About freaking time! And I say that as a former social smoker. Also, the specious argument about economic hardships for bars and taverns doesn't impress me. Since Illinois is the 19th state to pass such a restriction, don't you think if the 18 other states suddenly swooned into economic depression, we would have heard about it?
Governor signs statewide smoking ban -- chicagotribune.com:
Smokers throughout Illinois soon will have to step outside or into a private setting to light up after Gov. Rod Blagojevich on Monday signed into law a smoking ban that extends to nearly all public places across the state.
The governor's action, which state health officials said makes Illinois the 19th state with a broad smoking ban, culminated nearly two decades of intense efforts by anti-smoking advocates to curtail smoking in public.
The law will take effect on Jan. 1, stitching together a patchwork of local smoking bans passed mostly in the Chicago area in recent years....
Yet as the anti-smoking advocates cheered and hugged each other, tavern owners and smokers across Illinois had quite a different reaction. Bar managers criticized lawmakers for succumbing to political pressure that they said almost certainly will hurt, if not destroy, some of their businesses.They were heartened, however, that the ban would extend across the state instead of being targeted to specific locales. Currently, 44 communities have smoking bans, and bar owners in no-public-smoking areas have complained that smokers are traveling out of town to hoist a beer and light up a cigarette.
“I think it's going to cost me a lot of money—I hope I can stay in business,” said Bill Broukal, owner of Cuzin's Tavern and Pizza in Tinley Park. “I don't think the governor cares—whatever looks good for him. I think the governor should let the people decide.”
At Jake Moran's pub in Mundelein, which allows smoking, response to the ban among the 10 or so patrons ranged from the merely angry to the unprintable.
“It's the General Assembly being our new nanny,” said Wally Degner, 70, of Palatine, a pipe smoker for 50 years. “After this they'll ban foods that are too fatty. You'll have to ask the state what you can eat and drink—they'll start regulating hamburgers.”
Sure, we are no fans of the Nanny State, but the act of smoking tobacco in public is more annoying to me than other Nanny State decisions like enforcing motorcycle helmet laws and bans of cannabis products. Repeal those first, and then we'll talk.
Technorati Tags: Chicago, health, Nanny_State, regulation, smoking
If bar owners were smart, they would open up "Smoke Gardens" just like they did when Beer Gardens were all in vogue.
This it just big gov...
I fought in Viet Nam and lost over 56,000 brothers and sisters to keep our land free.... This is not a smoking issue... it is a freedom issue... wait until no transfats, bla, bla, bla... this is opening up a real can of worms... Liberals just can't see the big picture here.
I'm not sure you can 'blame' liberals for the Nanny State. The Republicans have run the executive branch of the US 20 out of the last 27 years. John Ashcroft and his successors in the Bush Justice Department want to monitor everyone's internet traffic, bust up medical marijuana clinics (State's Rights? ha), make a national ID card for every citizen, collect all financial records and phone records and cross reference them against your social security number (or Real ID number).
Talk about not seeing the big picture. No rational person can claim with a straight face that Republicans don't believe in Big Government just as vehemently as Democrats. I'd hazard a guess that the national government grew larger under Bush than it did under Carter and Clinton combined.
Wait until a few years, when all of our DNA has been stored in some national database, and the Republican-friendly insurance company gets a bill passed saying that you can be denied healthcare coverage because of a genetic predisposition to lung cancer or even an urge to consume more trans fats than are healthy or something.
To be clear: I think the government should stay out of bedrooms, out of so-called victimless crimes (prostitution, drugs, yadda yadda), and should just worry more about fixing potholes and ending pointless and futile police actions in third world countries. However, I'm not saddened by the fact that I won't have some schmoe blow tobacco smog in my face at a bar.
I am a smoker, and I understand it is not the healthiest thing to do. But, since cigarettes are available for purchase, I feel the smoking ban is unconstitutional. I work in a bar. We do not serve food. I have many patrons that would come to the bar, have a few beers, and smoke.....because they could not smoke at home. If cigarettes are so harmful...why not ban them entirely. I thought we lived in a democracy. I did not have the opportunity to vote on this issue, as did no one else. Only the govenor of Illinois...isn't that reassuring? Clean up the air, then talk to me about cigarette smoke. How far is big brother going to go? What is next?
Even non-smokers are upset at this ban.
http://www.smokersclubinc.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=4829
Carol Tinsley states "What is next?"
Check out the link