Posted on 10/19/2006 7:25:52 AM PDT by Froufrou
If you catch someone smoking in a non-smoking area in Omaha, Neb., call the police. The Omaha Police Department (OPD) is encouraging city residents to call 911 in the wake of the citywide ban on smoking that went into effect on Oct. 2.
Teresa Negron, sergeant in charge of public information of the OPD, explained that the department encourages observers of infractions to pick up the phone to report the infraction -- just like they would for any other crime they observe being committed.
"Citizens or business owners that observe a violation to the smoking ban are urged to call 911 and report the violation," Negron told Cybercast News Service. "[It's like] any other crime that happens in any city -- if somebody sees a crime happen, they can call 911 and report it."
Negron did not necessarily endorse immediately calling 911 but still saw it as a viable option.
"What I would recommend for people to do is bring it to the attention of the management, and if that doesn't stop, then obviously contact us, and we'll respond and we'll handle it," she said.
However, the calls are not high priority.
"The first week, we had maybe 10 calls in the entire city," said Negron. "Calls concerning the smoking ban were not high-priority calls, so we have a system in place that calls that come in and have a higher priority will be handled."
The penalty is a citation and fee for individuals caught violating the ban -- $100 for the first offense, $200 for the second and $500 for the third and subsequent offenses, according to a summary of the city ordinance posted online.
"Obviously, they would receive a citation for violating the smoking ordinance," said Negron.
According to some, however, the new law will encourage people to become "snitches."
"I think that it's one thing for people to monitor themselves," said Amy Kauffman, research fellow for the Hudson Institute. "It's another thing to ask people to monitor their friends, neighbors and cohorts. It is turning people into snitches."
Kauffman called this "a horrible thing" and a waste of city resources.
"To use 911 for this purpose goes against what 911 is designated for. It is an emergency service. These are not emergencies," Kauffman said.
She further classified the situation as over the top.
"To take 911, which is supposed to respond to someone within I guess one to three minutes, and use it for this and to clog the lines with busybodies phoning in on their neighbors is ridiculous."
Mark Welsch, president of the Group to Alleviate Smoking Pollution (GASP) of Nebraska, disagrees.
"It's not an over-reaction, it's a good use of our city resources" that are being squandered on smokers, according to Welsch.
"I think about 13 percent of our total Medicaid expenses are caused by tobacco," Welsch said. "So, I'm paying too much. I don't want to subsidize tobacco use in my state. We should have just enough to break even. For next year, we would have to raise the tobacco tax by about 50 cents per pack -- just to break even."
Smoking isn't the only problem that needs fixing to trim down the costs, Welsch said. There's also a problem with food consumption that needs attention.
"We're such a fat country, by and large. Somebody needs to do something, or our Medicaid and Medicare costs are just going to continue to go up and up, not just because of smoking, but because of people being overweight and too lethargic to take their butts outside and walk," said Welsch.
Kauffman noted that smoking is not good for your health but insisted that 911 calls are not the answer.
"Smoking has been proven to be bad for one's health," she said. "But I really think that sometimes, these people go a little bit too far. It is a trend, but this is different because not only is it a trend where they're saying 'no smoking,' but now they're asking people to actually phone in and report other people."
Jeeez, I thought he already had! (all those matches and lighters--and cigarettes--OH MY!)
Actually, I enjoy walking around with a cigarette (unlit) in my hand and watching them start coughing and hacking at the sight of it (Repeat: an unlit cigarette). Pavlov's dogs.
un-frickin-believable!
Then people will start living too long and that will increase medicare costs and assisted living costs....What will be the solution for that problem? Yikes!
[exasperated] "Hold? My God, he's killing her!"
[a minute goes by]
"911 operator, state the nature of your emergency"
"Help! There's a man ... he is beating a woman to death with a baseball bat! Hurry!"
"We do not have a car available in that sector. The best I can do is send out detectives in 30 minutes."
"My God! By then she will be dead!
"That's why I'm dispatching detectives."
[loud muttering] "I can't believe this. How can they possibly ... hey, wait a minute, I just read that thread on FR ..."
"Quick, the man with the bat just lit a cigarette!"
"I have three cruisers respoding code 3!"
[sirens immediately heard approaching the scene.]
How asinine
The conflating of smoking where you aren't supposed to and smoking at all is the problem. The supporters of this waste of resources aren't saving anyone from smoking, which is their rationale for making a mockery of 9/11 and hall monitors of cops.
Pace the wildly overreaching interpretation of the Commerce Clause, we are becoming a nation of snitching moralizers. Is this the natural outcome of social conservatism wielding the levers of political power?
That is funny about the Hospital smoking area.
Omaha "Police" Dept = Jack booted thugs and a CORRUPT City Gov.
I get more of a 1984 George Orwell image.
Meanwhile
People Comply With New Smoking Ban: No Tickets Written To Smokers So Far
October 19, 2006
http://www.ketv.com/news/10106207/detail.html
"the 911 dispatch director said call volume related to smoking complaints has been "insignificant "
I can think of a two reasons:
They didn't realize it is a smoke free zone.
They don't care if it is a smoke free zone.
Regardless, calling 911 because someone is smoking in a smoke-free zone is absolutely ridiculous.
Probably because the little busybody Hitler wannabe's created a City Wide smoke free zone. What's a person to do, leave the city limits to have a smoke?
You create such an environment, you create this situation. So not only have the smoke nazi's created a smoke free zone, they're in the process of creating a totalitarian environment.
Why can't business owners decide to whom they cater to? Or is the concept of personal freedom, and right to choose, too difficult for the herd mentaility to grasp anymore?
We warned you anti people that you go down this road this is what you're going to get.
Smoking isn't the only problem that needs fixing to trim down the costs, Welsch said. There's also a problem with food consumption that needs attention. "We're such a fat country, by and large. Somebody needs to do something, or our Medicaid and Medicare costs are just going to continue to go up and up, not just because of smoking, but because of people being overweight and too lethargic to take their butts outside and walk," said Welsch.
Next they're coming after the cheesburgers, and will then go after the couch potato's. I can see it now, people calling 911 reporting illegal cheesburger consumption; and the one's neighbor spends too much time sitting, and not enough time sweating.
What's next?
THe country is going down the drain. Makes me sick!
These are the same people who disdain "profiling". See a Arabic man between 17 and 45 staring at a building, don't profile him! But if you see some poor slob sneaking a smoke in a bar, dial 911.
The country has gone goofy.
The whole anti-smoking tax-the-crap-out-of-'em scheme is just that: a wealth-redistribution scheme for lawyers and the gubmint.
Where are all the billions that were to pay back for the "burden" smokers were placing on the health care system? Did anyone get their check or their discount on their medical insurance due to the settlement funds off-setting the medical costs?
With the drumbeat of the leftist loonies to attack the smokers, and to attract the anti-smoking Nazi's who always jump on the bandwagon of whatever the latest fad "cause" that's promoted is (you can't be sitting around not in tune with today's trends, can you?)
Unfortunately, the things that would legitimately deserve to be rewarded by paying bounties to those turning them in (rapists, murders, faggots, dykes and other sex deviates, baby-killers, and illegal invaders) just won't happen with Liberals controlling the minds of their un-informed voter base.....
Edgar Friendly: You see,...I'm the enemy, 'cause I like to think; I like to read. I'm into freedom of speech and freedom of choice. I'm the kind of guy likes to sit in a greasy spoon and wonder - "Gee, should I have the T-bone steak or the jumbo rack of barbecued ribs with the side order of gravy fries?" I WANT high cholesterol. I wanna eat bacon and butter and BUCKETS of cheese, okay? I want to smoke a Cuban cigar the size of Cincinnati in the non-smoking section. I want to run through the streets naked with green jello all over my body reading playboy magazine. Why? Because I suddenly might feel the need to, okay, pal?
Unfortunately, that's EXACTLY where we're headed....the "Fat Police" are coming, and I've said that for the past two years.
It's just a matter of time until "we control the horizontal.....we control the vertical....", etc.
WAKE UP AMERIKA !
No.The things liberals believe are next to immoral and the things conservatives believe are immoral are much different.True conservatives aren't behind this fake morality on smoking, liberals are.
And, of course, included amongst the "rude people" are the perpetually offended non-smokers looking for any excuse to turn beet-red with rage.
"Hello, is this 911? . . . Cool! I want to report a smoker in a bar downtown. Come out right away and arrest him. He is sitting with a bunch of others who are also smoking. . . His description? He is wearing a red baseball cap. You can't miss him . . . My name? Just call me 'Mr. Concerned Citizen."
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