dose of Miss Manners.

If everyone would stop pissing and moaning that they're losing their freedom when it comes to personal habits, and just be respectful of others when they smoke, drink, splash on perfume, take their nail polish off, burp, fart, eat with their mouths open, push in front of other people in lines, cut each other off in traffic, etc. Much of this wouldn't be an issue anymore.

Most of what Miss Manners espouses is simple thoughtfulness and courtesy toward others. And what's wrong with that? Have we become so self-centered that we don't give a damn about other people anymore? No, I don't believe it. I think we're just living in such a fast-paced, stress-filled environment we are working with short fuses most of the time. I don't want to go back to the 50's when everything was phoney-baloney, but we need to whoa down a little and try a little tenderness when it comes to dealing with each other.

And don't call me Pollyanna!

I'm with Green - BAN EVERYTHING. No wait a minute. I don't mean it. I think what we need is a good dose of Miss Manners.

If everyone would stop pissing and moaning that they're losing their freedom when it comes to personal habits, and just be respectful of others when they smoke, drink, splash on perfume, take their nail polish off, burp, fart, eat with their mouths open, push in front of other people in lines, cut each other off in traffic, etc. Much of this wouldn't be an issue anymore.

Most of what Miss Manners espouses is simple thoughtfulness and courtesy toward others. And what's wrong with that? Have we become so self-centered that we don't give a damn about other people anymore? No, I don't believe it. I think we're just living in such a fast-paced, stress-filled environment we are working with short fuses most of the time. I don't want to go back to the 50's when everything was phoney-baloney, but we need to whoa down a little and try a little tenderness when it comes to dealing with each other.

And don't call me Pollyanna!

Bravo, bravo, bravisimo. :clap2::clap2::clap2: You da grrl. :eyebrows:

I still say it's one thing for a person to individually choose to ruin their own health by indulging in their addiction, whether it be mainlining heroin, snorting cocaine, overeating, popping Percocet tablets, eating glue, etc.

It's quite another thing for someone to purposefully spew toxic-filled smoke into the air that everyone has to breathe in a confined area (i.e. a bar, restaurant, hospital, etc.). A non-smoker can't choose to not inhale the air in a room...duh! Unless someone invents a fashion-forward gas mask, the butts need to stay outdoors. It's not so much a matter of taking away freedoms, it should serve as a positive reflection of our citizenry being much more educated about the proven harmful effects of smoking than people were in the "old" days.

Even outdoors they're problematic. Ever since smoking was banned in offices and shopping centres here, you have to fight your way through a disgusting cloud of smoke at every doorway, with your young children and their precious clean lungs. Polluting every doorway doesnt solve much.

I heard recently here since they banned smoking in pubs people have realised how disgusting they smell with the beer all over the carpet and alcholol laden breath and body odor and have had to start piping in fake cigarette smell to cover the stench, lol.

I heard recently here since they banned smoking in pubs people have realised how disgusting they smell with the beer all over the carpet and alcholol laden breath and body odor and have had to start piping in fake cigarette smell to cover the stench, lol.

Are you putting me on? It's not nice to toy with a feeble mind like mine!

Research has generated evidence that secondhand smoke causes the same problems as direct smoking, including lung cancer, cardiovascular disease, and lung ailments such as emphysema, bronchitis, and asthma. Specifically, meta-analyses show that lifelong non-smokers with partners who smoke in the home have a 20–30% greater risk of lung cancer than non-smokers who live with non-smokers. Non-smokers exposed to cigarette smoke in the workplace have an increased lung cancer risk of 16–19%.