I recently returned from the Bay Area and I’m catching up on the local news. I see that SLO is considering extending their smoking ban to include city-owned benches, sidewalks, and parks.
I’m a believer that people should be able to smoke if they want, even after knowing the health consequences. But I have a stronger opinion that other people should not have to breathe and smell other people’s smoke, especially since it’s a fact now that second hand smoke is damaging. I don’t know why some smokers are either so rude or just so stupid that they don’t understand this.
My recent experience was when I was filming the video at the Butterfly grove. What a great experience to enjoy nature by watching the butterflies with the smell of the eucalyptus trees. Unfortunately, that lasted just a few minutes as first a couple came with their toddler to look at the butterflies to only have the mom light a cigarette which filled the area with a foul odor. Then a group of teenagers (boys and girls) came and hung out on one of the fences while lighting up. I couldn’t find any area in the grove that I could escape the foul odor.
So if we need to make laws so we can put up No Smoking signs in areas to try to protect non-smokers then lets do it. They should also print a label on cigarette packs that says as a courtesy, you should not smoke within 30 feet of non-smokers.
The reason I’m blogging about this topic today is also because of the incident at the movie theater where a family was asked to be quiet and obviously decided it was their right to make noise during the movie causing someone to go out and get a gun and shoot the dad.
It’s really sad for our society when people go out in public and don’t think (or care) about the people around them….