Should People Be Allowed To Smoke In Public ?

TheBigFb

yes

scorpiophoenix

Anybody else remember the episode of The Simpsons where all of the childless residents realized they had the money, time and numbers required to make Springfield "adult friendly" by relegating children to only certain areas of the town?

Yes, most (if not all) of us realize that smoking is bad for our health and most of us try to be considerate. We accept being relegated to certain areas with as much dignity as possible. However, if you want to go on some crusade to totally stamp out our right to do something perfectly legal keep in mind that your rights could very well be next whether you think you're doing anything "wrong" or not.

Side note: as far as the perfume, my grandmother was severely allergic to perfume. So much that we had to bathe with special soaps when we stayed with her and were not allowed to bring anything scented with us. Did it kill her? No. Had she ever been trapped in an elevator with someone who bathed in the stuff it very well could have, though. Did she go on a mission to ban perfume in public to protect her health? Obviously not. She did her best to avoid being in close quarters with people who would trigger her allergy.

sw33tp3a11

I hate smoking. I hate the smell, the taste, the affects. So I'm going to say no.

does that mean I can ban certain perfumes I dont like? i like this open trade

perfumes don't kill people.

Show me the research to back this up.... I would argue a lung full of perfume is MUCH worse on your body then a lung full of smoke.

You can't be serious. I can fill you up with pages of COPD research, if you'd like but it's really unnecessary. Seriously, it's the THIRD LARGEST KILLER in the US right now, and will move to second within a few years. And is almost exclusively caused by cigarette smoke. And you want to try to claim perfume could be as bad? C'mon, now.

Please show me your stats , since you like throwing them out there... From the CDC you will not get any that are not from 2011, it takes them over 3 years to get any stats done.... Cancer is the # 2 cause of deaths, in which Lung Cancer made up less than 1/3 of cancer deaths with 156,953. Now about 28,000 of those were to Non smokers in which approximately 20,000 were from Radon and between 3-4,000 possibly from second hand smoke contact.... So there are the most recent stats from 2011 from the CDC... Refined sugar and obesity are far greater issues than smoking and if you want to talk about the second hand smoke stats and put it in perspective over over 3,330 deaths occurred in the same year 2011 by distracted drivers, with the #1 distraction cell phones and Texting, and those numbers are going up... So if your argument is that it kills any more than other things we come across in everyday life YOU ARE WRONG! ... I am not am not a Smoker, do not like it , and have dated one woman who was and broke up because I could not stand kissing her with smoker breath, but I am not about people right to choose being restricted by those who do not partake or agree with whatever the activity, including walking away from things they do not like.

here is the last link to the CDC, and it is pretty easy to look up the rest , so knock yourself out .... Did not see any thing on perfume killing but was not looking for that as this was to show how people exaggerate when talking stats...

http://www.cdc.gov/motorvehiclesafety/distracted_driving/

CVS stopped selling cigarettes in all of their nation wide stores. This makes me happy.

Holly_Roman_Empire

I don't think it should be illegal, but I do think people could stand to be more considerate when partaking in a habit such as smoking.

So you feel the people you intentionally try to make feel awful, your words, should be more considerate towards you?

When you say more considerate are you saying that they should shower between smoking just in case you are knocked up and we might meet in an elevator?

I'm not knocked up, but it still affects me. So if you just came in from a smoke break, don't be surprised when I splatter puke all over your shoes. I guess if you don't like those consequences, you can do whatever you want in between smoking to prevent that possibility.

free1220

It cracks me up when people go into a club that allows smoking then ***** about the smoke.Kinda like buying a house by an airport then barking about the noise from planes...lol

Timelordlady85

smoking should be illegal...period

And then the government should ban fast food and mandate fat people to work out.

my two cents, why their at it they should ban drinking at Chuck e.cheeses and any other public places so I don't have to worry about stupid drunks hitting me or anyone else I care about on the road. .. Does anyone realize how hard it is to keep people from smoking in non smoking areas, whose gonna monitor these places to make sure no one is doing it? I don't smoke anymore but I think private places should do what they want and if they allow smoking, and you don't like smoking then don't go to their business.

mccindy72

Anybody else remember the episode of The Simpsons where all of the childless residents realized they had the money, time and numbers required to make Springfield "adult friendly" by relegating children to only certain areas of the town?

Yes, most (if not all) of us realize that smoking is bad for our health and most of us try to be considerate. We accept being relegated to certain areas with as much dignity as possible. However, if you want to go on some crusade to totally stamp out our right to do something perfectly legal keep in mind that your rights could very well be next whether you think you're doing anything "wrong" or not.

Side note: as far as the perfume, my grandmother was severely allergic to perfume. So much that we had to bathe with special soaps when we stayed with her and were not allowed to bring anything scented with us. Did it kill her? No. Had she ever been trapped in an elevator with someone who bathed in the stuff it very well could have, though. Did she go on a mission to ban perfume in public to protect her health? Obviously not. She did her best to avoid being in close quarters with people who would trigger her allergy.

One person. I can understand this, I'm allergic to a lot of perfumes. I don't expect everyone in the world to stop wearing perfume. when something affects EVERYONE, as cigarette smoke does, then it should be prohibited in every area except in areas where only the people who choose to participate will be doing it.

Swaggs51

Yes but in designated areas, same in bars and restaurants. I always sat in the smoking area to avoid people with their obnoxious kids so now we try to sit near the bar so they can't have the kids around. I'm sick of all this anti smoking crap, just another politically correct tool to crush personal freedom.

I agree! i get so angry on how the government is trying to control everything we do, telling us we can't smoke, eat this or that, and now they can see our private emails and texts???? when is it ever going to end? it is so like "1984" anymore its scarey! and now they are in some states trying to ban it in your home, like sitting in your back yard,,,,are you kidding me,

Smoking around your children = risking their health without their having a choice. if you don't go outside or you smoke in the car, it should be illegal. yep. and America has never been "free". We've always had laws and a government telling us what to do.

Actually this country was free... WAS

Oi_Sunshine

I have allergies and get migraines from it so having people not smoking right outside grocery store entrances would be nice. Walking down the street without gagging would be pleasant. I grew up wih my parents smoking in the house and they still do and I'm actually really glad we live far away so visits to the house are a couple times a year. I must have just stank going to school. Thanks mom.

mccindy72

Yes but in designated areas, same in bars and restaurants. I always sat in the smoking area to avoid people with their obnoxious kids so now we try to sit near the bar so they can't have the kids around. I'm sick of all this anti smoking crap, just another politically correct tool to crush personal freedom.

I agree! i get so angry on how the government is trying to control everything we do, telling us we can't smoke, eat this or that, and now they can see our private emails and texts???? when is it ever going to end? it is so like "1984" anymore its scarey! and now they are in some states trying to ban it in your home, like sitting in your back yard,,,,are you kidding me,

Smoking around your children = risking their health without their having a choice. if you don't go outside or you smoke in the car, it should be illegal. yep. and America has never been "free". We've always had laws and a government telling us what to do.

Actually this country was free... WAS

Nope, never was. There have always been laws that restrict what people can do. And until this century, it wasn't free for blacks or women at all. Americans have always had to pay taxes and follow rules.

scorpiophoenix

Anybody else remember the episode of The Simpsons where all of the childless residents realized they had the money, time and numbers required to make Springfield "adult friendly" by relegating children to only certain areas of the town?

Yes, most (if not all) of us realize that smoking is bad for our health and most of us try to be considerate. We accept being relegated to certain areas with as much dignity as possible. However, if you want to go on some crusade to totally stamp out our right to do something perfectly legal keep in mind that your rights could very well be next whether you think you're doing anything "wrong" or not.

Side note: as far as the perfume, my grandmother was severely allergic to perfume. So much that we had to bathe with special soaps when we stayed with her and were not allowed to bring anything scented with us. Did it kill her? No. Had she ever been trapped in an elevator with someone who bathed in the stuff it very well could have, though. Did she go on a mission to ban perfume in public to protect her health? Obviously not. She did her best to avoid being in close quarters with people who would trigger her allergy.

One person. I can understand this, I'm allergic to a lot of perfumes. I don't expect everyone in the world to stop wearing perfume. when something affects EVERYONE, as cigarette smoke does, then it should be prohibited in every area except in areas where only the people who choose to participate will be doing it.

Then you make two. It's never just one person. Not to mention some places ban peanuts because the dust could kill one person who happens to be there. Like I said before, the outdoors is public area and belongs to everybody. As others have said emissions from cars and factories are far more harmful. There are many things that people do that affect everybody else; ban one and it's not long before the rest follow.

cmpnaz

http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/campaign/tips/diseases/copd.html

from the article: COPD—the number 3 killer in the nation—is almost always caused by smoking.
However, as many as one out of six people with COPD never smoked. Avoiding secondhand smoke is also critical.

Well I go by the actual Mortality and since Cancer is bulked as one and Lower respiratory diseases are # 3 I can see how you may make that argument though COPD ( while the #1 and yes most often cause by smoking) is not the only one that kills... So again I prefer to go by the hard Data and not general Data that can be written to spin things however you choose... Fact remains that we all Know smoking is bad, as is having an unhealthy diet, but people should be able to choose...and that includes walking away !

Swaggs51

So in synopsis our argument boils down to you dont like something you want it banned. I do like something and dont want it banned.

Being a responsible cigar smoker and an individual who has and continues to work in the tobacco industry, can state that we as tobacco smokers know it is something probably not the healthiest for us. Now smoking affects each individual differently, some it takes a drastic effect quickly, others none at all.

your "lack of belief" in freedoms is noted and understood. Now in the modern era where communication is open and easy to do, i believe that no ones right to do as they wish should be completely eliminated. For as we have seen individuals will break any law will do as they please.

I believe in open area smoking, where air will dissipate smoke, and allow certain places to allow, restaurants, and bars, not all but those who wish to allow it, to let their patron enjoy what they love

enterdanger

I'm so torn on this. I'm a former smoker. I quit about 6 years ago. I still love the smell of cigarettes but would never go back to smoking. It is hard for me not to want a cigarette when I smell one. I also don't like having to breathe people's fumes when I've made the choice not to do it.

That being said, the government shouldn't be able to make this decision. Welcome to America the land of the over-governed.

ELMunque

I don't think it should be illegal, but I do think people could stand to be more considerate when partaking in a habit such as smoking.

So you feel the people you intentionally try to make feel awful, your words, should be more considerate towards you?

When you say more considerate are you saying that they should shower between smoking just in case you are knocked up and we might meet in an elevator?

I'm not knocked up, but it still affects me. So if you just came in from a smoke break, don't be surprised when I splatter puke all over your shoes. I guess if you don't like those consequences, you can do whatever you want in between smoking to prevent that possibility.

There are a lot of meat smells that will make me harf. However, I can control myself for the few minutes it takes to get to my floor in the elevator. You are being purposefully rude to people because you don't like the way they smell, surely if you are that offended these are people that you are just seeing casually, checking out at a store, or like you said in an elevator, so you can't be curteous for a few seconds, minutes at most? But everyone else should bowed down and respect your nose? You are delusional. I get the second hand smoke, I'm considerate when I'm smoking, but there is not much I can do about the smell that comes in on my clothes, other than load myself down with perfume and that's just as bad. And you know honestly, I don't really care, I don't like the smell either, but it's my habit. I don't like the smell of a lot of things, but I would never intentionally try to hurt someone because I don't like their smell, or their look or anything else that is so petty.

Beezil

The other day my husband was smoking outside of a playground, where our son was playing at the time, and a couple with their child was walking out of the playground entrance. My husband, being polite, moved off the walkway and out into the grassy area. The man walking by nodded to my husband and thanked him very kindly for moving away.

I don't really see why this issue is so complicated for people.

Yes, smoking is legal, for now. Yes, people have a right to smoke, just like other people have the right not to smoke. Anyone who smokes knows the risks, knows the smell is offensive, and should know better than to willingly inflict that on someone else. I'm glad it's been banned in most indoor places - that will and probably already has prevented a lot of people from getting sick. It also discourages people from smoking more than they already do.

Cigarettes are bad for you. They are addictive. While we may not be able to help smoking, for those of us that do, we CAN choose not to force it onto people who don't.

Shalaurise

I hate smoking. Like a lot. I think that if you are infringing on someone else's rights to not be a smoker, you are in an inappropriate place to be smoking and I can't say I would be upset if it was illegal.

Cali already has laws restricting it in public buildings and withing a minimal amount of space around building openings and it is a large part of the reason I have no desire to leave this state. Do I think someone has the right to kill themselves if they want, however slowly they want (aka smoking), yes. But when your *kitten* comes next to my apartment's open window to smoke next to my daughters bedroom you are infringing on my rights and her rights. (True story, I actually had a neighbor who would walk away from their own apartment to smoke next to my kids bedroom window.) I don't have AC or a house fan so the only way I can get air is to open my windows. Stay the hell away.

I was at a restaurant out of state once and they asked me "Smoking or non smoking?" I left. Having a half wall between my booth and a chain smokers booth is not any better than smoking the cigarette with them... well 'cept they at least have a filter.

Beezil

.

cnadiger

I think it was wrong when our government made smoking in eating establishments illegal. If it was truly an issue with the majority then businesses would have adapted on their own or go out of business. However, the minority seems to have the loudest voice in governerment right now. They do not understand individual rights is meant to work in both directions instead of just their own. If the

Now, do not get me wrong, I actually enjoy going out to a restaurant now and not having to inhale smoke. Lets face it, smoking and non smoking areas did not work that well. I enjoy going into a hotel room and not having to worry about that nasty second hand smoke smell that just clings to everything.

I personally think if smokers understood how bad it actually smells they would not do it around non-smokers. I used to be a smoker and I can tell you I didn't realize how bad it stank. Both my parents and siblings all still smoke. The house just reeks and even after only an hour in their houses my clothes just reek of stale second hand smoke. I did not realize how bad it was till at least a year or two after I quit smoking.

So, to answer the OP question. The government should not get involved with banning smoking in public places.

^^^ This. The government is too involved in way too many things that can be handled by supply/demand. I'm tired of the few making all the rules for the many.