Smoking ?

[Pirilao]

Would you back smoking bans in public places in your country?

 

The European Union's health chief will seek a 'comprehensive ban' on smoking in public places across the group's 27 countries, he said on Tuesday (January 30). Health Commissioner Markos Kyprianou did not specify a timetable but said he would like to see it happen 'as soon as possible'. A discussion paper on smoke-free environments released by the EC had stopped short of saying whether Brussels would push for a definitive EU-wide ban.

 

[Cabarria]

Personally, I dislike cigarette smoke, but I am of the libertarian mindset that it's up to the individual businesses to ban smoking from their own establishments. And as far as a law being passed, which I'm against in principle, I would prefer that the issue be directly voted on by the people via referendum and not passed into law by the legislature. We had a situation like this in Ohio last election, and voters approved the smoking ban (I voted against on legal principle).

[Damak Var]

Didn't even know the EU had that kind of power. I figured it to be more of a commercial alliance. Shouldnt each individual country decide it on their own?

[Suverina]

Shouldnt each individual country decide it on their own?

I think that's the way it works mostly.

[Deltannia]

Ugh, I hate people who smoke. Not the people themselves, just that they do smoke. It's disgusting, and it's the cause of so many problems. I think that the minimum it should be is banned in public places. If you want to have bad habits, do them in the privacy of your home, don't do it where I can smell it. I guess it's worse since I'm a runner and I hate when people blow smoke in your face as you pass.... ick.

 

And I guess while I do hate it, my country would have the same policy as above, do it in the privacy of your home. That'd be the minimum. I guess the maximum would be to ban it altogether.

[Emakera]

Why? Is it because smoking is unhealthly? Well, so is pollution, toxic trash, untreated water, easily preventable diseases, traffic accidents because of decrepit roads and being spit by a revolver. I would be against a ban on outdoor smoking down here, at least until people stop dying from dengue. If they want to improve our healths, a nice start would be invisting in basic education (and not that fancy universities-- you can't build the roof first), security, basic infrastructure, and then, they can ban smoking, grape-flavored Fanta, and shoe glue. I'm not a smoker, and, while I'm not enamorated with the scent of a cigarrete, I don't feel like just prohibiting someone to smoke, specially outside.

[Deltannia]

Yes, but I'm already assuming my nation protects against most of what you said. Obviously there is going to be pollution, but not everyone wants to be subject to other people's lifestyles. I mean, people have to wear clothes outside, and that's also a lifestyle. But the US government, for instance, says that there are many drugs that are illegal. What's the difference between them and cigarettes? One, they are more dangerous to other people. Two, they are more dangerous to the taker and thus raise the cost of medical care. And three, the politicians have their hands in the cigarette companies' wallets.

 

As to things like soda, using them in public won't kill someone else. And it won't have an effect on anyone else. But to look at another similar example. In the US, drinking is illegal outside in public places except for restaurants, and in a few cities. But you can't, for example, go out in New York and just start drinking on the subway, in a park, etc. because it could have a bad effect on other people.

 

But yeah, you're entitled to your opinion and so is your nation. Obviously I don't have a real nation in real life (just a small band of rebels ), but if I coul control it, that'd be how.

[Mongol-Swedes]

Rebels, eh, Tag? You wouldn't be referring to those talisman-chokers down at that place you always hang out at...?

 

Anyway, smoking. It's pretty common in the Army, usually as a means to fill time during a deployment. Back in the day they actually handed them out. There's a small campaign to help folks quit, in the interests of having a healthy force, but you wouldn't know it from all of the PT patchers (expert PT-ers, more or less) who smoke and such.

 

The only restrictions placed on smoking in the Army are: Within a certain range of military tactical vehicles or hazardous equipment, no smoking within a motor pool, and no smoking indoors or anywhere else that is specifically indicated by a sign or whatever. Free game otherwise.

 

Lots of places like restaurants and stores don't let you smoke there, whether by owner's policy or by law (many states don't allow people to smoke in restaurants, unless they make a majority of their profits off of alcohol). That's a good idea in my mind, since it helps to keep restaurants clean and accessible by families with young children and old folks who have to tote around an oxygen tank or whatever.

 

The only way I know to properly educate people at large is to blast it on the airwaves everywhere you go, like the Soviets did, with radios and P.A. systems. You'd have to make it so that it stands out above all of the pointless entertainment going on all the time.

 

Haha, but that would just get so annoying.

 

It's high-time that the Peace Dividend be realized, I know this. So much can be accomplished with everything that gets dropped on a defense budget (that is often over-budget, anyway). They can move brigades around the world in a couple of weeks but they can't get things moving from one part of this land to another? What rubbish!

 

...anyway, I don't smoke. It's too damn expensive and it's not clean. I prefer having a fully stocked cupboard, fridge, and deep-freeze 24-7.

[Tagmatium Rules]

I might have to put my oar in on this one, as I suspect I am the only one on this board which admits to smoking.

 

I dislike smoking indoors and I will only smoke if those around me consent to it if I ask them. Otherwise I won't do it or I will go outside to have a smoke. Also, I tend to smoke home-mades/roll-ups as I don't like "proper" cigarettes (funnily enough, I find filters affect me) and even then 6 at the most a day, and then only if I've been drinking, which tends to bring out the cravings for nicotine. I intensely dislike people who smoke whilst they eat and I can't stand the smoke of cigarettes if I myself am eating at a restaurant. That might be fairly hypocritical of me, I don't know.

 

Do I agree with the ban for smoking in public places? My answer is that I don't really know. In my old Sixth Form, we could only smoke in a certain area and in my current halls of residence we can only smoke out of doors, although you can smoke in your room if you block off the bottom of the door and I've only done that once, as I didn't want to leave my room as my mates would have put some hideous website on my PC if I left as a joke. I'm used to going outside for a cigarette and I don't really mind it and I appreicate that other people don't like to breath in the smoke of others.

 

Saying that, pollution does probably cause more damage to people than smoking does. Apparenlty, walking down a road in rush hour is as bad as smoking a pack of twenty cigarettes. I feel that alcohol is possibly more harmful, but then it really does depend how often one does either, really.

 

I really don't like being dictated to do such a thing by my government. If I'm banned from smoking for "my own good", what else will come next? Will people be put away "for their own good"? Who knows, really. I feel that, to a point, it puts on that slippery slope.

 

And on MS's point on cost, I think I spend about ?3 every couple of weeks on a pack of rolling tabacco and Rizlas, but I do realise people do spend a lot more a day, as some do smoke 20+ cigarettes a day, which really does astound me, to be honest. The amount I spend really does put a dent in my finances, even as a student.

 

EDIT: Also, on the idea of tabacco tax and politicians being in the pocket of tabacco companies, the National Health Service (God bless it!) spends way more on treating smoking-related illnesses than the British Government receives in tax from tabacco sales.

 

On another slight side-note, the Tagmatine government has also banned smoking in public areas along time ago.

Edited February 5, 2007 by Tagmatium Rules (see edit history)

[Pirilao]

Definitely yes. While I think nobody has the right to forbid someone to smoke; or eat or drink too much; or abuse sex; or paint hair green, yellow, red or blue, or simply shave hair; or give his car small wings, super antenas and infra-red lights; or adopt dogs, cats or simply mosquitoes; or bear Dali moustache, Jew goatee or Ray Dorset whiskers; or simply wear top short skirts just below yellow string. Nobody has the right neither to endanger other's health with 'passive' smoking. But no law should ever prevent a separate smoking area to be arranged for those who have this vice but not the others or maybe all. I wish Kyprianou to be sufficiently intelligent to not commit 'absurd'. He has no choice after all...

[Lahui]

Personally, I occasionally smoke cigars, but not a fan of cigarette smoke. The other half does smoke, but outside on the lanai (patio).

As far as Lahui is concerned, its legal, but highly frowned upon by the general populace (as it never had the *bump* that Hollywood movies gave smoking IRL). Some cigar fields are know on other island in the Kingdom, along with tobacco and marijuana, but "proper" Lahui society insists that smoking product consumption be done at one's home.

[Haruspex]

You are definitely smoking something what with your necromancer ways oh He who revives dead threads.

[Vocenae]

Yeah, there's no reason why you should be going around and necromancing all these dead threads. ESPECIALLY dead social threads that have nothing to do with nation role-play.

 

If you want to factbook, make a thread for it in either OOC & Planning or in Past & Future Times and then condense all your national factoids into that.

 

Not trying to be mean, but it's getting a bit ridiculous when threads that are five years dead are getting bumped.

 

And just so you know, the only people active here anymore are myself, Haru, Jilderen and Suverina with Tagmatium making occasional appearances. If we want to discuss things we either do it on the IRC, the regional message board or chatbox thread.

 

Everyone else in these old threads are long gone and they are not going to be able to respond to you.

 

So please, Lahui, make a factbook thread for your national factoids and stick to the aforementioned social areas for regular conversation. I'm going to start locking the old threads you bump otherwise.

[Lahui]

Noted.

Edited August 26, 2012 by Lahui (see edit history)

[Lahui]

Well fellas, after mulling the previous advice I received, I kinda have the impression I'm not a particularly good fit in Europa. As such, I think it best I be moving on. It was nice to be back for a bit, Jild - thanks for adding me to the map, and best of luck to everyone here.

[Vocenae]

Yes, RAEG QUIT out of the region because we don't want you filling the forum with dead threads, all of the people who were once involved in them having left years ago. We provided you with three different ways to be social with the community without the need for bumping dead threads because there is no excuse for FIVE YEAR OLD conversations to be dragged back to life because you couldn't be assed to make a factbook..

 

Because that's a totally logical thought process right there. Quit because you were told to stop littering the forum and use some common damn sense.