SL, Gaston:
I smoke, but I think that smoking should be banned in restaurants. People should be able to smoke on the exterior of public buildings, but they should have a designated area that is not close to the entrance. I do not think that smoking should be banned in bars and night clubs, though. Alcohol is just as dangerous as smoking, but for other reasons. MB, West Columbia:
As a smoker, I am shocked! Not necessarily about restaurants - as long as it is posted as soon as it is adapted into a business's rules - but by bars!!! This a place where probably 85-90% of it's patrons are smokers! This is not only censorship, but a violation of smoker's rights! Sure, we should be connsiderate of others, with the facts on second-hand smoke, but we should be treated with the same respect. If the majority in one place says it's okay, you should be informed of this popular dwecision. Then you can make an informed decision whether to patronize the specific establishment. I personally think it should be an individual establishment decision, based on their customers and their habits. Is that not what separates us from the other mammals - as humans, we have the ability to choose where we go, how we feel, what we do and accept the consequences for our decisions? tm, cameron:
Whether its a smoking ban or marching to take down the confederate flag to attempting to get the confederate sub Hunley placed in Charleston, you can't trust Mayor Joe Riley. If it isn't an issue that will advance his political goals then forget it. MH, Columbia:
It is way past time. It is absurd that drug (nicotine) addicts are allowed to decide the health of everyone around them. The evidence is ample that smoking causes cancer. It would be so nice to be able to go out without fearing that the price for a night out might be my life or the life of someone I love. My mother died of cancer probably related to smoking. Greed has rulled the day until now. Making drug addicts happy so they will spend more money has been the goal of many business owners. It is time to push greed out of the way, and cease to allow the drug addicts to rule our lives. BH, Columbia:
Banning smoking in Bars and Night Clubs? Give me a break. I am not a smoker but could care less if someone else smokes right next to me. Who cares! Quit the whining! You anti-smoking people are out of control. You simply aren't happy unless you can complain about something. You need to get a grip on reality and come to the understanding that the only people who care that smoke bohters you or you hate the smell are other pathetic, whinny people such as yourself. Mind your own business and if you don't like keep your mouth shut and move on because no one wants to hear it. Not even another non-smoker like myself. You people need to get a life and quit worrying about every little thing that bothers you. Life has all it's little downfalls people, get over it. DC, Gilbert:
I'm all for the ban and hope it goes state wide! I'm a transplant from California the orginal Non-Smoking State, since being here I go out less often due to the so often heavly smoke filled restaurants and forget non-smoking sections there isn't any such thing here. I don't like to pick on others rights but if ones choice to smoke bothers anothers choice not to by having to breathe someone elses smoke then the latter should be protected and the other should learn to swallow his own smoke. we should also look into the problem with adults smoking in car's with the windows rolled up with small childern who have to breathe in that harmful smoke. My heart goes out to them it's child abuse. Maybe the law should go as far as to prevent smokers from lighting up around any minors even their own. Just think of all the saved lives and healthly childern we could help create and the medical costs we tax payers could save, not to mention the lives of future non-smokers as fewer young childern may choose not to smoke bec use what they don't see parents or others smokers doing it they can't learn from bad adult role models.If you don't think thats true I have 3 childern (all young Adults now) and I don't smoke, but my husband does (but not in the house or in front of me or the childern) 2 are non-smokers, only one does (it's due to his friends thinking smoking is cool. I think anything that sends the message it's not cool to smoke is a good one. SB, Charlotte:
People should realize that smoking is not the only cause of breathing disorders. The carbon monixide in the air produced by automobiles is just as bad. Think of the time you sit in your car on the highway due to a trafic jam or accidet infront og you. All this time you are breathing the polluted air from car exhousts. A few minutes in that situation can do more harm than a couple of hours at a restaurant which allows smoking (in a seperate section). For all you people that drive SUV's that get lousy gas milleage, think of the pollution you are puting in the atmosphere. As for banning smoking in public places I can take it or leave it as long as they are only talking about enclosed places. They could make the restaurant/bar smoke free but allow smoking on the outside venue if ther is one. CD, West Columbia:
Well I am a smoker and have stopped going to placed that are now non smoking establishments. As well as the group of people I go to lunch with everyday. Non smokers need to learn that all isn't fair in this life and not everyone is going to bend to what they want. If this law passes throughout the whole state I believe these cry babies will change their mind. Smokers pay their taxes, tobacco growers bring in large amounts of money into this state We are not all disgusting smelly foul mouth men and women. If these non smokers could find a real reason to support this law than just wasting space here name calling and placing blame on others this world would probably be a better place. We should stop smoking to save your life? Put down that glass of wine or shot of tequila. Give your keys to someone else when you drink instead of killing the innocent. Leave your cell phones in your car and leave the annoying children at home. There now we should all be happy. Who wants to go to dinner tonight? LS, Prosperity:
I agree with a ban. I would visit restaurants and bars more than I do now if it were banned in Columbia. The right to smoke is not in the US Constitution last I checked. You still would have the right to smoke in your homes and vehicles. As for smoking/non-smoking sections - those don't always help, especially if you are on the edge of the two, and smoke carries! It's bad enough that I have to use a side door at work because outside the main door is full of smokers, and it's bad that the smoke smell still sickens me when I get on the elevator because a load of smokers were just on it. Then I go to a restaurant and have to endure the same or worse. As for the tax issue when smoking declines, that just means that healthcare costs that taxpayers pay for will also decline. And the person who said NYC is backing off the bans - huh? From the people I've talked to there, their patronage has increased. Look at California - no smoking has been a success. I really wish we had it in Columbia. JS, Santee:
I think it is great! The policy should be adopted for the entire state. dP, columbia:
I am completely for the ban on smoking in all public places, especially restaurants and bars. My family and myself would go out to eat a lot more, and even go out to clubs again, if we could breathe fresh air. I think the restaurants and bars would see a sharp increase in business, if people know that they can enjoy a meal or a drink without having to breathe foul smoke. Let's see this enacted across the state! DC, Blythewood:
I am a smoker, I do not smoke in public, only in the privacy of my home. I go to all the functions the city puts on. There is alochol served at every function. People drink and run into you and yell and get rowdy, then get in their car and drive home. Which is worse? DC, COlumbia:
Wonderful, can we add cell phones next, beside smoking it is very, very, annoying to hear someone shooting the bull on a phone when I'm trying to share a meal with my family. GC, Swansea:
I really don't have a problem with it. More than likely, just like California and New York City, South Carolina will put a smoking ban into law. My only concern, is when everyone stops smoking, are all the non-smokers ready to cough up the millions of dollars in taxes smokers pay each year? The tax revenue has to come from somewhere and when the tax revenue falls from cigarette sales, then watch out folks - YOU will get the tax then! As for my two cents, I would rather be next to a smoking table than have some other people's children climbing all over the place and being just little devils. Wait, maybe they should ban children that can't behave properly in public places? I find it offensive to smell alcoholic beverages, being a non-drinker myself. But I keep my mouth shut and go about my business. JP, Columbia:
I will not patronize a store or restaurant that allows smoking. I think that if everyone starts avoiding any establishment that allows smoking, they will get the message. We dont need our lying, stealing state legislators to pass any new laws, the public can deal with this alone. BH, Irmo:
I think its stupid. Charleston is known for its outdoor resturants and outdoor activities. The most famous shopping it in the Market which is open. To ban smokers to certian places would put a hurt on businesses. Smokers have just as many rights as non-smokers. lt, rock hill:
This is great,we need more of our cities to follow through with the same plans.I was a smoker for 38 years and have been quit for 10 years but i`m paying the price for this nasty habit.My hats off to the good leaders of Charleston. BG, Gaston:
It's not going to happen! Judging from the frantic comments so far, one must understand that smokers don't have any rights.. but they do have money :) The anti-smokers jump on the nearest stump or bandwagon, weep, wail and then snarl. (Kind of like alcohol prohibition in the 20s... people still drank!) New York City is having to pull back the reins on their smoking bans. Smoke free restaurants, bars and night clubs are losing money and nothing gets a politicians attention quicker than money issues. Especially v o t e r s or campaign contribution sources. The health gestapo is not going to get laws that ban smoking completely. Think of all those lost, existing dollars in tax revenues. Never mind that the money from past "Big Tobacco " settlements earmarked for medicare and medicade programs went into the general fund and went up in smoke. Sort of like cutting property and vehicle taxes it just fades away. ML, Lexington:
To the poster who said us non smokers give dirty looks to those outside smoking, yes I do and will continue to say something. Most of the time you ARE just outside the door and in groups. I have a child who is severly allergic to smoke and I have to grab her up and cover her face to get past the doorway. And the smell of the smoke doesn't just linger near you either. It travels many feet away and makes the entire area disgusting. I also get mad at people who take their pets into stores as well when it is illegal exept for guide animals. My husband is allergic to cats and dogs and many times we have had to leave so he can breath. JW, Columbia:
Cigarettes and the people who smoke them stink so bad that it should be prohibited in all public places, zoos, parks, beaches and businesses. AJ, Columbia:
I am in agreement. LB, West Columbia:
The ban on smoking in public places should be enacted throughout the state. I am tired of smelling the stench of cigarettes while I try to enjoy a family dinner at our local restaurants. I have not patronized a bar in years due to the cigarette smoke, and I limit our family bowling time to Sunday's at Fort Jackson when no smoking is allowed. Smoker's complain we are infringing on their rights - well they have been infringing on my rights all my life. GB, Murray:
Against due to Tourism --- I live in Utah outside Salt Lake City EM, Irmo:
It is unfortunate that civil liberties are being banned due to intolerance and frivolous law suits. However, just as smoking may be a person’s free will, so is passing gas, spitting, and nose-picking. I don’ t think a smoker would appreciate any of that while trying to enjoy a decent meal. The same consideration should be given while indulging in your unpleasant habit. Hopefully this ban will pass and put some inconsiderate people in their place. Personally, I think we should all do what we can to bring down the big tobacco Gods. Their big-money, political pulling, life threatening operation must end. BC, Columbia:
I think it sounds great! Can Columbia be next???? bs, pelion:
all people have rights,to take away smoking right, is second only to taking your other right. smokers should have their right protected as well as non smokers.We ALL are loosing our fredoms slowly but surely. I have fought over seas in my younger days for the right to have RIGHTS...Cant we all just get along, and agree to protect each other right together, if not who know where all this " I have a right will end us all up with NO RIGHT AT ALL FOR NONE ! TH, Lexington:
I think that the ban is a good idea. I have two children and we are limited to the places that we can go as a family to enjoy a meal for the worry of having to inhale the smoke from other people smoking. Even if we sit in the non-smoking section we are still subjected to the smoke around us. JG, Columbia:
70% of society does not smoke. 30%-the smokers-should not be able to pollute the air anywhere except their own residence. This is 100% fair for everyone. It should become law in Charleston and Columbia, as New York has already done... AP, Pelion:
I think it's great! Let's go statewide with the smoking ban. I would love to be able to take my children bowling and not have to worry about the smoke. It is so disgusting when you walk back out of the bowling alley and smell like smoke and you weren't even the one smoking. As for restaurants, there is no non-smoking and smoking sections. The non-smokers have to walk through the smokers section in 95% of these places to get to the non-smoking section. The air is also circulating through the vents. Smokers choose to smoke; that's their choice. Non-smokers don't want to inhale their smoke and this is our choice. CA, Bishopville:
Leadership at it's finest. Way to go Charleston City Council! But are they willing to enforce it? Time will tell. SH, Cayce:
I think it is ridiculous. They already separate 'smoking' and 'non-smoking' in restaurants so non-smokers won't be around it, and that's fine. I'm not a rude smoker. However, in a bar or club, if you don't like it, don't go! This is taking the smoker's rights away by giving in to the non-smoker's rights. You tell me I can't smoke in public! What if I told you that you can't eat like a pig in public. Please don't tell me it doesn't happen because that's where all the fat people come from. They increase our dollars paid out as well due to heart disease. To the public places who ban it, I simply won't go and I hope a lot of other smokers do the same. Maybe the non-smokers can go eat more and bring their business $$ back up. MG, Columbia:
I am a non-smoker and personally detest the stinch of tobacco products in general. I tend to think that smokers are pretty selfish people in that they have no problem flicking butts out of their car window allowing it to hit other motorists windshields, but that is not the issue. I think it is a grave day in America when the government starts telling citizens they can't "enjoy" a perfectly legal product in an outside area. If we are to go that far, can we please ban screaming kids from restaurants, too? That's as obnoxious as cigarette smoke to me! PH, Columbia:
Frankly, I would rather see them ban cell phones... I am sick and tired of trying to hold normal dinner conversation, while someone close by yells (these phones must affect your hearing after a while, as they all appear hearing impaired),into a cell phone for twenty minutes. This could be tolerated in fast food spots, but not fine dining establishments. RN, Columbia:
First I am a smoker. I do not smoke in restaurants. I sat in the no smoking section with my wife. I go outside if I want to smoke. Smoking is ban in retail stores in Richland County and has been for years. I will agree with non-smokers that smoking in restaurants needs to be ban. One restaurant I know that is non-smoking has increased their customers. When smokers do go outside some anti-smoking person will give them a dirty look because they think they are standing too close to the door. There are things out there that we inhale everyday that are much worst then cigrette smoke and will make you sick and kill you quicker SM, Orangeburg:
I think it is time nonsmokers found something else to harp on.Like alcohol that can kill others just as easy if not easier. These people don't want to touch something that is socially accptable. Those that smoke at least are still in there right mind.Let the smokers alone. They have as much right to go to any place and have a cigarette as anyone else. JC, Irmo:
It should be up to the restaurant owner to decide on the smoking policy for his/her own facility. I am a non-smoker and would probably not patronize a restaurant that allowed smoking. However, I DO believe that the owner should set the ploicy--NOT the government--then the customer is free to patronize the restaurant or not. The customers choosing where to spend their dollars will ultimately influence the profit (or loss) of the restaurant. That's free enterprise at work. BJ, irmo:
Please tell me what our legislators are doing this week, are they fighting over their pet projects like monuments, drinking straws, bridges with their names on them or who gets to ride the new bike first. Come on people call these people and tell them fix the budget or not get paid. We have a state budget crisis, raise taxes on what you have to, bring back video poker ,spend the lottery money on education not just higher education for the rich, ask the Lt Governor (Playboy) to be on time for a change and not run from the police, stop trying to run his used car business, buy a regular state tag like everyone else instead of a dealer tag. Tell the Governor to stop tip toeing around all the issues and hit the road to recruit new factories and business for the state and help get some federal funding for our roads and to stop treating the poor and state employees like second class people.And wis will not post my letter for some reason!!!!!!! JL, Cassatt:
Great idea but lets also ban drinking in bars,restaurants,and other places.True,cigarettes can kill you in 40,50,or 60 years.Alcohol can and does kill many people of all ages in seconds. SP, Columbia:
I only wish the state would enact such a law state-wide. The smell of smoke is sickening. I will not patronize any store or restaurant that allows smoking. FD, Irmo:
I think its a great idea and should be state wide! There is nothing more disqusting than trying to eat a meal while some one puffs a cigarette and blows smoke all over you. They can wait until they finish and go outside. They could get in their car, close the windows and enjoy this nasty habit all by themselves and not share it! DT, West Columbia:
I have mixed emotions about the proposed smoking ban. But then I’ve never found other people’s smoking as offensive as many obviously do. My qualms about this action are mostly about its civil liberty implications. After all, smokers are people too. I find myself wondering how vigorously this law would be enforced and what the penalties will be. I question its effects on tourism and how visitors to the Holy City will be made aware of the law before they become cited as violators. And finally I have a philosophical question: at a time in our nation’s history when so many people clamor for smaller and less intrusive government, how is it that these self-same people are so quick to require government to constrain such aspects of personal conduct as smoking in public places? TG, Columbia:
I am a non-smoker and can appreciate what the council is trying to do, but I feel like that would hurt the businesses. If all the smokers stopped going to restaurants, bars, etc., these establishments would lose a lot of revenue and some would probably have to close. In my opinion, a designated smoking or non-smoking area should be sufficient. DB, Lexington:
AMEN!! It's about time for this issue to come to pass. I have walked into restaurants and immediately walked right back out, because the smoke was so thick. A lot of smokers think it is their "right" to offend others, and pollute innocent peoples lungs, with second hand smoke, and I am tired of it. I have the right to clean air, and if people make the choice to smoke, do so in designated (non-public)areas. Myself and my family should not have to put up with polluted air. Would you stand for someone urinating in your beverage? WW, Columbia:
I think its great. Now the state needs to follow this lead and ban smoking in ALL BS, West Columbia:
I wish the entire state would ban smoking in public places. I feel anytime that what somebody else does affects other peoples health and well being something needs to be done about it. It's like speeding down the highway or driving drunk - that's affecting other peoples lives and there is a law against that. JP, Columbia:
I wish they would make it a state-wide law. There is no smell worse than the foul stench of cigarette smoke. I wish they would declare tobacco as the cancer causing drug it is and ban it completely.
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