Flux - To me, this is a wonderful thing - I am not a smoker, and I really do dislike being forced to breathe in or smell cigarette smoke in public spaces. I also think that whatever can be done to discourage smoking is a good thing, because I strongly believe that it's unhealthy, selfish and inconsiderate of other people, and lines the pockets of the corrupt tobacco industry.
There are 2 issues here, and I think it's quite important that we keep them separate when we argue about who's being forced to do what, and whether or not it's ethical to do so.
No. 1 - Smoking in shared space.
To start with, I smoke. I instinctively lean towards the "market forces would move towards non-smoking venues if that were desired", but I think if there is a compromise then it should be sought, as I have no desire to make others uncomfortable.
What is unethical in my opinion is to disallow smokers anywhere to smoke inside that venue. Being forced by law outside in the rain or cold when the venue wants to offer me a smoking space is unreasonable. I would be satisfied with a smallish room in which to smoke, closed off from the band space, and well-ventilated to cope with the huge amount of smoke in a small space, like you get at some airports. I can go there for a smoke, and come back, without endangering patrons or staff.
Of course we have the hypothetical situation of what happens if this space becomes packed with customers wanting to stay in there, leading the pub to enlarge it, until it fills the majority of the place, and we are back to square one. Which does lend some weight to the market forces argument. But as I said, I can see the non-smoking point of view, especially in terms of seeing bands play. On any other day you could hypothetically choose a smoking or a non-smoking pub, but I can't see a scenario where a band plays 2 gigs in every town, one smoking and the other not, so making music venues non-smoking (except for my cozy smoking parlour of course) is a point I am forced to concede.
No. 2 - People shouldn't smoke.
That's not only judgemental but arbitrarily so Flux, and you should really cut that shit out if you want support for argument no. 1. Smoking is only a small portion of the many negative impacts on our health. When you cut out animal products and gm foods from your diet, and make fast food and petrol engines illegal, then come and talk to me about a thin wisp of my smoke getting in your face as you walk down the street. These are the major causes of health problems, as well as the industries which produce them destroying the environment at a ferocious rate. I have to pay this ridiculously high tax for cigarettes while millions of people consume these products which make them far unhealthier than my smoking makes me, and by their destroying of the planet and poisoning the ground in which my food is grown, affect my health far more adversely than my smoking affects them. When you get a tax put on cheeseburgers, then we talk.
And even without these points, if I wanted to smoke only in my own home, how can you possibly justify taxing or otherwise trying to stop me "for my own good"? What other aspects of my life would you like to control "for my own good"? My clothes, my religion, my sexuality? |
