Second Hand Smoke Scam

Fox News ^ | October 17, 2003 | Steven Milloy

[CSM]

I could only laugh last April when I first heard about a study claiming that a smoking ban in Helena, Mont., cut the city

[RedBloodedAmerican]

Do you give out free gold stars with every pack?

Step on in. The waters fine.

[SheLion]

Do you give out free gold stars with every pack?

Excuse me?

[supercat]

I don't really know why they don't compete more on these lines, but I suspect the market forces don't allow it.

Sure they do. Just about everywhere I've been there have existed restaurants with smoking and non-smoking sections, and there have been smoke-free restaurants. Usually there are a few restaurants which allow smoking everywhere, and many bars fall into this category.

There's a general economic principle which says that a group which represents a certain percentage of potential profit in some field (e.g. sit-down restaurants) will typically be served by at least that percentage of businesses in that field. When free markets are allowed to function, just about everyone can get served (in a good way). This is very different from the way government works, where some people get served (in the way a waiter does a patron) and others get "served" (in the way a bull does a cow).

[yoe]

Glad to see Steven Milloy is using Cato, they've repudiated second hand smoke for years as well as global warming, another hoax. Follow the money trail on both, all fraudulent junk science funded by meddlers.

[Mears]

Thanks for your post #202 re government interference in child rearing.

I got raked over the coals earlier for the same thing but you were far more capable in articulating what I thought.

[Mears]

Just spent a pleasant hour in DIA's smoker's bar last month.

[marktwain]

Again, like I said, there is nothing in the US Constitution that grants a right to smoke- The 9th Amendment just punts anything not in the Constitution to the States.

You are correct, in that the Constitution does not grant rights. It only enumerates them, as stated in the 9th amendment. However, all the privileges and immunities of United States Citizens are protected from acts of the States by the 14th amendment to the Constitution, so your argument fails in that respect.

It is true that the Supreme Court has failed to protect the citizenry to the full extent that it should according to the words of the Constitution, but it has never fully lived up to that standard.

That does not mean that the standard doesn't exist.

[qam1]

Unfortunately restaurants don't advertise whether they allow smoking or not. If they did and if the economics allowed both to exist, I would probably be fine with that and only visit the non-smoking restaurants. However, you typically don't know whether a restaurant allows smoking until you go there and most do.

WTF????

You think we should expand the role/power of the government because you are to lazy to make a phone call???

[Timesink]

New York Times fraud alert!

Schadenfreude

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[lainde]

ping

[Jason Kauppinen]

You could always take a trip up to Canada and toke a reefer. :(

[this_ol_patriot]

Remember it's a mommy world out there.
Keep us safe or else...
...or else what?

We'll let you take away our freedoms until none are left but we'll all be womb mates, little safety elves all snug in our little wombs.

Waaa..I don't want to smell smoke...waaa....waaa

[paulklenk]

Maybe NYC Mayor Bloomberg should write a letter to the Vatican, objecting to their use of black or white smoke to announce a new Pope.

WE DEMAND A SMOKE-FREE VATICAN!

[tm22721]

I think we'll see smoking become pretty much illegal in the next decade or so.

Thank god.

BUMP

[jwin]

Never happen! The Feds, States, Counties and Cities collect to much $ in taxes!

[DannyTN]

You think we should expand the role/power of the government because you are to lazy to make a phone call???

I think smokers should have been considerate of non-smokers in public places in the first place and then you wouldn't have this backlash. Regulations are only needed when people don't do what's right in the first place.

[Just another Joe]

If they did and if the economics allowed both to exist, I would probably be fine with that and only visit the non-smoking restaurants.

So, what I understand here is;

1) There are not enough antismoking zealots to support a nonsmoking restaurant.

2) Most people don't really care if a restaurant allows smoking

3) The antismokers WILL use the power of junk science AND government to enforce their unreasonable demands on everyone else.

[DannyTN]

1) There are not enough antismoking zealots to support a nonsmoking restaurant.

That might actually be true. The smokers appear to be more zealous than non-smokers. I really expect to see more non-smoking restaurants.

Take the small town I'm in. Their are 4 restaurants and 2 pizza places. All 4 of the restaurants allow smoking as well as 1 of the pizza places. The other pizza place has a separate room for smokers. And I tend to get my food for take-out instead of sitting down in any of them except for the non-smoking pizza place.

But how can the non-smokers be successful in the use of governmental power unless the caring non-smokers are the majority.

I really don't understand why there aren't more non-smoking restaurants. I am surprised that the market doesn't enforce the majority of restaurants to go non-smoking, but there must be some market psychology that I don't understand.

[Just another Joe]

Maybe if there were more people like yourself that would make themselves known to the proprietors you might have a chance of getting one or two of the restaurants to go nonsmoking.

Oh, that's right, there are more nonsmokers that don't care.

I guess the market really does work, huh.

[Just another Joe]

But how can the non-smokers be successful in the use of governmental power unless the caring non-smokers are the majority.

Through the use of junk science and scare tactis.