could be, but they never are. think it'd be easy to roll in the $500 fines following people with their windows cracked.
My dad is the only person I've ever known to get a ticket for throwing his cigarette out of his car window. He was super pissed too.
The only outdoor bans I've encountered before have been an extension of indoor bans. For example, an outdoor patio seating area of a restaurant, or a ban on smoking within 20 feet of a building entrance. Of course, in NYC, a ban on smoking within 20 feet of a building entrance is almost a 100% ban citywide. Especially if you can also ban it within public parks on the basis of preventing cigarette butt litter.
I can agree with these bans as I've had a problem leaving a building more than once because of having to walk through the cloud at the entrance. Still, I doubt walking through that crowd is causing me any permanent damage and the smell doesn't really stick to me in that small amount of time, so that makes me wonder when people became so averse to smelling bad things. Next they are going to ban farting in public. Breathing all this methane is giving me a headache! We should probably ban cows too. And whomever said cars is right, lets ban them, and don't forget buses and airplanes and factories and plants I don't like the smell of in the spring, and for that fact, maybe we should ban pollen producing things because they make Dan awful sick for 3/4 of the year. You people planting grass in your yard are killing my husband! Shame on you!
It's nice to be able to go out drinking and not coming home smelling like an ash tray and being able to see people inside of bars without all the smoke.
This I do agree with, but I agree that it should be the right of the establishment to choose. I get to choose whether or not to go to bars that allow smoking (well I used to, Maryland has a smoking ban too, even an outdoor in public places one).
Yeah, its also nice not having to deal with screaming kids, Jews, the homeless, and old people at resturants. However, its JUST as wrong to infringe on their rights simply for your comfort.
Is it really a question of comfort or is it health. Isn't it pretty proven that someone smoking a cigarette next to you can cause you to get cancer? I agree with you, but I don't think it's comfort that is brought into question here. Your rights end at the end of your nose.
As an ex-smoker I can see both sides of the coin here. I don't want to smoke anymore, and I'm carrying a child that I don't want to smoke, but that doesn't mean I don't think other people should have to stop smoking. Heck, I still let people smoke in my car since it stinks anyway. I can see the health risks for others though. For me, it's not about smell, although I don't like smelling like an ashtray anymore, it's about not doing something extra to get cancer. Having to choose to stay home because you might be exposed to high levels of smoke in your surroundings kinda sucks. I wish it didn't have to be about laws though. I wish it were about people being considerate of other people.
For example, when we were in DC a few months ago, Liam smoked while we walked around, but he wasn't blowing it in anyone's face. He was being respectful. I felt bad when he had to go outside by himself at bars though. It's kind of isolating, but it was his choice. When I smoked it was my choice and I tried to be considerate of others in that I understood it wasn't their choice inside or outside.