O/T: Never Thought I'd See It

[Lew Hodgett]

Never thought I'd see it, bans on smoking.

When I came to California 20 years ago, trying to find a restaurant with a no smoking section was a real challenge.

Today, smoking inside buildings is not permitted, cities like Camarillo have totally banned smoking, smoking on the beaches is banned and now there is discussion to ban smoking on golf courses.

Understand NYC has also banned smoking so both coasts are progressing toward the heartland.

The recent addition of another $0.60+/pack federal tax doesn't hurt either.

Yes, I'm a nicotine addict.

I quit smoking in 1978, but once an addict, always an addict.

Lew

[PDQ]

In news:rCGUl.2008$ [e-mail], Lew Hodgett dropped this bit of wisdom:

I quit a lot of time, my most recent was 1 year ago.

Every time I quit I restarted with stronger nicotine. Matinee to = Players to Export A to Dumaurier and finally to Cigars. I even tried = Players Navy Cut but they seemed to pass with the 50's.

I still miss my after dinner Cigar.

P D Q

[Gerald Ross]

The revenge of the flower children. Marijuana is legal but Dad has to sneak around to smoke his pipe.

[Upscale]

And I've watched what amounts to the reverse. Mother and son doing some shopping in the supermarket. The kid was pretty big, I figure about 10 years old. He wanted his mother to buy him things as they were walking around and she was refusing. He was punching, kicking and slapping her because he'd put something in the shopping cart and she'd put it back on the shelf.

They weren't speaking English so there wasn't much I could say. I was sorely tempted to slap the kid silly, but I didn't really feel like spending time in jail.

[sweet sawdust]

Common courtesy

Try not to annoy anyone and try not be too easy to annoy.

I was smoking in a field one day talking to some friends. Couple comes over to the group and stands upwind of me to avoid the smoke. They decide to move down wind and I move to keep the smoke out of their area.They move down wind of me again and complain about me smoking upwind of them. Non smokers very often go out of their way to be annoyed.

[Upscale]

Sure, you've got plenty of rights. Smoke all you want, burn your lungs out, it's none of my business. Just don't do it where it bothers me when I'm going about my business.

I admit it, I used to smoke. I quit some thirty years ago. Now, the odour of cigarettes and the smell of nicotine comes close to making me physically sick. I'm not being hypocritical, it's none of my business what you smoke, what you eat or what you do in your life as long as it doesn't have an effect on my life. But when it does, how do you think it should be handled? My going out and eating in a restaurant doesn't affect you at all. You going out and eating in the same restaurant and smoking does affect me. What's your solution?

[Leon]

There was a case where some kid was just losing it and wailing away in a supermarket. The kids mother pretended not to hear any of it. This kid was apparently shrieking like a stuck pig. A woman walked up to the kid's mother and slapped her.

If this happened around here, I would be contributing to the slapper's defense fund.

Last year I saw a similar incident in a local grocery store except the mother could not control the child. The kid had to be 9-10 years old. I walked up to the mother and asked if she would like for me to take care of the problem. She said if you can, yes. I looked at the kid and said I can, and then walked over to the boy and simply said we are going to take this out side where we will not be bothering any one, I suggest you straighten up now. He shut up. I did this for a single mom neighbor about 10 years ago also. The trick is to make a suggestion but not explain the details, let the child imagine what could happen. ;~)

[PHT]

It may cost the restaurant some money, but it is possible to have a vent system that would draw the smoke out and keep it from the non-smokers. But even then there are non-smokers that would complain no matter what the situation. When smoking was allowed in restaurant's, there was many times that I seen the non-smoking area filled, so a non-smoker couple would take a place in the smoking area and sit there and complain about the smoke the whole time. When a group of people want something, they will do anything to get what they want, so matter how many lies it takes.

Paul T.

[Scott Lurndal]

Like most "facts", this one too is subject to some caveats:

1) Incidental exposure (such as passing by a smoker on the street corner, or outside an office building) has absolutely zero adverse health effects on the passerby. 2) Long-term exposure (Stewards/Stewardesses on smoking flights, Waiters/Waitresses, Bartenders, Spouses and Children) does have an deletorious effect (the magnitude of which is subject to some debate). 3) Incidental exposure such as during a meal in a restaurant, likewise has no adverse health effect on the exposee (the wait staff is a different matter). 4) I don't like the smell either, particularly at meals and on airplanes. 5) I've never smoked. 6) That said, I support strongly the smoker's right to choose to start or quit smoking so long has it is in their own home, auto or outdoors.

It's less clear that banning smoking outdoors has any health benefits other than discouraging smoking.

scott

[Nova]

The same here in Erie County. A number of years ago the county passed a law that all restaurants, bars, etc. must provide a separate area for smokers and non-smokers. The areas had to be completely separated (walled off) from each other. The business owner's scrambled to hire contractors to get their building in compliance with the new law.

About a year later the county changed the law making it illegal to smoke in any of these businesses.

[Ed Edelenbos]

I hear you... to some extent. The "fact" is though, there is no health benefit to smoking to anyone concerned. When the (US and some others) gov. figured out the detrimental effects of asbestos, it was outlawed. Do you support the right to choose to use or quit using asbestos? The same goes for lead in paint or water pipes, for that matter... or DDT to control mosquitos... or a bunch of other stuff currently illegal to use.

I have smoked. Up to 3 packs a day and for 35 or so years. I quit 4 1/2 yrs ago. I still love the smell of the stuff... I never cared about people smoking in restaurants or much of anywhere. Truth be told, sometimes I stand downwind of smokers, on purpose. What I'm saying is that my opinion is *not* based on overzealous, holier-than-thou ex-smoker hoo-haw. The

*facts* are overwhelming against smoking. A lot of the public perception is based on carefully orchestrated science based campaigns to sell us the stuff.

Sorry, I think the days of smoking are numbered and I think it is a good thing. I think that *is* the function of government.

Ed

[Lew Hodgett]

Think that is called a "No Smoking" sign.

Lew

[Larry]

"Upscale" wrote in news:b02d9$4a24597d$cef88bc5$ [e-mail]:

I'd be willing to wager that obesity is killing/costing as much or more. Do you want the government telling you what you can eat? Closing fast food restaurants?

The government is involved in too many things they don't belong involved in. No matter how hard you try you will NEVER legislate a perfect world...

Larry

[HeyBub]

Let the market decide.

Smoke-free restaurants and smoking restaurants. Or separate sections in the same restaurant.

This simple solution is, however, insufficient for the True Believer (see the book by the same name by Eric Hoffer).

People mind their own business when it's worth minding. When it's not, they take their mind off their own meaningless affairs by minding someone else's business.

These folks are, nevertheless, a source of some amusement. Whenever some granny-lady starts whacking me with her umbrella and screeching in a voice that has not endeared her to any number of husbands: "You godless communist, you can't smoke here!," I simply reply: "It's all right, madam, I'm French."

[J. Clarke]

Nope, that's the government _setting_ the smoking policy.

If someone wants to hang a sign on the door that says "smokers of pipes, cigars, cigarettes, and tiparillos are welcome in this establishment and anybody who doesn't want to be exposed to smoke is asked to take their business elsewhere instead of coming in here and whining about it" they should be able to.

The result of the current laws is that there are already smokeasies open in some cities.

Why are you people so bound and determined to create a new income source for organized crime?

[Upscale]

They had those separated and filtered smoking rooms in Ontario, but they were eventually outlawed and it's now illegal.

Let's face it. Smoking is and has been one of the most costly (lives *and* money) blights in human history. Whether one is a smoker or anti-smoking Nazi, the cost to civilization at large is absolutely enormous. On a guess, I'd wager that smoking has killed more people than all the wars combined and cost more health care money than all the bankruptcies (current and past) combined.

If smoking *only* affected the individuals doing so, then what they smoke would be their business only. But, it's not true and never will be. Society always shoulders the lion's share of the inevitable health care costs that smoker's bring onto themselves.

[J. Clarke]

Next time, try, "Being French, it is incumbent upon me to ask you this question, madam. Do you screw."

With any luck she'll pop a blood vessel and the world will be a better place.

[cm]

Lew,

Good for you kicking the habit. I quit when I was 13.

32 years ago!

cm

[Upscale]

Not according to a number of medical scientists. Of course, you're free to label them as caveats too.

[Lew Hodgett]

Thank you.

Actually it was the 2nd time I quit.

1st time quit for 2-3 years then went on a brewery trip and in a weak moment had a cigar.

That was it for another 6-7 years.

No direct experience with drugs other than nicotine, but I'm convinced that nicotine is the most addictive drug on the planet.

Lew