You know we are allowed to have cars and drive them but we cant always drive them anywhere we feel like such as on the sidewalk. Is that Nazi like control too?Driving a car on the sidewalk is illegal. Smoking is legal. It's a choice we make.
Would you call their efforts also Hitler like in an effort to have the product reach as many people as possible even though they know it causes cancer?
Big Tobacco sold us out! With the Attorney Generals. None of us have anything to do with Big Tobacco, but private citizens do have the right to speak out.
I look forward for the smoking ban to be put into effect in NYC.
Then you are even going against the wishes of our President, Mr. Conservative:
"The role of government is not to create wealth.
The role of government is to create an environment
in which the entrepreneur or small business or
dreamer can flourish. And that starts with rule of law,
respect of private property, less regulatory burdens on the
entrepreneur, open banking laws so that all people
have access to capital, and good tax policy."
President George W. Bush
St. Petersburg University,
St. Petersburg, Russia
May 25, 2002
Smoking is legal. It's a choice we make. There are plenty of places smoking is not legal. Public transportation,schools, office buildings, sports stadiums in addition to restaurants and bars in certain locations.
It seems reasonable to me that a bar and restaurant is a place of work. Why is smoking illegal in all places of work except bars and restaurants? Is there a special need for smoking in bar or restaurants that causes undue burden on the owner by not allowing it? Why should it hurt any particular bar or restaurant if it is banned equally. I could not see even the most conservative judge finding a restaurant smoking ban unconstitutional. If smoking should be allowed in a workplace and is unconstitutional as this thread assumes, where are the challenges before the Supreme Court?
Then you are even going against the wishes of our President, Mr. Conservative: Ummmm. not exactly. You might want to take that Bush Cheney2004 bumpersticker off your Free Republic homepage as President Bush is definitely not in favor of smoking.
From the pages of Whitehouse.gov.."The President’s Recommendations for Avoiding Risky Behaviors"
http://www.whitehouse.gov/infocus/fitness/chapt6.html
here a few excerpts from President bush's whitehouse website
"Tobacco use is the single most preventable cause of death and disease in the United States, causing more than 440,000 premature deaths annually during 1995-1999. Smoking can cause chronic lung disease, coronary heart disease, and stroke. Smoking has also been linked to cancer of the lungs, larynx, esophagus, mouth, and bladder. In addition, smoking contributes to cancer of the cervix, pancreas, and kidneys. Smokeless tobacco and cigars also have deadly consequences, including lung, larynx, esophageal, and mouth cancer. Aggressive and sustained anti-smoking programs prevent and reduce smoking and many states have successful efforts underway."
"The President’s Challenge:"
"Healthy choices are about making smart decisions in your everyday life—from avoiding tobacco and illegal drugs, to moderate consumption of alcoholic beverages if you drink, to using safety belts and bike helmets. Every little bit of effort counts: "
"If you smoke, quit. If you don’t smoke, don’t start. After just one day without cigarettes, the risk for heart attack decreases. Over the next several months, coughing, sinus congestion, and fatigue decrease. One year after quitting, excess risk for heart disease is reduced by half; risk for stroke is reduced after five years of not smoking. Ten years after quitting, the lung cancer death rate is about half that of a smoker; 15 years after quitting, an ex-smoker’s risk for heart disease is about the same as that of a nonsmoker."
"If you are a parent, set a good example and quit smoking before your children start. If you continue to smoke, avoid smoking inside or around your children. Each year an estimated 3,000 nonsmoking Americans die of lung cancer and up to 300,000 children suffer from respiratory tract infections because of exposure to secondhand smoke. Evidence also indicates that exposure to secondhand smoke causes heart disease."
"Promoting Healthy Choices: Administration Actions
"CDC Tobacco Control Toolkit--CDC is starting to develop a toolkit to accompany the 2003 annual Tobacco Control State Highlights report. This toolkit will include information and resources to assist states in developing, implementing, and evaluating programs to limit tobacco use. The toolkit will enable CDC to guide states in investing in proven programs and strategies to reduce tobacco use that have been successful in the states."