SamuelRSmith said:
What's bizarre about this kind of legislation is that it forces smokers to stand outside in the public street, where you should actually lay some claim because your taxes paid for it (or, as the story goes), and your far more likely to be walking down a street, and past these smokers, than you ever were to go into any one of those stores. |
You're right, no one is being forced into a place that allows smoking. That doesn't mean that people shouldn't have the right to purchase goods/services or work somewhere without the risk of bodily harm. This is why there are such things as building codes, health inspectors, fire marshalls etc.
Secondhand smoke creates a real risk. It shouldn't be involuntarily imposed upon people simply because someone else is addicted and too inconsiderate to take their bad habit somewhere else.
In the US there is no federal legislation on the subject. There are only state/local laws and they're different everywhere you go. But even in places where it's not law, most business still ban smoking because it's good business. It also reduces their healthcare costs and insurance premiums.
