Michigan Senate snuffs out smoking ban in bars, restaurants

Harry wrote:

Senator Bishop,
How much money is the tobbaco industry giving you to stop the smoking ban in michigan? Since 79 percent of Michigan residents are non-smokers, are you afraid to put the issue on the ballot and let the people decide or are you afraid to lose the money that you are being paid? What is happening to the thought of government by the people? Get off your ash and let the people decide.

Cindy wrote:

Senator Bishop,
What is wrong with our government? I can't believe they did not pass the smoking ban. Are they all smokers? They say we are non-smoking Nazis, all we want is clean air to breath. I don't think that is asking to much. I go inside an establishment to have a nice dinner (my husband and I do like to go out every once in a while) and I have to smell smoke. I got an email the other day that made a lot of sense, it read "having a non-smoking section in a restaurants is like have a no peeing section in a swimming pool". I have respiratory problems and find it very difficult to be around smoke and besides the smell is aweful and I have to take a shower and wash my clothes when I get home. Some restaurants and hotels have gone non-smoking without the help of our government. I believe smokers have rights, but do they have to smoke around the non-smokers. I don't want the second hand smoke and it is already proven that second hand smoke is bad for you. What about the children we bring into these establishments, is it right to expose them to health hazards? The ban would not hurt the resaurants industry, infact it would help the industry. The majority of Michigan residents do not smoke and stay away from establishments that allow smoke because they cannot tolerate it. Come on Michigan government, get with it and help our ecomony and restaurant industry and ban smoking.

Brian wrote:

The fact is. One cannot go into a building that allows smoking without breathing smoke! I don't care how many smoke eaters they have.
Here is what everyone should do. Go to the most expensive restaurant that allows smoking. Order a drink and also the most expensive items on the menu. When the food arrives say that you've lost your appetite because of the second hand smoke, pay for your drink and leave!

Brian wrote:

"rights of private business owners to set the standards they want in their establishment.
??????????
Huh? You say they should have rights yet you want them to be forced to have separate partitions?
It's quite simple actually. Ban it in Bars and Restaurants that serve food. The smaller Bars can keep their smoking. I wonder how many would survive.

Harry wrote:

New york has a smoking ban in place and they seem to handle it okay and they have weather just like ours if not colder. Take some lessons from New York. Everyone I have talked to says that it is so nice to walk into an establishment that provides the goods and services that they like and not smell any ordors from smoke and not have to wash the odor out of their clothes when they get home. Are you smokers afraid to have it put on the ballot and let the people decide if they want the smoking ban or not. If if fails on the ballot, I would be willing to accept it but at least give government by the people a chance.

Common Sense Isnt wrote:

<quoted text>
Why do you have to have an outright ban? Why are Smoke Nazis unwilling to compromise? If it's just that you don't want to smell smoke then there are plenty of other ways to do it that don't strip businesses of their rights to decide how they cater to all of their customers.
We've had the smoking ban in Florida for several years. It works in the sense that you don't have to smell smoke in the restaurant while you eat. But the freedom of the proprietor to decide how they want their business to run has been stripped away by the government. It's mob rule rather than a representative republic and the majority has imposed their will on the minority. That is NOT how this country is supposed to work. We have rules in place so that the majority CAN'T impose their will on the minority. "Fine and dandy" you all say until one day when you find yourself in the minority and you get buffaloed by the majority. Popular vote referendums are going to be the downfall of our country's form of government. Why elect representatives if we're just going to put it up for majority rule?

Common Sense Isnt wrote:

<quoted text>
What is happening to the right of the business proprieter to establish his/her own rules regarding smoking? What gives the majority the right to impose their will on the minority? Why is there a need for an outright ban?
Non-smoking Nazis are unwilling to compromise on this issue. The solution is simple. If the business owner wants to allow smoking then they need to section off the area with it's own ventilation system. If they cannot afford one or are unwilling to install one, then they cannot allow smoking in their establishment.

Parents dead lung cancer wrote:

Ventilate to where? Outside where it is even more annoying to smell smoke because one prefers fresh air? Why is an airborne toxin able to be imposed on me? Why is it a "right" to emit a deathly substance? I can be in the comfort of my own home and smell neighbor's smoke. It is offensive that anyone would put profit before life.<quoted text>

Who are You wrote:

What's next are you going to tell me that I can't smoke in my own home if a non-smoker is over. Or that I can't smoke in my car with the window down because it might affect your delicate sensiblity. I don't have a problem having to wait to smoke when I am in a restaurant, I personally sit in the non smoking section. It seems that our total freedom as an individual is being taken away. So if you are telling me that I can't smoke in a bar because you don't like the smell of the smoke or that it is unsafe for you then I will tell you to leave, because that is what you are telling me. What gives you the right to decide what others should do. You want cleaner air... Well then I suggest that you don't take a deep breathe when you step outside, because what you are breathing in is so far from being clean, that smoking doesn't even touch. SMOKE ON SMOKERS...