COLORADO JOINS OTHER LOONS

I'll preface this with the fact that I am a non-smoker; I hate it. Can't stand the smell, can't stand the smoke, can't stand it period, yuck.

It's unhealthy, it promotes a variety of lung diseases and makes you age faster. I had an uncle die in a house fire he accidentally started with his own cigarette, fortunately his wife and children made it out safely. Wildfires are started by people throwing their butts on the ground. The impoverished spend precious dollars on their addiction rather than putting food on the table. I think you see where I'm coming from here.

But now in the great state of Colorado, it is illegal to smoke in bars, restaurants and the majority of businesses. I find it interesting that smoking is banned in bars, but not the casinos, hmm. Ya think there's something to that? Lobbyists? Anyone? Anyone?

Anyway, a business owner should have the right to cater to his customers; to provide them with choices. Meat or fish, broiled or grilled, smoking or non-smoking. At what point will big brother quit stepping in on business owners? This is the genesis of socialism, government making choices on how PRIVATE businesses should be run.

Advocates of the ban claim that this will reduce the risks of second-hand smoke on employees and non-smoking patrons. I have yet to see a SIGNIFICANT study on second-hand smoke from a reliable source. If you are truly concerned about the actions of others affecting your health, then perhaps you should pursue alcohol. I've never known anyone who's wrapped their car around a tree because they smoked one too many cigarettes that night. I've never heard of a death caused to an innocent person because some smoker crossed over the center line. I've never heard of a domestic abuse dispute because someone finished off a pack of cigarettes in one evening.

Yes, if you truly are concerned for the public, you'll address alcoholism. In our nation an average of 17,000 people are killed every year by drunk drivers with an additional 500,000 injured, some quite severely, by drunk drivers. Not to mention the prices the families and employers of alcoholics must suffer with.

I've never sat at a funeral for someone killed by someone else smoking, I have however sat at my nephew's funeral because someone else was drinking. Logic people, God gave you a brain; use it.

Technorati Tags smoking ban, alcoholism, drunk drivers

Posted by Stacy at July 5, 2006 02:02 PM | TrackBack