Michigan Senate OKs smoking ban in bars, restaurants

History Buff wrote:

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You seem to have over-lapping thoughts so you should understand this.
Tobacco is in the SAME food group as tomato, potato, green pepper and other foods in the Nightshade family. They all contain nicotine.
You complain about the smoke but I've not seen what you disagree with other than 'smoke'.
On the other end, you eat nicotine in your foods with no complaint. So, if you are so worried about it, why are you not wanting to ban things like chili, spaghetti, etc?
By the way: Tobacco smoke is 95% water vapor. And, it is impossible to be allergic to the smoke as there are NO proteins in it.
So YOU EAT your nicotine and we'll also enjoy a cigarette. FREE CHOICE!

Ok...are you a crack addict too??? Thanks for the insight...I take it you puff away around your kids, your the type driving down the road with your window barely cracked and 5 kids in the back seat!

Don't pin your excuses on food. Thats the biggest load of sh it I've ever heard. If the food mentioned does have the components of a cig, there is probably such a small amount that Dr. House wouldn't be able to find it. Last I checked, eating a tomatoe didn't kill you...smoking does!

BTW: I think you just blew the whole "95% of smoke is water vapor" out your arss!!! Go die elsewhere, and quit with your nonsense defense system!!! It's not working:)

web wrote:

<quoted text>What the hell is your point. Dont go to a god damn bar then.. I hate people on their damn cell phones too so lets kick them out too. People need to get a life...

I agree! Some people need to pull whatever the *ell that's shoved up their *sses and get a life. I'm sorry but I have more important things to do in life besides walking around and *itching because you don't want to smell like second hand smoke! I don't want to smell like pollution but do you here me whining and telling all the factories to shut down or better yet, nobody is allowed to drive a vehicle because I might smell it?

Torque wrote:

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My how noble you are sticking up for unborn children. I haven't seen that many pregnant women smoke but you seem to think it's an epidemic.
What does an unborn baby have to do with an adult who willingly decides to go into a bar?
By thy way, what's your position on abortion?

BTW: My position on abortion stands the same for women who smoke while their pregnant! It should never be a choice, and I feel sorry for the baby who doesn't have the choice! Anything else you'd like to know??? Keep it coming... Were you one who smoked while pregnant, or knew some one who did? I love how defenseive and side tracked smokers get. after all, the post was about a ban in bars! I was just mearly stating my opinion that smokers are selfish! Take it how you will.

It's not even the fact of smoking that's the point anymore. It's the freedom of choice. All this is doing is giving them one more way to dictate everyones lives. The non-smokers are saying ban ban ban, why do you think they chose this habit to ban? Because they know the non-smokers out number the smokers and they will be on their side 100% and that my friends is just one more in their favor to dictate! I'm sorry if this makes no sense. If you don't like it don't read it, simple as that.

Boo hoo ya crybabies wrote:

The last time I checked, non-smokers make up the majority of residents of this God-forsaken state so perhaps you need a dose of your own advice...
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If your opinion of this state is so low, why don't you just leave? There's no point in staying where you are unhappy.

Buddy wrote:

Whiny cry baby smokers - just drug addicts that need their fix! Don't care about anyone else - does anybody remember the dirth of filthy air on flights when people could smoke on airplanes? You can't walk 10 feet without seeing nasty cig. butts on the ground - Like I said...just filthy, foul smelling, yellow teethed, stinky people in need of their fix. Stop whining - just go outside and smoke - and maybe think about throwing your butts in the garbage instead of polluting!

The air on airplanes is still bad. Once they became smoke free, the airlines turned down the ventilation to save fuel. Some sensitive people are having very serious issues with airlines on the ventilation issue.

My question is...how can people even afford to smoke anymore? A pack of smokes is the same price as a gallon of gas. Forget all this debate of this is just one more way for the gov't to control us, and other nonsense...Save some money! Quit, and have an extra $1-200/month! Sounds like good motivation to me!

give me a break wrote:

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BTW: My position on abortion stands the same for women who smoke while their pregnant! It should never be a choice, and I feel sorry for the baby who doesn't have the choice! Anything else you'd like to know??? Keep it coming... Were you one who smoked while pregnant, or knew some one who did? I love how defenseive and side tracked smokers get. after all, the post was about a ban in bars! I was just mearly stating my opinion that smokers are selfish! Take it how you will.

Sounds like you just described yourself and what exactly are you doing trying to make the issue about children when it's about whether or not smoking should be made illegal in a bar?

Smoking bans cause drunk driving rates to increase. That means innocent people on the road who never set foot in bars die due to these silly laws. That is unacceptable.

http://www.econ.iastate.edu/calendar/papers/C...

What is next,banning parents that allow their children too run, bang, do anything to cause the other people who would like to have enjoyible meal. Can we ban these parents that think their children are always right?

Shouldn't it be up to the OWNER of the establishment??? Smoking and no smoking places to attend would be nice. Why should Gov be involved at all??? What happens if the owner is a smoker? He/she can't smoke in their own business??? The less Gov, the better.

Finally wrote:

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Like I said, you will be one of those people that are standing outside smoking while I am inside enjoying my meal soon enough. The whole country is coming to the same conclusion that smoking SHOULD be banned.
I can't wait.

And when they ban fried foods or coffee or soft drinks at restuarants because they're unhealthy, will you be standing out there with complaining about government making your choices for you?

CThomas wrote:

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And when they ban fried foods or coffee or soft drinks at restuarants because they're unhealthy, will you be standing out there with complaining about government making your choices for you?

C'mon, they would never do that, that would be infringing on my right to eat.

Torque wrote:

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Sounds like you just described yourself and what exactly are you doing trying to make the issue about children when it's about whether or not smoking should be made illegal in a bar?

okay, your right! I give up! Your opinions are ignorant! And you must have trouble reading!

give me a break wrote:

<quoted text>okay, your right! I give up! Your opinions are ignorant! And you must have trouble reading!

You're saying smokers are selfish, it seems more selfish to me for someone to use government to force every single bar and restaurant to conform to their desires, and their desires only, especially when those desires are going to damage the business.

Wyoming Bob wrote:

There is also a trend toward charging smokers more for health insurance. A growing number of employers are requiring employees who use tobacco to pay higher premiums, hoping that will motivate more of them to stop smoking and lower healthcare costs. Among the list of firms reported to have such policies to charge smokers higher premiums include Cardinal Health, J.P. Morgan Chase, Meijer Inc., Gannett Co., American Financial Group Inc., PepsiCo Inc. and Northwest Airlines. Add Steelcase to that list.

More descrimination. Maybe I should drop my insurance. Hospitals can't turn away patients and, without insurance, that means the antis will be picking up my tab. Seems fair in an offbeat way.

What but those who can't control their diet? I see more overweight people than smokers. Should they have to pay higher premiums if their weight goes over their medically recommended weight? Would you jump on that bandwagon too?

How about those addicted to illegal drugs? They've pretty much outnumbered the smokers and a lot of them have become skilled at getting past the ER and into a bed where they can get their dope for free.

The point here isn't insurance, smoking, not smoking, or anything else other than a business owner's right to decide which patrons he wants to serve. Believe me, if you were paying the bills, you'd want to make the decisions too.

Torque wrote:

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You're saying smokers are selfish, it seems more selfish to me for someone to use government to force every single bar and restaurant to conform to their desires, and their desires only, especially when those desires are going to damage the business.

Would it be a bad law to have clean air? What is it going to hurt?

give me a break wrote:

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Would it be a bad law to have clean air? What is it going to hurt?

Once again, not the point. The point is the gov't who is not supposed to intrude on individual and their property rights is telling businesses what they can and can't do with a LEGAL item.

The whole health issue is taking the emphasis off where it should be, property rights and our government becoming more and more Nazi-like all the time.

give me a break wrote:

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Would it be a bad law to have clean air? What is it going to hurt?

What is it going to hurt? Well for starters there's the near 200 bars that have closed in the Twin-Cities area since a ban was rushed through. That's a 400% increase per-year in bar closings.

i am a bar owner,who is against the smoking ban.there should be mandatory sign put up in our businesses that says this is a smoking establishment or a non smoking establishment.ITS CALLED FREEDOM OF CHOICE,THAT NO LONGER EXSISTS IN MICHIGAN. jennifer is trying to double the price of liquor and double to triple the price of liquor licence.if this keeps up it will cost all of us six dollars a beer to enjoy your self at a bar.lets have all our customers standing in front of our businesses smoking.next the goverment will say that is illeagal also.michigan will not be happy until there are is,no more businesses in business.