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01/07/2007
hypocrite?
am i a hypocrite? probably, most of us are to some degree - but i ask this on a specific issue, the smoking ban which has come into effect in england today - and seems to be popular with the majority
i support the ban, it means no more smoke in pubs/clubs which i mainly hate for the stink left on my clothes rather than the health issue, although coughing is never fun
the thing is i am always vocal about 'nanny state' measures, i don't like the government taking too much interest in our private lives, i don't like the idea of id cards, banning certain substances, and censorship in general but yet im happy for smoking to be banned for my own personal gain
as far as my own gain goes i feel i'm with the majority here anyway, and likewise this measure has been implemented throughout europe, america, australia and nz so i don't deem it as excessive or exclusive but it is a restriction
to me this isn't about a person's 'right to smoke' - i wouldn't support a total ban, despite hating the bloody things because if people really want to do it then why not (this therefore puts me in the pro-cannabis bracket by default even though i dont smoke it) - this is about the rest of us - 70% of the population (apparently) don't smoke, and yet if only a few smoke in a pub it lingers and the results are the stink and fumes - the majoirty gain from this, and considering lots of pubs (i mostly go to sports pubs) dont allow ppl to smoke at the bar to protect staff i feel this measure is justified
what about our 'rights'? why do we have to tolerate your death sticks, you don't have to put up with anything from us - like i said i wouldnt go so far as to ban the lot, and i can agree with an 18 rating - no higher though
then there;s the argument - 'a pub can make itself non-smoking' or 'go to a non-smoking pub' - the fact is that not that many pubs go non-smoking as they lose business - most ppl have at least one smoking friend so then they may feel obligated to go to a smoking pub to be socialable - the only non-smoking pubs i know have very strong bases of punters and generally something decent going for it (like good food)
i need to cut this short... some people have also whinged about alcohol and its related problems - i will admit alcohol has far worse problems however it would be pretty stupid to ban alcohol from a pub - the smoking ban is not total - in fact it's really a bit of a non-issue - it doesnt deal with crime, or drunk driving, or public order, it just improves the situation in a pub for a lot of people, as it is not an outright ban i don't feel this is the same as alcohol
my mother smokes and drinks way too heavily and i hate it, but i would never want the government to force her to quit as much as i want her to it's not up to them to decide - and so i feel im not a hypocrite, these are my views and i just wanted to put them down and i actually feel like i answered myself for once
14:01 Posted in Blog | Permalink | Comments (1) | Email this
Comments
On no account should a total smoking ban be allowed ! That is pure fascism, those who are trying to enforce it are pure fascists, and as such are dangerous and should be fought tooth and nail as any dangerous fascist should.
The solution to the smoking/non-smoking problem is to have separate areas. That works perfectly well and there is no valid reason to change it. There is a lot of medical propaganda about smoking that is unproven or false, notably on the subject of passive smoking.
It is pure humbug. The rights of smokers are just as important as those of non-smokers and let no-one say otherwise. Hitler singled out the Jews in the 1930’s just like people are singling out smokers now. It is very very dangerous and these people must not be allowed to get away with this, if only because it is an open door to other things ………alcohol, fatty foods, car exhaust fumes etc etc. Rail Travel is dangerous, air travel, cars on the road.
You could argue that anything is dangerous and that it should be banned. The argument just doesn’t make sense. I have not one iota of doubt in my mind that these would-be banners are wrong and they must be stopped.
The other thing, the most hypocritical thing of all, is that if cigarettes were really as dangerous as they would have us believe, then their sale would be banned, wouldn’t it ? Ah yes, but there is too much money involved. Cannabis, which is not dangerous at all, is banned ? Why? No-one knows, but it does containes less dangerous products than tobacco.
All this goes to prove that the government are a load of hyprocrites and should in no case be listened to. It’s time the public stood up to these people who really take them for a bunch of idiots.
Posted by: vic | 01/07/2007
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