free country anymore?

Question

on the news right now, they have said hotels and hospitals are going smoke free, in and out and on their premises. (i never smoked) but i feel like they are saying that people that have smoked for 50yr cant smoke all of a sudden. and telling them where they can work, but if factories and all these other places that have gone smokeless. how is this called"a free country"?
what is this coming to, to tell smokers this? how and what we should buy in the grocery stores and what clothes to buy.???

second-hand smoke? what about children that are coughing in the car with their parent(s) smoking in the front seat.
kids dont have a choice like we do when going places. so ban parents from smoking or ban them from having kids if they are smokers.? for their child's health.(the children cant say, i dont want second hand smoke, or that stinks, mom or dad, or grandma) I have heard hundreds of kids coughing in back seat and rubbing their eyes.
if they want to stop the smoking, why not stop the cigerette companies? oh yea, you cant they have the "right" to sell them. and make a profit and collect taxes. and give them to their kids.
and teens can smoke them after school off school grounds.

Answer 1

Which do you think is worse, to be allowed to smoke without restrictions to public places, like in Europe, and let the children buy cigarettes, regardless of age, or to ban smoking in public places, and raise the awareness so that the society will actually be healthier or at least more health conscious??
I preffer the latter.. even though to some extent I feel like the smokers will shake more, because of their addiction, that doesn't mean I am willing to die for it, or let my kids die, get cancer for it...
And I think, ultimately, for this stand / actions against smoking in public places they can blame the sensless and the rude smokers who totally disregard anybody around them and will just puff in front of you like you're supposed to stand there and take it.. and boy if you dare tell them you don't really care for their smoke they tell you to move out of there... So... all the nice smokers have to thank those morons...
I have friends that smoke, but they are mindful of my kids and me and will excuse themselves when they need to smoke and when they are done we resume the conversations... and it's okay...

But I've seen the other side, and honey let me tell you it's way better when they have some kind of control over it... I don't think their rights are violated, I just think they need to provide for them spaces where they are allowed to do it, and where they are not in the presesnce of others that might not care to inhale that smoke... Hence, USA is the best country to live in as far as your health reasons are concerned... longevity has extended here, and I am not talking about finding one Joe or Jane out there who made 100... but in general the dying age in USA of all countries has moved up by 10- 15 years compared to Europe, and I am sure, some other countries and continents... (and that's considering general health reasons, not war, and/or other natural dezasters... )
So... I am sorry for the people who smoke 50 years, if there are any alive, ... but I'd rather enjoy my kids and their kids longer, and in good health... in that respect.
I do however, believe that they should have their places assigned and allow them to shake off the habbit, or make people more motivated into quitting, cuz, really the ones that are at loss are them, the tobacco companies aren't going to feel sorry...
Dang, how I'd love to see one tobacco company totally failing!
It's about time we stop paying them to kill us.

Answer 2

I think you need to stop and listen to what you said. Who is not free? The Smoker or the non-smoker? Hospitals?

The truly free country I live in quit smoking in Hospitals 20 or 30 years ago. Get into this Milena. People's rights, liberties and freedoms are available to them to enjoy with the limit being when they infringe on everyone Else's rights, liberties and freedoms. Yes, they are still free to smoke. But you do not have the right to cut someones throat, nor should you have the right to give them cancer through second hand smoke. THAT is double in a hospital where people are sick, immobile and have no choices on being there. They don't need someone there smoking. In my country we also got rid of smoking in bars, pubs, restaurants, airports, office buildings, government buildings, and all the entrances around them, etc. It is GREAT! I can't wait to see where they come up with next.

Hotels. I travel to the US quite a lot. It is about the only place I still run into smoking rooms. I think we did away with those too, and it makes the stay so much more comfortable. Why am I paying the same rate as a smoker? They get the smoking option they want, I get a smelly, dingy room with cigarette burns in everything.

So. What state do you live in? Ohio. I'll put a plus sign by it for future vacations.

Answer 3

It's politically incorrect to insult, or specifically target anyone with intolerance- except smokers (just take a look at tsome of these answers). It's a tough line between the rights of smokers and the rights on non-smokers. If it is so bad then ban it. Only the government won't do that will they. They make too much money off the taxes. The reality is it may annoy some people, but there is no hard scientific evidence that second hand smoke is anything more than an annoyance to most people. Yes, I know there study after study. Studies - yes, Hard scientific evidence - no.

Answer 4

Okay, here's the thing: secondhand smoke can kill you, if you're exposed to it enough. It's one of the top triggers for asthma and allergies, it's carcinogenic, and it can cause heart palpitations - in fact, studies indicate that someone who lives with a smoker is MORE likely to get emphezema than the smoker is. And it LINGERS like nobody's business, so even if you aren't there at the same time as the smoker, it can trigger a (possibly fatal) asthma or allergy attack if you sleep in the room after a heavy smoker has been there.

What you buy at the grocery store affects only you. What you wear only hurts other peoples' eyes. It's not a threat to anyone else, so the government pretty much doesn't care.

Answer 5

Ah.. I'm a smoker and these new rules simply save me a lot of money. I don't frequent places where I cannot have a cigarette with my cup of coffee.

I have to say though that there are smokers out there who do behave irresponsibly (seen cig burns on tubs in hotels, etc.) and those guys should be billed for the damage they cause. But then, they're probably slobs in every other respect anyway.

Strangely enough, cigarettes are not illegal to purchase. Kinda ironic when you think about it because the government makes a large amount of money in taxes and health insurance companies actually save money by insuring smokers because statistically smokers die sooner than others. (They actually require less care than someone who gets Alzheimers or Parkinsons, etc.).

I often get the feeling that this society is slowly turning into a conformist society where you can't fart sideways without being sued or without violating some ordinance. Sad, really.

Answer 6

Yep, I've got mixed emotions about the whole smoke free thing as well. But the bottom line is your right to swing your arm stops where anothers nose begins. Repeated studies are showing that second hand smoke is almost as harmful as the act of smoking itself. Non-smokers have a right to not have their health endangered in public places. I don't think outlawing smoking in public places like hospitals is out of line. However, at private businesses (such as bars) it should be up to the management. In my fair city there is an ordinance against smoking in any establishment that is open to the public and IMHO this is a step too far.

Answer 7

This has never been a free country, all citizens are slaves of the u.s. government, if you are a citizen you are given the priveledge to vote or drive not the right. True freedoms do not have stipulations on them. Smokings is so minor to all the other things that the controllers have imposed on the american people, and they have done it so well, that it took banning smoking to get you to realize something so basic. Read whats below and you see if banning smoking is such a big deal in comparison the big picture.

Answer 8

yeah welcome to being awake.

i mean the air we breathe kills us. We are born dieing
and the government regulates our nature

and you have people for this and against that.

Hoopla i tell ya. Nothing free in my eyes.

People wanna stay healthy they should beg to stay in the womb

wah wah wah

everyone wants to live for ever
at least smokers are realistic about the carbon in the air
we know we are breathing shite we just want it to be pleasurable at the same time.

cigarette smoke dont kill us fossil fuels will, if that dont kill us smog will, if that dont kill us organic foods will, blah, blah, blah

I say they need a Micheal Jackson sleep chamber
and a gas mask oh but OXygen is gas too and too much of that can kill ya.

it never ends

Ban cell phones and PC's palm pilots and blacberries

thats where the cancer is really coming from.

If I based my thoughts off what I was told..
Id be like the kids growing up today
lost and stupid

Answer 9

first where do you live because here in ny its been like that a while and second where is my choice if i want to go into a resteraunt and eat in a smokeless enviroment the only choice there is to sit in a non smoking section which doesn't exist because the smoke comes into that area anyway.and anyone who thinks its a right to smoke is wrong its like a drivers license its a privelage and if you think your losing all your rights then move to china as it has been said before nothing in the world is free including freedom it comes at a price

Answer 10

They Never said they couldn't smoke they simply said you can't smoke here. I'm a none smoker myself and I'm completely in favor of making them smoke elsewhere. Nothing ruins a Meal faster than sitting there eating and having someone Light up at the table next to yah.