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It seems that everywhere you go now, smokers are being shunned. More and more states are imposing laws that prevent restaurants from having a smoking section for their patrons.
In 2002, 70 percent of the Florida state voters said "yes" to an amendment that prohibits tobacco use inside workplaces. Amendment 6 bans smoking almost anywhere people earn a wage, except tobacco shops, designated hotel rooms and stand-alone bars that serve little food. That includes most restaurants, bowling alleys, offices, barbershops and laundries.
While non smokers and business owners who are elated to remove their smoking sections are pleased with the new law, many business owners within the state are fearful of how the ban may hurt their businesses as smoking customers either spend less time at their venues or opt not to come at all. You can read an article featured in one local Hernando County, Florida paper about the statewide ban here.
California, Vermont, Maine, Massachusetts, New York City and Utah already have bans like the one in Florida and many other states have begun to consider them. If you think these laws are taking things to far, you haven't even begun to scratch the surface.
A town within Montgomery County, Maryland passed a law that threatened to fine people who smoke outdoors on county sidewalks and streets. The cost of doing so is a $100 fine. The mayor said his town must protect its residents from secondhand smoke.
And if that wasn't enough, the Montgomery County Council decided to go one step further and voted for a measure that would outlaw smoking at home if the smoke bothers a neighbor. Yes, you read that correctly.
If you need to see a respected news story to believe this, you can read John Stossel's coverage on it at ABC News. After a rash of worldwide attention and a public opinion backlash, Montgomery County Executive Douglas M. Duncan (D) vetoed the legislation that would have regulated smoking in the privacy of people's homes.
Other laws against smokers:
 In April 2002, a co-op board on the West Side of Manhattan has forbidden new buyers to smoke in their apartments.
NYC council votes in favor of the Smoker Free City Act in 2002, banning smoking from being allowed in any restaurant, any bar, nightclubs, private clubs, bingo halls, pool halls, convention halls, catering halls and 75% of outdoor dining areas.
Say that again? Tom Glynn, the American Cancer Society's director of science and trends, when discussing the recent raise in taxes and increase in smoking bans throughout the United States was quoted as saying: "This is not an anti-smoker thing," Glynn said. "It gives smokers an opportunity to take the step, which most are thinking about anyway, to stop smoking."
This leaves many smokers feeling that their rights have been violated and wondering just how far the government will take these anti-smoking laws. If you would like more information on how you can help and what laws are currently threatening smoker's rights, you can visit the FORCES International or NYC CLASH websites.
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