Vote NO on issue 5
I was in the middle of writing something else when I decided to change directions and write about the upcoming election. In November, Ohioans are going to be presented with two issues, 4 and 5, that will attempt to ban smoking in Ohio. One issue has to do with banning smoking in "Family" settings and the other has to do with banning smoking altogether. I can't believe we live in a country that is even considering this. A free country should mean a free country. I know our rights have been slowly slipping away from the time we became a country, but this is getting ridiculous!
I smoke a pipe, but I am not a regular cigarette smoker. But just like I enjoy my freedom to not smoke, I have to respect the same freedom for those that do. The people who are screaming for the ban are using the argument that families with children shouldn't have to be exposed to someone else's cigarette smoke. I couldn't agree more. But guess what, our freedoms allow those people to get up and leave if they are being annoyed or bothered by that smoke. We live in a country that heralds the idea of capitalism. For just as long as we've had public restaurants, there have been restaurants and businesses that have banned smoking. If you want to smoke, you don't patronize those establishments. The same is true for places that do allow smoking. If I owned a business and I wanted to allow smoking, I would be at risk of no one visiting my place of business b/c of that decision. That would be a chance I would have to take, and a decision I would have to make. If parents wanted to shield their children from the harmful affects of second hand smoke, they wouldn't spend their money where I held court. It's a pretty basic principle. But then some people say, I didn't know they allowed smoking or I wouldn't have gone in there. Or they also say they don't want to have to travel and find a place that doesn't allow it. Both of those excuses are plain and simple laziness. If you can't take the time to care about where you going, you don't deserve a say in what they do.
The thing that pissed me off and made me want to post about this was an advertisement I saw last night. The first character was a made-to-look old, crotchety lady with a sign about the evils of smoking. The second character was a hip, wearing-all-the-right-clothes, young man who was trying to calm her down. While she was screaming that all who smoked should be jailed and smoking outlawed, he tried to calm her down. Here's where my anger kicked in. He told her that smoking should be banned in "most places" [quoted exactly,] but that we should do it in a common sense way and stop the government from pushing their rules and regs on us. Do you see what just happened? The focus of the piece just switched from the smoking issue to the ever-hot-topic of too much government. Who doesn't want to limit the government's role in our decisions? So of course I'll vote yes! I was furious, but not at the commercial or the slick marketing outfit that the anti-smoking people hired to make their point. I was furious that we live in such a pathetic country with oh-too-many gullible, naive people that will fall for it. There aren't enough people in this state or country that care about finding out what is really going on. They see a silly commercial and base their entire voting strategy on that one thing. And since it plays off their already annoyed lungs at "all those smokers" it makes perfect sense to them. Watch out, your recreational activities are next, you stupid idiots!
Now that I think about it, I guess the whole point of my rant is lazy people. People that don't or won't take the time to find out what is real or to make a stand for something. If you really wanted to make a point to a restaurant or business about your opinions on their smoking sections, you and all your friends could do it. But no one but wants to make the effort. It's just easier to ban it all over so you don't have to make an effort to support anything. I wish I had taken more time to make my argument clearer and more concise, but when I'm worked up about something the words just come out. All I can say is, make an informed decision, stop being lazy, and vote NO!
I smoke a pipe, but I am not a regular cigarette smoker. But just like I enjoy my freedom to not smoke, I have to respect the same freedom for those that do. The people who are screaming for the ban are using the argument that families with children shouldn't have to be exposed to someone else's cigarette smoke. I couldn't agree more. But guess what, our freedoms allow those people to get up and leave if they are being annoyed or bothered by that smoke. We live in a country that heralds the idea of capitalism. For just as long as we've had public restaurants, there have been restaurants and businesses that have banned smoking. If you want to smoke, you don't patronize those establishments. The same is true for places that do allow smoking. If I owned a business and I wanted to allow smoking, I would be at risk of no one visiting my place of business b/c of that decision. That would be a chance I would have to take, and a decision I would have to make. If parents wanted to shield their children from the harmful affects of second hand smoke, they wouldn't spend their money where I held court. It's a pretty basic principle. But then some people say, I didn't know they allowed smoking or I wouldn't have gone in there. Or they also say they don't want to have to travel and find a place that doesn't allow it. Both of those excuses are plain and simple laziness. If you can't take the time to care about where you going, you don't deserve a say in what they do.
The thing that pissed me off and made me want to post about this was an advertisement I saw last night. The first character was a made-to-look old, crotchety lady with a sign about the evils of smoking. The second character was a hip, wearing-all-the-right-clothes, young man who was trying to calm her down. While she was screaming that all who smoked should be jailed and smoking outlawed, he tried to calm her down. Here's where my anger kicked in. He told her that smoking should be banned in "most places" [quoted exactly,] but that we should do it in a common sense way and stop the government from pushing their rules and regs on us. Do you see what just happened? The focus of the piece just switched from the smoking issue to the ever-hot-topic of too much government. Who doesn't want to limit the government's role in our decisions? So of course I'll vote yes! I was furious, but not at the commercial or the slick marketing outfit that the anti-smoking people hired to make their point. I was furious that we live in such a pathetic country with oh-too-many gullible, naive people that will fall for it. There aren't enough people in this state or country that care about finding out what is really going on. They see a silly commercial and base their entire voting strategy on that one thing. And since it plays off their already annoyed lungs at "all those smokers" it makes perfect sense to them. Watch out, your recreational activities are next, you stupid idiots!
Now that I think about it, I guess the whole point of my rant is lazy people. People that don't or won't take the time to find out what is real or to make a stand for something. If you really wanted to make a point to a restaurant or business about your opinions on their smoking sections, you and all your friends could do it. But no one but wants to make the effort. It's just easier to ban it all over so you don't have to make an effort to support anything. I wish I had taken more time to make my argument clearer and more concise, but when I'm worked up about something the words just come out. All I can say is, make an informed decision, stop being lazy, and vote NO!
posted by Sam at 2:24 PM
3 Comments:
I agree. I do not smoke...anymore...but have no doubt that my lungs will eventually be the death of me from a two pack a day habit for over thirty years. But it was my choice and I resent anyone telling me to do a gotdam thing for my own good..this bit for the good of society is pur socialism..and don't even try to convince me that majority rule is a good thing if I happen to me in the minority..nine out of 19 say jump off the cliff and I am supposed to get a drink of cool ade and bail over? Yeah, right.
From my business point of view, this is a wrong thing! People talk about losing their jobs and outsourcing, well those cigarettes don't make themselves! We'd be losing thousasnds of jobs if they ban smoking everywhere! Not to mention the fact that businesses will fail and go bankrupt because no one "is allowed" to buy their product and use it anywhere! So I'm going to agree with Sam not that I didn't already, and vote NO to issue 5! Wow that was a pretty long speel for me!
Colorado passed a smoking ban last spring - I too am adamantly against it.
Post a Comment
<< Home