99 replies to this topic

[firemedic238]

If the government bans smoking in your homes, what's next? Who will enforce this law?  How will it be enforced?   Its a slippery slope my friends What's next loud music and soda ? Also there is some new research ands studies conducted by some big time Medical research schools showing Smoke is not the big cancer link it is thought to be. Yes it is very bad for you, COPD Asthma and heart disease etc.  No I am not a smoker and never have been, hate the smell. I just want the truth!

good or bad.

[sunnyCA]

I'm with Caligirl on this one.  I don't smoke because it stinks and it is incredibly dangerous to my health. I am tired of breathing my neighbor's nasty cigarette and cigar smoke. We live on the side where their setback is 5' and it is literally like they are smoking in our backyard.  We can't even have the windows open if they are out there. They don't want the smoke in their house (presumably why they are outside, rather than in their house) and guess what?  Neither do I.  

 

If we have ordinances regarding noise that interferes with others' rights and dogs barking that interferes with others' rights, why on earth would we not do something to limit smoke, which definitely interferes with others' rights?  Smokers' right to smoke should not trump my right to breath clean air.  They can go smoke in a private, enclosed space that does not affect others. So yes, absolutely ban smoking in bars and apartments.

[Robert Gary]

I'm with Caligirl on this one.  I don't smoke because it stinks and it is incredibly dangerous to my health. I am tired of breathing my neighbor's nasty cigarette and cigar smoke. We live on the side where their setback is 5' and it is literally like they are smoking in our backyard.  We can't even have the windows open if they are out there. They don't want the smoke in their house (presumably why they are outside, rather than in their house) and guess what?  Neither do I.  
 
If we have ordinances regarding noise that interferes with others' rights and dogs barking that interferes with others' rights, why on earth would we not do something to limit smoke, which definitely interferes with others' rights?  Smokers' right to smoke should not trump my right to breath clean air.  They can go smoke in a private, enclosed space that does not affect others. So yes, absolutely ban smoking in bars and apartments.

Oh, so you oppose this so the neighbors will smoke inside instead of being required to smoke out on the porch.

-Robert

[sunnyCA]

Oh, so you oppose this so the neighbors will smoke inside instead of being required to smoke out on the porch.

-Robert

No...I think smokers need to smoke in places and ways that do not impact others.  Smokers with private homes need to smoke in their homes. Smokers in apartments need to smoke in places that do not impact others--nowhere that affects other people.   Maybe that is outside away from other people's property. Maybe that is in their car.  I honestly don't care where they smoke as long as no one else has to breathe their polluted air.

 

The bottom line is that there are 2 sets of rights.  The right to smoke and the right to breathe smoke-free air. Smokers can exercise their right in such a way that does not trample on the the right of others to not have to breathe secondhand smoke. 

[Barb J]

Business owners and apartment owners should make their own decisions regarding this.  The City should not be stepping into this issue. 

 

The market will bear.....

 

Barb J

[Robert Gary]

No...I think smokers need to smoke in places and ways that do not impact others.  Smokers with private homes need to smoke in their homes. Smokers in apartments need to smoke in places that do not impact others--nowhere that affects other people.   Maybe that is outside away from other people's property. Maybe that is in their car.  I honestly don't care where they smoke as long as no one else has to breathe their polluted air.
 
 

But this law is the opposite of that. It encourages smokers to smoke outside in common areas by making it illegal to smoke inside their apartments.

-Robert

[Terry]

As a former smoke of quite a few years, I empathize with smokers, but I've never liked the smell on me or on others.  My nose is extremely sensitive, and I can smell a lit cigarette in the cars around me!  A resident nearby smokes and I can smell it even from inside my home, although I know that my immediate neighbors don't smoke, so that's how far the smell travels.  I've been to friends' apartments and there are neighbors who smoke which I can smell, and then to have to walk through common areas where smokers are/have been smoking is really something I could do without.  I can't imagine having to live in an apartment complex where neighbors smoke through the day/night.  Without some other solution offered, I'd have to support this one.

[mac_convert]

I'm with Caligirl on this one.  I don't smoke because it stinks and it is incredibly dangerous to my health. I am tired of breathing my neighbor's nasty cigarette and cigar smoke. We live on the side where their setback is 5' and it is literally like they are smoking in our backyard.  We can't even have the windows open if they are out there. They don't want the smoke in their house (presumably why they are outside, rather than in their house) and guess what?  Neither do I.  

 

If we have ordinances regarding noise that interferes with others' rights and dogs barking that interferes with others' rights, why on earth would we not do something to limit smoke, which definitely interferes with others' rights?  Smokers' right to smoke should not trump my right to breath clean air.  They can go smoke in a private, enclosed space that does not affect others. So yes, absolutely ban smoking in bars and apartments.

I lost my Aussies 28 days apart from Cancer. They were well cared for, but for much of their lives the neighbors closest to the dog run and my living room smoked frequently. I moved to a new house so I no longer have to deal with the second hand smoke and neither will my new puppy who is now 1.5 years old.

[sunnyCA]

I lost my Aussies 28 days apart from Cancer. They were well cared for, but for much of their lives the neighbors closest to the dog run and my living room smoked frequently. I moved to a new house so I no longer have to deal with the second hand smoke and neither will my new puppy who is now 1.5 years old.

I am so sorry for your losses. I can only imagine how heartbroken you were.  It's frustrating that you had to move to avoid the secondhand smoke but at least you were able to get away from it.

But this law is the opposite of that. It encourages smokers to smoke outside in common areas by making it illegal to smoke inside their apartments.

-Robert

If Folsom adopts the state law that was enacted for public work places, there is no smoking inside of public buildings or within 20 feet of any walkway or building entrance.  Smokers can be outside but not to where it impacts others.

[Dave Burrell]

Let individual business owners decide. Manderes is a good example of a business doing it right. They have an outdoor patio on the side of their building for smokers that is away from the entrance so it seems to work. I absolutely hate the smell of cigarettes but that doesn't mean I should tell others how to live. I do enjoy a nice cigar once in a while that I smoke in my backyard. Hope that's not effecting my neighbors and I hope I won't be banned from doing that.

I expect this law to be shot down due to Kerrie's smoking preference.

[Robert Gary]

 

If Folsom adopts the state law that was enacted for public work places, there is no smoking inside of public buildings or within 20 feet of any walkway or building entrance.  Smokers can be outside but not to where it impacts others.

 20 feet isn't much. I'd much rather my neighbors smoke inside.

 

-Robert

[Rich_T]

I think that bars with patios should have the discretion to permit patio smoking.  Not restaurants.

 

As for apartments, maybe the best way is for building owners to designate an apartment building as non-smoking.  The market would drive the trend.  That way, people in a "smoking permitted" building would know what they were getting into.  Because yes, the smoke travels everywhere.  Of course, this is no remedy for existing tenants in existing buildings, and no solution will please everyone.  I would err on the side of non-smokers' rights to clean air.  I'm like Terry when it comes to smelling the poison. And let me tell you, I've dealt with my share of smoke odor for one lifetime, having spent ten years in Germany back in the day.

[Robert Gary]

The question here is not what apartments and restaurants should do. The question is if we should use the force and threat of government to compel them.

-Robert

[Rich_T]

The question here is not what apartments and restaurants should do. The question is if we should use the force and threat of government to compel them.

-Robert

 

You make it sound so ominous, but if people are to be able to enjoy smoke-free living, then laws are required, otherwise smokers could smoke anywhere they want, no matter what the "rules" of a given establishment might state.  At some point force would be required to make a smoker stop smoking in a banned area.  Without laws, we would have anarchy, and without the threat of force, the laws cannot be enFORCEd.  Hence the need for the public to make sure the laws reflect our judgment and our will.

 

So we need government to give "teeth" to smoking policies.  But if you are saying that restaurant/apartment owners should have the right to make the rules that would be enforced, when it comes to their own businesses, then I can understand that view, however the situation is complicated.  Existing apartment dwellers who are smelling smoke from others in the building require some remedy.

[cw68]

I understand that smelling small amounts of cigarette smoke is annoying, I don't like it, However banning people from smoking in their own houses is going too far. Just because someone is renting an apartment doesn't mean it's not their home and they should be barred from engaging in a legal activity.

I'm with you on this one. I hate smoke and have asthma. Oftentimes I wish people were more considerate, and sometimes I'm amazed that my sniffer works so well that while sitting in traffic with windows open I can smell someone smoking in another car.

That said, it seems that sometimes we would rather restricting the rights of others so that we aren't bothered. Cigarette smoke on the next door's neighbor's patio in the outdoors isn't a health hazard worth infringing upon their rights IMHO.