Free Republic

Retailers in San Luis Obispo, CA may have to get a license to sell cigarettes if city officials approve a new ordinance aimed at stopping tobacco sales to youths. This county is responsible for the Laural Lanes bowling alley, No. 3 on SheLions list.

http://www.sanluisobispo.com/mld/sanluisobispo/news/local/6583809.htm

Where does it end?

Both of my friend's parents worked at Laurel Lanes in San Luis Obispo (no. 3 on SheLions post) when the county banned smoking in all business except the tobacco shops. Her parents soon lost both their jobs when the bowling alley went out of business because of the smoking ban. Since the ban, the two or so remaining bowling alleys in this county have become unhealthier than ever before. Without customers, the areas have become seedy, run-down commercial voids.

Every time the anti smoking subject is brought up I remember going with my Mom to the voting polls for the first time. Before we left, we started reviewing the propositions and discusing our opinions. One pending prop was for a county-wide business smoking ban. (this was in San Luis Obispo about 4 years before it finally passed.) My mother said how much she hated having a dinner ruined by second-hand smoke, and she was all for the ban. My Dad spoke up from across the room and said he too loathes the smell of someone else's smoke when he sits down to eat, but then stated the unarguable fact that all these laws every year add up,(ie..California) with every law, we become less free. This has always stuck with me, and is probably one of the main reasons I have become republican.

If only there was a way to calculate the exact date we will lose all our freedom at our current rate of new and amended laws, people would look deeper. Too many people vote without seeing the big picture. Is it worth losing more freedom because something may be annoying or bothersome. Think about any vices, hobbies or any pleasure you may partake in, chances are that at least one of them may be frowned upon or unhealthy to others.

I think most would agree, being stuck behind city bus spewing highly toxic exhaust in traffic is a thousand times worst than smelling tobacco smoke. Should we ban diesel engines, including mass transit and highway freight transportation? Or what about the reeking smell of that homeless guy standing in front of you at McDonalds? Should he be banned from buying a cup of coffee? Fined?

We as a nation design our highways with 100 mile detours because it is deemed stressful for the Africanized spotted stink beetle. Yet it is completely unreasonable to avoid certain establishments where the majority of the customers are smokers. When I don't like something, I just try to avoid it, and when I can't when I can't, too bad for me, that's life.

If banning smoking is good for business, business owners would have chosen to disallow smoking years ago.