MY THOUGHTS ON A SMOKING BAN

The Fond du Lac City Council this week, narrowly, approved a ban on smoking in city workplaces, including taverns, bowling alleys and other workplaces. This was a contentious issue, and, according to a local group and their organizer, Smoke-Free Air for Everyone, or SAFE, and Maggie McCullough, it was a tough decision for the council to make, and at least one member had endured "personal attacks" for her position in support of the ban. Let me be clear on this issue. At this time, I am NOT in favor of a similar ban in Ripon.

First of all, I am a former smoker. I quit on January 1, 2008 at 1213 AM, and have been cigarette-free since. I quit "cold turkey", and it was hard (especially during Packer games, the Brewer playoff run, and the floods in June), but I had the support of my family and friends. Plus, having two little daughters changes one's attitudes and habits. I am not an anti-tobacco zealot, as some former smokers become, but I am a staunch defender of personal freedoms.

Here are the reasons I cannot support a smoking ban:
1 - Smoking is not illegal in the United States. In fact, this state has increased its tax on cigarettes to fund public health programs, though, with our Governor's track record, who knows where the additional revenue will go. If we want to be serious about curbing or eliminating smoking, then we should ban it entirely. Of course, the economic impacts would be tremendous in parts of the nation.
2 - I have heard the complaints about entering a bar or restaurant, where there is smoking. No one has forced anyone to enter these establishments. They entered of their own free-will, and that is the magic of the free market system. IF the owners of the properties had seen an economic advantage to eliminating smoking, they would enforce their own smoking bans. And, in some cases, restaurants have done that.
3 - I have also heard that smoking puts employees at risk. Once again, no one has forced them to work there. They chose to work there, and they should have clearly understood the risks.
4 - I agree smoking is not healthy, and advocates of the smoking ban have used this argument effectively. BUT obesity is not healthy (I am obese, another admission), and will the ban on smoking move on to fatty foods. Efforts have already been seen to ban such establishments as McDonalds in some California neighborhoods. Where did we lose the concept of personal choice, responsibility and freedom? Why does the government continue to think it always knows what is best for us?
5 - For the record, I am also opposed to the seat belt requirements, and the recent change in Wisconsin law to require certain booster seats for children. Once again, the government seems to know what is best for each individual, and that is a scary slope to start sliding down.

I am sure my position will not be popular with some, but I felt it necessary to get it out there, since Fond du Lac is just down the road.

UPDATE
Since posting this, I have received some flak for this sentence:
"For the record, I am also opposed to the seat belt requirements, and the recent change in Wisconsin law to require certain booster seats for children."
First, let's be honest - Wisconsin passed this law in part because it was bribed by the Federal government, just as we were bribed to drop our speed limit in the 1970s. Call a spade a spade. Let me site the following news article:
"The State is also planning to help families who cannot afford to buy the car seats. The new law allows Wisconsin to apply for Department of Transportation money that will help families in need get the seats at little or no cost. " - http://www.keynews.org/archive2/booster.htm
Let that sink in real clear - The State can get money from the Feds to buy seats for people who cannot afford them.
And then read this: "Doyle's office said the new law allows Wisconsin to become eligible for $625,000 in federal funds this year and up to $2.5 million over the next six years. The state will use the money for child safety seat education and training and programs that help poor families get the seats.According to state transportation statistics, 53 children under age 8 were killed in car crashes between 2000 and 2004 in Wisconsin." - http://www.beloitdailynews.com/articles/2006/02/07/wisconsin/wis03.txt
There are more children in this state who will die from the dietary choices imposed on them by their parents, than who will die from their parents not putting them in a booster seat. I think we can expect the calorie police at Golden Corral and Old Country Buffet soon....if the Federal government decides to bribe us once again.