Smoking bans

I like them.

Yes, tadalafil ailment I know I lean libertarian.

And for the longest time I couldn’t reconcile the two.

But then my girl said, viagra generic store “the problem is that a smoker’s right to smoke takes away my right not to smoke.”

And a light went off in my head.

YES!

That’s exactly it.

Smoking in a public place is an assault.

(Literally so, sick if the allegations of the dangers of secondhand smoke are true.)

If someone near me smokes, I smoke whether I want to or not.

The right of everyone to breath clean air takes precedent over an individual’s right to pollute it for everyone around him.

And before you start leaving comments that people should be able to do whatever they want on their private property and bars and restaurants are private property not public places…don’t bother.

Bars and restaraunts are NOT private property like homes. They are places of business. As such they are subject to a number of regulations:

Health regulations
Occupancy limits
Fire codes
Liquor laws

It is not the same as a private individual’s home.

And if a ban puts a few restaurants and bars out of business (which I doubt ever really happens), they have no one to blame but themselves.

If they had ever provided true smoke-free environments for their non-smoking patrons (instead of putting half walls between the bar and the “no smoking” area), no smoking ban would ever have passed anywhere.

So bring it on my brethren.

Try to convince me that smokers should be the one class of people who get to exercise their “right” at the expense of everyone else.

35 comments February 22nd, 2006