| 11/21/2005 3:00:00 PM | Email this article • Print this article | Readers: Madison needs a smoking ordinance
OUR VIEW
Last week readers were invited to submit their thoughts on whether or not Madison needed a smoking ordinance.
While unscientific, the overwhelming response was “yes” Madison should look into a smoking ban. In fact, not a single respondent wrote in favor of allowing smoking.
Here are some of the responses received:
• Secondhand smoke is a public health issue. Exposure to secondhand smoke is a leading cause of cancer and heart disease. All workers should have the right to financially support their family by working in a workplace that is free from this health hazard. Simply because someone chooses to work in a restaurant or bar they shouldn’t be exposed to deadly secondhand smoke.
Bar and restaurant owners waited and waited for negative response after New York invoked a smoking ban in 2003. It never came. Instead they were pleasantly surprised when the opposite happened. Business boomed!
About 25 percent of all Hoosiers smoke. That means 75 percent make the choice to not smoke. If our elected officials choose to put the health and safety of all citizens of Madison above the convenience of a few, I would support it wholeheartedly and be thankful for their clear thinking.
• Those of us who do not smoke do not like to eat in restaurants with cigarette smoke floating around while trying to eat. I think all indoor buildings should be smokefree. I hope that lawmakers will take a look around and see what other cities are doing and follow suit ... but I’m not holding my breath.
• Yes, Madison needs a smoking ordinance that prohibits smoking in all public buildings including restaurants and bars.
The ordinance must also restrict smoking in the entrance areas of public buildings.
I have seen this in Florida where the smokers would all congregate at the entrances of their retail work places to smoke outside. This was very unpleasant to shoppers who walked along the store fronts expecting to pleasantly enter a store, but were bombarded with smoke.
• Yes to a smoking ordinance!
It’s been 30 years or more since we have had documented evidence that smoking is bad for the smoker and everyone around him/her.
Medicare and Medicaid expense is being paid out for people whose smoking is the direct cause of their illness. We don’t need this expense!
• It’s about time. As someone who grew up in a home of two smokers, it’s amazing that I can still breathe. If you look at the statistics from Lexington, Ky. they thought their businesses would suffer, but they actually increased with the smoking ordinance in bars and restaurants implements.
• I eat four or five meals a week out a Madison and I say yes, yes, yes, please ban smoking in Madison’s restaurants.
One restaurant has the best crab cakes you could find, but the place is so smoky I haven’t been there for a year.
Another has great French-fried sweet potatoes, but I can only eat there in the summer when I can eat outside.
Both of the above restaurants have managers who smoke.
If a restaurant is big enough and well ventilated, they can actually have a comfortable non-smoking section, but this is rare.
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Reader Comments
Posted: Thursday, December 08, 2005
Article comment by:
Josh
Isn't this an issue that should be decided by good old capitalism rather than socialistic government control? I can't help but find it funny that, supposedly, in other cities business "boomed" after a ban. But of course here in Madison our business are immune to the forces of capitalism, they don't need more business? I don’t smoke, I don’t frequent smoke filled rooms, and thus far no one has put a gun to my head and forced me to do so. When enough people complain at these establishments and stop spending money at them, then the need for smoke free areas will be met. Only 25% of hoosiers smoke? So, if I open a smoke free restaurant the other 75% of you would make it a success right? All I am saying is lets take care of a problem on our own rather than giving “big brother” a little more control. I takes courage to be free, I guess I’m just a “give me liberty or give me death” kind of guy.
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