Critique and Fine-Tune my letter to the Editor

[Smoke]

A plea to all wordsmiths of THR, please take the time to read, edit, correct, fine-tune, criticize, ammend, alter, add to, or dump on my letter to the editor of my local paper.

Thanks,

Smoke

*******************
I been reading about the City Council’s proposed Smoking ordinance with some trepidation. .
The most recent article cited debate of rights of the smokers vs. health issues related to second hand smoke….but this overlooks the larger issue the ordinance addresses and that is the erosion of private property rights.
Government should not involve itself in dictating to business owners what legal activity they may or may not allow on their premises. Someone tried to draw a parallel in one article between cigarettes and alcohol by saying the sale of alcohol was already regulated. That argument is flawed because it tries to compare the sale of alcohol with the consumption of cigarettes. There are businesses in town presently, that will allow you to consume alcohol but are forbidden to sell it. These same businesses don’t sell cigarettes, but do allow them to be consumed.
I couldn’t be happier if all business in town decided to ban smoking. But that should be the business owners decision, not the City Council’s. No one can effectively argue that smoke won’t harm you, sure some people can live long lives as smokers but many don’t. By reading the articles it seems the health issues are the biggest concern, and a valid concern they are, but who is being forced to go in stores that allow smoking? I don’t care to be in smoky environments myself and to date, no one has ever made me go to one.

If a business owner wants to allow smoking in his establishment, who is making you go there? No One! You are free to take your money and patronage somewhere else.
That is the basis for a free market economy. I see the City Councils actions as another government intrusion into the livelihoods of business owners.

The other issue I have with the ordinance is enforcement. Are the police going to be required to have tape measures to check the 15 foot perimeter rule? Who will be cited for violations? The smoker? The business owner? And what punishment is handed out to the criminals who violate this ordinance or is this another toothless piece of legislation designed simply to make people feel better?

This proposed ordinance neither makes the City of Clifton look “progressive†nor concerned with the health of it’s citizens.

 

[Freedspeak]

Don't know what state your in so don't know the details.

The one that really irks me is the 15' rule, don't know who it is applied to, but my main question is, if the smoker was there first and the complainie moved into the radius, who is at fault!

Personally the owner should make the rules. These unreasonable non-smoking rules are the main reason I can no longer enjoy an evevning out with my wife, I'm nonsmoking but she smokes, that is our situation and the Gov. has no bus. in it!

Sorry didn't wordsmith it, will try to give more input tommorrow.

 

[JPM70535]

Just to add my 2 cents worth, I too feel that the decision to allow or ban smoking in a privately owned business should be made by the Owners and not Government. If he decides to ban smoking and you disagree, you are free to take your business elsewhere. Free Market economics should be the rule.

That is as far as I am willing to go in support of Smokers Rights. I fully support the bans on Smoking on Aircraft, Busses, Taxis, and all other public
forms of transportation, I also fully support no smoking in public buildings, Sporting events held indoors, (outdoor events are OK). I support ay Smoker's right to puff away, drive all the nails he wishes into his Coffin, so long as I do not have to inhale his exhaled clouds of potentally noxious gasses (Do the words 2nd hand smoke ring a bell). No non-smoker should be exposed to Cigarette Smoke involuntarily. Your rights as a Smoker must end when those rights transgress on my right to be Smoke Free. If a non-smoker enters a smoking establishment, he does so of his own fr
ee will and has the option of leaving if the smoke offends him, however, the same cannot be said for his place of employment, or the local courthouse, or Wally World for that mattter.

I smoked for 25 years and enjoyed every Camel, Lucky, and Phillip Morris I ever tried, and could not for the life of me understand why non smokers would dare to complain when I lit up. Let this be my apology for being a thoughtless self centered Juvenile Delinquint.

To get back to the original post,I think your letter is just fine the way it is.
The only part I don't understand is the 15 foot rule. Can't see any reason for this as since I assume it applies to outdoor areas,take a step or 2 and the violation no longer exists, and the Smoker is as enttled to occupy the space in question as does the non smoker.