The growing trend of smoking bans

As a smoker myself, I’m completely on board with the idea that there should be designated spaces for us and non-smokers. I spend a significant amount of my time interacting with others, and honestly, it never even crossed my mind to light up in someone else's presence without first asking if they were okay with it. At the end of the day, this isn't just about rules; it's about basic etiquette and having some common sense regarding how we coexist.

Tolerance? Give me a break.
Since when do we force children to be "tolerant"? Are we supposed to ask a four-year-old if they mind sharing a room with five people puffing smoke?
I was that kid. Every single winter, I ended up with pneumonia. I’ve swallowed enough antibiotics to supply ten children.

Now, when I take my four-year-old out for a walk, expecting some decent, clean air, I have zero tolerance for jerks who lack basic consideration for anyone else. I can handle the smoke myself, but the second I’m with my child, I lose it seeing someone’s clouds drifting right toward them.

Talking about car emissions and how much they pollute isn't even the point here. Just because we tolerate one type of pollution doesn't mean we have to accept another that might be even worse. What’s the logic there? Are we just supposed to collect every kind of misery and suffer through it until we pass out?

Melissa Gonzalez9, do some actual research! Look it up online and see if your smoke really just "dissipates" into nothing.

By the way, I don't need any "healthy lifestyle" propaganda or fitness craze nonsense. If I want to eat half a pound of chocolate, I will. I'll spread butter on my toast, I don't track Caloric intake, and I don't bother with sports. But I won't deal with smoke. And I have every right to my share of clean air.

Melissa Gonzalez9 said:Stop talking nonsense. Every single one of your social circles has smokers in it. Just let them stand outside the bar or the club when you head out. We’ll see how much you actually like that Law once it hits home....

So let them stay outside. I’ll have a much better time inside than they will out there. They can annoy themselves with their cigarettes.

Melissa Gonzalez9 said:Generally speaking, smokers are mindful of non-smokers. They don't light up while someone is eating, or in someone's apartment, or in their car, or blow smoke in their face... yet you all get so incredibly loud about this "protecting your health" thing, acting like anyone would dare disturb it....you're doing a great job of it yourselves...

Yeah, right. As if. 🙄 I know a few smokers in my own circle and family. And they act exactly like smokers—they couldn't care less about the people around them; all that matters is getting that next hit. Even while everyone else is trying to eat. So, stop selling us this fairy tale.

It’s the absolute truth. Every time my mom comes over to see her grandson, she spends maybe sixty seconds in the living room with him before retreating to the kitchen for fifteen minutes to get her nicotine fix.

At first, it actually hurt my feelings, but now? I couldn't care less. It’s her choice. If she prefers sitting in the kitchen over playing with her grandkid, so be it.

But she can't have both: the smoke and the kid at the same time. And it’s not because I’m some bitter witch looking for an excuse to be difficult—it’s because I refuse to let him inhale that stuff. I already swallowed enough smoke for the both of us growing up.

Some smokers really do try to be considerate, but in my experience, most of them just don't care at all.
One of my closest girlfriends actually stopped coming over to my place because she isn't allowed to smoke in my apartment. 🙄
I mean, honestly... first she asked if she could just do it "by the window"... so I told her, sure, go ahead, but damn, you could still smell the smoke everywhere... because she’d lean out the window one second and then pull back inside the next.
Then I had to tell her, "Look, don't even bother with the window because the smell still lingers," and then she decided she just wouldn't visit anymore since she couldn't step outside to grab a light. It was just so...🙄
And then she had the nerve to lecture me about how one single cigarette isn't going to hurt anyone.
I just told her, "Sorry, girl, if you can't respect my non-smoking rule in my own home, then you don't need to come over." Honestly, who cares...
I certainly don't ask her to stop smoking when I'm hanging out at her place.
Also, Melissa Gonzalez9, it's just not true that the smoke just vanishes into thin air... I can't tell you how many times I've walked past someone or been behind them... just a few feet away and I can still catch the stench of their cigarette. 👎

I was a smoker for about 15 years or so. Honestly, I don't think I ever would have even thought about lighting up a cigarette if I hadn't fallen in with the wrong crowd back then. Eventually, what started as just hanging out turned into a full-blown habit and a total addiction. I tried quitting a few times, but I failed every single time—at least, until I became a father. That was the moment I finally found a reason strong enough to push through the withdrawal symptoms. I just couldn't bear the idea of exposing my child to secondhand smoke, and—thank God—I haven't touched one in three years now. Looking back, it’s almost incomprehensible how foolish I was to smoke, and the ridiculous justifications I used to tell myself (stuff like, "you're not alone when you have a cigarette," "it helps me relax," or "it gives me the freedom to do what I want," etc.).
What I have now is a high-quality life; this is true freedom, because I'm no longer a slave to such an ugly habit.
The statistics show that so many people "try" to quit without any actual success. Perhaps if there were a more rigorous Law in place, it might actually help build some character.

Melissa Gonzalez9 said:Stop talking nonsense. Every single one of your social circles has smokers in them. Just let them step outside the bar or the club when you head out... then we’ll see if you actually like that Law being in place.

Smokers generally care about non-smokers. They don't blow smoke while you're eating, they don't do it in your apartment or your car, and they don't blow it in your face. Yet, you people are so damn loud about this whole "protecting your health" thing—as if anyone could ever ruin your perfect wellness. You're doing a great job of looking out for yourselves.

But banning smoking in outdoor areas? Seriously? Do you honestly believe the smoke from one damn cigarette is going to reach your nostrils before it just dissipates into the air?!!

Hypocrisy is the only word for it.

🙏 🙏 🙏 🙏 🙏 👍 👍 👍

What bugs me most is walking into a restaurant that has separate smoker and non-smoker sections. You're just starting to enjoy the smell of a nice cigarette when some jerk ruins it with their vegetarian food. Of course, the guy ends up lighting up just a few feet away in the designated non-smoking area, acting like someone else trying to enjoy a smoke in the smoking section is an insult to him.

So go ahead, tell me: "Then just go smoke at your own house."
Go eat at your own house if you can't handle the smell of a restaurant where the whole point is the mix of tobacco, alcohol, and meat.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve walked past someone—maybe just a few feet away—and I can still smell their cigarette smoke lingering in the air long after they're gone.

Maybe try giving them a little more breathing room so it doesn't bother you!😁
Or perhaps you just have an incredibly sensitive nose, or maybe the sidewalks in your city aren't wide enough to begin with. Does the exhaust from cars and buses bother you just as much?

You’re destroying nature at every turn, which basically means you're wrecking your own health—by choice. You go out of your way to research how to ruin your wellbeing and that of your kids, yet somehow, one puff of a cigarette is considered the ultimate sin...

Look, I smoke, but I’m mindful of others. I don't light up where it's inappropriate, and honestly, because that's still apparently "not enough" for the Puritans out there, you're giving me high blood pressure...

You consume food every single day that’s more carcinogenic than a pack of cigarettes. You’re stripping the ozone layer just to run those refrigerators to keep that food cold—and in doing so, you’re effectively killing off people in developing nations who can't even afford a fridge. And really, who gave anyone the right to make those choices for them?!!!

Sure, cigarette smoke is bad for you. It ruins your health. But have you ever heard the saying: "You see the speck in my eye, but you miss the massive log in your own"?
At least I try not to be a nuisance. What are you lot actually doing about it?

Melissa Gonzalez9 said:Look, at least I try not to be a nuisance. What are you guys even doing about it?

And what exactly are you looking for? A medal? Should we roll out the red carpet for you? You clearly don't get it... you don't get an award just for not doing something you had no right to do in the first place. Do I get a trophy for not passing gas in the middle of the street? Or maybe a prize because I didn't just go out and beat up my neighbor for no reason... I'd love a little recognition for that too, I guess...

dustycanyon6 said:Honestly, I think I deserve an award just for not punching my neighbor out of pure spite. And maybe one more trophy on top of that...

Don't blame anyone else if you let a moment like that slip through your fingers. Opportunities like that don't show up often, and they're even rarer when you actually have the chance to blow them.🙂 😂 😂

You claim you're fighting for freedom, but you don't even realize you're building a future where none exists.

bluewolf4 said:You're fighting for freedom while remaining completely oblivious to the fact that you're building a future devoid of any actual liberty.

So, your freedom ends where mine begins, and vice versa. If the two of us can't reach a mutual agreement on where that line is drawn, then the government will step in. They’ll restrict your freedom just so I can have mine.

It’s like the border dispute between the US and Canada over maritime territory. If we can't settle it ourselves, someone else decides for us.

And that doesn't mean one side loses all their rights. You can smoke, fine—just do it in your designated area. In other words, keep expressing your freedom through smoking, but don't infringe upon my right to express my freedom by being a non-smoker.

Both smoking and not smoking are matters of free choice, aren't they?

As for me, regarding your recent quote, I'll say this:
In the past, there was no freedom for non-smokers.

dustycanyon6 said:And what exactly are you looking for? A medal? A red carpet rollout? You clearly don't get it: you don't have the right to go after someone else. Are you asking for an award just because you aren't doing something you had no business doing in the first place? I’d love an award for not crapping myself in the middle of the street... Or maybe one for not punching my neighbor for no reason. I could probably think of a few more awards for basic decency...

Look, man, I’m just pointing out that even in your comfortable little life, you’re doing things that impact other people's health... so maybe just dial back the attitude...👋

Melissa Gonzalez9 said:Look, buddy, I’m just pointing out that even you do things in your comfortable little life that mess with other people's health... so maybe take a breath before attacking everyone else.👋

And what exactly is that supposed to mean? Farting? Radiation from a computer screen? Is he ruining lives by coding crappy software? What is this supposed "health hazard" he's causing that could actually screw someone over?😕 🙄

Smell is one thing,
smoke is something else entirely.

Smoke causes damage; a bad odor just might be an annoyance.

And "annoyance" covers a lot of ground. It’s not just smells—it’s noise, someone talking too loud in a coffee shop, or some jerk honking their horn for no reason. It’s any kind of disregard for others, whether it's being reckless or overly intrusive... whatever you want to call it.

Tolerance!!!

It honestly feels like some people on this forum just don't have the backbone required to actually quit smoking. I guess it’s simply easier for them to cook up these ridiculous, half-baked excuses to keep the habit alive rather than facing the music.🙂

Justin Gray89 said:It looks like some people on this forum just don't have the backbone required to actually quit smoking. It’s much easier for them to cook up these ridiculous excuses to keep their habit going.🙂

They won't find anything funny once lung cancer sets in. But their pride will probably stop them from coming back here to admit, "You were right."

Justin Gray89 said:It looks like some people on this forum just don't have the backbone to quit smoking. It’s easier for them to come up with ridiculous excuses to stay smokers.🙂

I have enough character to risk cancer for a smoke.
The ones with "weak character" are actually the ones avoiding the cigarettes.

Look at how good this cigarette looks on me, haha. Cancer will suit me even better than it suits you... you guys are too weak to handle cancer. And if we all make it thirty years, we're all going to get it anyway. At least I enjoyed the smoke while I waited for it, whereas you lot won't be able to say you got anything out of it.🙂