Smoking kills. Anyone who does it should be ashamed. However, those people are citizens that have the right to waste their lives away wherever they want, including bars, restaurants and public buildings.
On Nov. 5, 2002, 71 percent of Florida voters approved Amendment 6 banning smoking in all indoor work places.
That amendment should have never been passed. Smoking is a natural right that United States citizens possess.
If the government wants to clean the environment, they should go after cigarette companies. They are the ones producing these harmful substances. Don’t punish the users for falling into the trap the media and smoking companies have set.
A new Senate bill, SB 742, aims to add stand-alone bars to the ban by prohibiting smoking at bars getting at least 70 percent of their sales from alcohol.
Yet, the bill seeks to exclude private clubs that are frequently used for public purposes like the American Legion from the smoking ban.
That is completely absurd.
There should not be a distinction between private clubs and bars. If legislators want to be anal and ban smoking in one public setting, it should be banned in all others.
Furthermore, a bar should not be punished or restricted because it has large revenues in alcohol sales. Alcohol has nothing to do with smoking and should not be a factor.
Those who smoke should not have to call a restaurant before arriving to find out if smoking is allowed. Patrons that don’t want to be around it should simply request the non-smoking area.
Florida is not the first state to propose such foolishness. The New York legislature passed a statewide smoking ban March 26, making New York the third state to eliminate smoking. This trend must be stopped before it spreads to all states.
Dominique Drake for The Famuan