The "Right" to smoke versus the "right" to smoke-free air.

Something brought to my attention recently (to the point where an article in the school paper spurred a whole argument composed of daily Letters to the Editor).

The relationship between a smoker and a non-smoker. When should the smoker respect the non-smoker's 'air' and when should the non-smoker allow the smoker to smoke? Assuming that the smoking is happening legally whether inside or outside.

Also, what's your opinion on smoking/smokers in general?

Btw, I'm talking about cigarettes, you ****ing stoners.

 

people do have a right to smoke if they want (and of course are of legal age) but people also have the right to not have to inhale that stuff if they don't want. i think it just boils down to the smokers having the courtesy not to smoke near others. i know non-smokers can also choose to remove themselves from the smokers, but i'm sure there are times that always isn't possible.

 

Isn't that why they made the smoker's sections in restaurants?? Yes people have the right to smoke once of legal age, but what is legal age (conversation for another day) Also yes they should respect people who don't want to smokes air space. If you can't go home and sit on your back porch (lean out the window of your apartment (highly dangerous don't try it)) and smoke then you probably are not old enough to, or you're just f***ing stupid. Either way this isn't really a discussion is it, I mean unless there is someone out there who wants to be all jerk mode and say no, smokers should be able to smoke wherever. . . . Like I said previously, smoke at home or at a smoking approved section of the public. Also, fresh air people, stay clear of such sections ^_^

 

At least in my state, restaurants aren't allowed to have smoking sections. Smokers must go outside. Bars can only have smokers if they forbid people under 21 from entering.

As you should respect my right to smoke if I'm in public. Regardless of what you may think, smokers don't intentionally decide to smoke where they know you're going to breathe it. On my campus, for example, people smoke while walking to class. Then people complain about getting stuck behind that person. Like, they can't walk a few feet to the side or get in front of the person.

This argument is "f***ing stupid." I agree that we shouldn't smoke blatantly in your face, but if I'm outside, away from home, in an area where it's legal for me to light up and I want a cigarette, then I'm going to light a freakin' cigarette.

It isn't an argument on smokers being able to smoke wherever. It's about being able to smoke when you're allowed to where you're allowed to without people throwing a fit.

Where I live, it is legal to smoke outside. And yet, people tend to complain when smokers smoke outside. I've heard people get mad when they end up walking behind a smoker. Not only have I seen people come up to a smoker and angrily tell them to smoke somewhere else, despite the smoker smoking outside where it is perfectly legal to do so, but I've had people tell me that. There is a degree of common courtesy, but people think only smokers need to have it.

 

This is an interesting argument, and one I had not thought about. Think about air as a water supply, and think about smoke as poison, specifically something that you spit out, like with chewing tobacco. Which is more important, the purity of the water, or your right to chew and spit? A smoker and anyone who outputs smoke into the atmosphere is effectively poisoning the waterhole for everyone. My argument would work along the same lines as that against pig farming because it ruins the local water supply. For the record, tobacco smoke is one of the most harmful types of smoke to the body, far worse than that from cannabis. I do not see why one could not vaporize tobacco like cannabis and avoid smoking it altogether. It would be ethically consistent by comparison. But then you would not get your fix, would you? Shame.

 

Look it is your decision to smoke, it is not an unalienable right. If you're in an open space then why would someone tell you to quit smoking unless you were around them. If they were just doing it because they don't like people smoking then i'd tell em to f*** off. And sorry if you live somewhere where smoking is forbidden, that's just the way the cookie crumbles. If it means that much to you, move. I know, I know, you can't move right? Then deal with it. Sorry but if you're going to smoke then it's the same as any other drug, there are certain consequences that come with it. There will always be people who don't like you for smoking or any other thing you do, you need to learn to deal with it and live with it. You're not going to change everyone's mind about smoking, so it would be best to either just ignore them or whatever you feel you need to do to get them off your back. Also, I know what it is like to have people smoke around you (been that way my whole life) I got tired of it (probably where I picked up the habit). Also second hand smoke is just as dangerous to others as it is to yourself, that's why I never smoke around kids. I don't think they should have to grow up with lung cancer and not even have picked up a single cigarette.

 

I don't know maybe to prevent cancer. Just a little guess. And telling them to fuck off is real mature. People are more important than an addiction. Just saying.

 

Since smoking is very damaging to the health I think it's more important for the air to be as smoke free as possible, but of course the smoker should also get time to smoke but I think it should be outside where it would float into the atmosphere and if it goes off toward other people then it would have diffused a lot more so it would be a thinner layer of smoke so less dangerous. If it was done in the house then it would stay there and be thicker for the non-smokers to inhale and get damaged by.

I don't smoke so I don't understand the addiction but I can guess it's increbily hard xD I think all smokers should at least attempt to give up if not for themselves then for others.

 

well, I've lived around smoking my whole life when I was a kid, since my grandparents smoke, so I'm used to it, but I can't say I like it. Smokers have the choice to smoke or not, but I think they should also realize that there are people that might not want to be around them, since they have to breath in the stuff as well. Like when I'm waiting at the light rail, there's people that always smoke, and I just can't get away from them. Literally, since I'm having to wait at the station, I can't get away from it. I hate having to breath the stuff, and even the slightest bit makes me cough like an old person. They can smoke if they want, but they need to learn to do it where it's allowed. It's not allowed at the entrance of my college, and yet they still do it, so how many people are going to have to go through a cloud of smoke? It's a pain in the butt. I'm having to hold my breath who-knows-how-long. If they're going to smoke, at least have the courtesy to not do it around people if they seem irritated by it. My friend even says that when he sees someone smoking near him, he just wants to go over there and beat them up. That's going a bit far, but as I've already said a few times, they need to learn not to smoke in places that might make it that other people are stuck near you. At least both my grandma's have the decency to know to go outside when they smoke, so they don't get in the way of anyone.

 

While I except that people do have the right to smoke if they really want to...I honestly do not think its fair on the people around them.
Say for example...my father.
He smokes,always had smoked,probebly always will...and yet,because of him,I have been told that both me and my younger brother may develop breathing problems,and our risk of getting cancer,which was already rather high due to our family history,has been increased.
Now honestly,its less about me,more about my little brother.
How is it fair,that because of my father always smoking in front of us,my little 11 year old brother who has always been the only good thing,the only thing stopping me from completely snapping in my life..is at a higher risk of getting sick?
Now while I do,deep down,still care about my dad....its just,smoking has always sickened me.
Now,I am at risk of going off on a complete rant here.
So I shall end this by saying,that while people are intitled to smoke...I just think they should at least try not to in front of children.
Or in front of people who do not want to breathe it in.
/endofrantfor now

 

You shouldn't have gotten addicted then, morons. Places where it is not acceptable for smokers to smoke? Right outside of entrances to places like malls, I don't want to walk through your smoke just because you people are dumb and managed to get addicted. I don't care if it's raining, go and stand in the rain and let me walk inside without having to smell your cancer-sticks. I constantly see smokers sit in the little bus-sheds, smoking of course, that's just not cool. Go outside and smoke.

tl;dr: I don't care if you smoke as long as you're not smoking where I have to inhale it.

 

Okay so if i'm twenty feet away and someone comes up and starts yelling because i'm smoking then they were trying to prevent cancer??? Also i'm guessing you don't smoke because there are times when people's lives seem worthless compared to an addiction (when you don't have any smokes) it's a very bad habit but you don't just yell at someone for doing it. Even if you were trying to keep them from getting cancer it's there choice. As long as they're not smoking in front of little kids or anyone for that matter it shouldn't be your concern.

Yes but not if it's in your own house, or you could do it outside just staying away from people is fine.

 

The point is that it is not far enough away from people. What if you do not stand twenty feet away? Most people do not do that. And then there is the wind to consider. Being far away does not matter if you are downwind. Someone in the way of the smoke has to move to the other side of the person smoking in order to avoid coughing. I deal with this all of the time. Smokers usually do not care enough to move downwind even if asked, and they may get indignant that you asked them. How dare you look down on their practices!? And they might blow smoke in your face. It is not so easily remedied as you seem to think it can be.

 

The wind ? Seriously ? The wind usually change direction frequently, and it' s probably the last thing they have in mind. Your smell receptors are connected to your brain, not theirs, so finding a suitable place to be would be easier for you than them. Besides, why would you ask them to move away ? Either it' s a "if you mess with me I might as well mess with you" kinda deal, which isn' t very mature, or you honestly think it' s not that big of a deal to ask, which brings us back to "follow your nose and move away yourself".
I was told in college physics class that smoking a single cigarette a day is the same as not smoking, its the limit human lungs can deal with. Dunno if it' s been proven false since then, but if that' s true then a little cigarette smoke whiff here and there is just a bad smell problem. I doubt you' d ask someone smelly (bad perfume/hygiene) to move away, you' d probably move away yourself.

In my country it' s forbidden to smoke in public or indoor places, even pubs or restaurants, unless there are very specific equipments to ensure it won' t bother anyone. I started smoking 15 years ago. If I know there are some non-smokers around I move away, that is if I can, but if I' m in a crowded outdoor area then I just smoke without torturing myself about who it might bother. As already stated those who are bothered are free to move away themselves. In 15 years I have never been asked to go smoke elsewhere, not once.

The last thing I' d like to say is that it never ever crossed my mind to yell at someone for driving his car for futile reasons, like going to the cinema (not even having an addiction to deal with), polluting everyone' s air in the process.

 

I actually cough, it is not just the smell. Maybe I was not clear.

When I breath in smoke, I get hoarse for the rest of the day if not days. I get short of breath and so on just from being around a bonfire. It does not matter what kind of smoke as long as I breath it in directly for a few minutes' time.

Then you must be very lucky. I can think of many people that I have asked or heard asked or heard my friends and those around me talk about asking people to stop smoking. If nothing else, it ruins the atmosphere in a figurative way wherever you go. It is similar to a dress code, and I do not look down on it much.

That is a valid point, but then, you do not directly notice the effect that it is having. There are places, specifically in Asia, where you have to wear a face mask outside because the smog is so bad. The smoke has to go somewhere, and if it is not troubling you here, then it is troubling someone else somewhere.

 

Then as long as you explain your situation nicely there shouldn' t be a probem, unless the smoker is a total ******.

My wager would be that it has more to do with social behavior differences in our countries than with luck, no-smokers are notoriously more virulent towards smokers in the United States than in France.

Even in a town as "small" as Paris (and even in towns smaller than Paris), you can feel it sometimes, usually in summer.

 

Questioning someone for a habit they probably already feel a little guilty about having makes them more of a ****** than someone else by default.

Ah, then we are better off than you are, do you think? If I could tell that the air was not clean, then it would definitely cross my mind to berate someone for driving to a store or having someone ship them something that they could have downloaded for free. And other things like that. I complain about anything that makes me uncomfortable, especially anything that bothers my breathing. If you can avoid ruining the experience of breathing for me, then do so.

 

heh, you should have seen my college yesterday. I mean seriously, they have places for people to smoke, and yet they still do it in front of the building. There was so much smoking I began to cough every second. I had to leave right then and there, because I wasn't going to wait for my friend through that cloud of poison

 

Lol, avoid smoking makes a smoker uncomfortable. I can totally picture you bursting into a passionate and hostile debate (or rather monologue) on "how and why you are a ****** and will move away" with any (stunned) smoker that dares cross your path. ^^

Your freedom stops right where that of others begins. If you' re hell bent on being uncompromising and/or untolerant with smokers who did not break any law then don' t be too surprised if some choose to return the favor and blow their smoke in your face instead. :lolface:

 

Same argument as that not eating makes you uncomfortable. If you cannot eat without stealing, then where are we? But in this case, you get to choose whether or not you even have the urge to eat. Better you make yourself uncomfortable than give in and make others uncomfortable. You are not more likely to die by resisting your addiction, but other people are more likely to die if you give in.

I see a clear contradiction between the bold-faced statements. While I agree with the first, and I am using that to better my own argument, the law does not line up with that notion. You see, a smoker is free to smoke as long as it does not violate the freedom of others to not smoke. The argument goes both ways. The difference is that not smoking will never force a smoker to stop smoking, so it an unbalanced situation. Smoking takes your freedom past the line where that of others begins. Not smoking crosses no lines and does not harm anyone in any way. The fact that the law does not line up with this contradiction makes your two sentences inconsistent and so I cannot take your code of ethics seriously. Which is it based on, someone else's morality (made into law) or equal opportunity?