Public Smoking Ban t-101

[flarewearer]

Great, innit?

Having discovered the location of already smoking-free hostelries in the fine and progressive city of Edinburgh and having been experiencing their fine atmosphere and wares, I honestly cannot wait the 101 days until the ban comes into force.

I look forward to not having burning eyes when someone lights up next to me, to not finding my clothes smelling like an ashtray the next morning and to not blowing grey snot out my nostrils afterwards.

And as to pubs losing their "character"? balls to that, one of Edinburgh's finest and its' oldest pub is already non-smoking, and it has far more character and atmosphere (albeit a clearer one) than the bland, soulless, smoke-filled, generic, plastic-wrapped chain-hovels that seem to be changing ownership, decor and names faster than I can remember what day their happy hours are on.

It may be your right to smoke in public next to me, however I reserve the right to piss in your drink (its' actually a lot less unhelathy) as I personally find that too socially acceptable.

BRING IT ON!

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[ribs]

I think it'll be brilliant and can't wait for it to come in over here! In Ireland we've had the smoking ban for a while now - pubs are fuller than ever. You never hear people going on about Irish pubs lacking atmosphere do you?
The only problem I've heard about is that in clubs the smell of smoke no longer hides all those other much worse smells present - namely vomit and body odour.....

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Riddick: Remember that favorite game of yours?
Kyra: "Who's the Better Killer?"
Riddick: Let's play.

[physicist]

Quoting flarewearer from 06:06, 14th Dec 2005
Great, innit?

Looking forward to it - my clothes will no longer smell of cigarettes after visiting the pub/Union.

[queen of scots]

I can't wait either. Some days I think it would be nice to go and have a pub lunch somewhere, but I never do, because I don't have the time to have a bath, change my clothes and wash all the smoke smell from my hair in the middle of the day. It was great when we were in New York last month, didn't have to worry about that.

I'm also really glad the history department installed smoke detectors over the summer - my supervisor can no longer blow smoke all over me during our meetings.



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[niall]

Quoting ribs from 10:10, 14th Dec 2005

The only problem I've heard about is that in clubs the smell of smoke no longer hides all those other much worse smells present - namely vomit and body odour.....

and farts, went in to he coutning house in glasgow the other day, oh my god it stank of shit!

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do you have a tastyspoon?

http://www.tastyspoon.com/forum

[DrAlex]

I am looking forward to it, but at the same time I think it's kind of silly that some of the old pipe smokers won't be able to tug away whilst drinking whiskey.

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[flarewearer]

Quoting niall from 10:29, 14th Dec 2005

Quoting ribs from 10:10, 14th Dec 2005

The only problem I've heard about is that in clubs the smell of smoke no longer hides all those other much worse smells present - namely vomit and body odour.....

and farts, went in to he coutning house in glasgow the other day, oh my god it stank of shit!

How strange, when I brought this up with the 3 Irish girls on my course 2 months back they all said that the pubs smelled of farts from all those Guinness-swilling irish gents. Stick to nice clean lager then chaps.

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[Midget]

Yeah fizzy lager isn't going to make people fart is it?

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IMAGE:img9.imgspot.com/u/04/241/18/160019.jpg Too far.

[Malcolm]

I've lived in Edinburgh all my life, things are beginning to improve but there's still too much public smoking. It's banned in most restaurants now (thank God!), but the pubs still allow it. Luckily, it's been banned on public transport for years as far as I can tell.

101 days and counting.

[Sid]

Quoting flarewearer from 06:06, 14th Dec 2005

I look forward to...not blowing grey snot out my nostrils afterwards.

What bollocks! Grey snot?! Get real, talk about exaggerating! I'm a causal smoker (almost given up) and I've never had grey snot and I don't know anyone else who has just because they sat next to a couple of smokers.

And although I am a smoker I am all for the ban. When I was on holiday there were pubs that you couldn't smoke in and I didn't feel the difference, just a better cleaner pub. On the plus when you did go outside for a smoke everyone talked so it was a nice social atmosphere inside and out.

[flarewearer]

Quoting Sid from 14:29, 14th Dec 2005

What bollocks! Grey snot?! Get real, talk about exaggerating! I'm a causal smoker (almost given up) and I've never had grey snot and I don't know anyone else who has just because they sat next to a couple of smokers.

Yeah, that's because you were kindly holding your fag out at arms distance and blowing your smoke in MY direction. I can assure you that after a night in a smoke filled cell of a pub the contents of my nostrils do indeed change colour. It is a well known fact of life that you cannot blow your nose without afterwards examining the contents of the hanky, and empirical observation on my part have established that the post-smoking snot is indeed of a greyer hue than the non-smoked bogie.

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[Senethro]

So this isn't an example of the nanny state interfering in peoples lives, because Flare approves of it?

[Rilla]

I am going to annoy everyone and say that pubs in Ireland HAVE lost character due to the smoking ban. I prefer to stand outside with the smokers there. They've installed patio heaters outside most pubs - terrible for the environment, I agree, but much more fun to stand there, all huddled together, drinking and smoking than sit inside where there is no atmosphere at all. All the good chat happens outside.
I for one, like to smell of smoke - like a hangover, it's the sign of a good night. I'm all for pubs serving food in the day having a smoking ban, for for a pub like the cellar, it makes it even more pleasant to breathe in someone elses 2nd hand smoke.
I am not a smoker, before anyone accuses me.
(well, i very occasionally would have one cigarette on a night out).
Eugh, nanny state indeed.

Fair enough of pubs want to enforce smoking bans of their own - I've no problem with that, I just won't go to those pubs.

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[The Dude]

Why not introduce smoking licenses. After all you can't just set up shop with a keg and call your self a pub. There are certain strictly enforced rules that you have to comply with. Why don't they allow pubs that want to allow smoking get a license and those that don't will simply ban it. There is also the issue of tobacconists. Mot of the good tobacconists I know have a cigar lounge. Since those are technically public places they are covered in the ban. If one is purchasing items in a tobacconist, there first fear is certainly not going to be lung cancer (or gray snot for that matter). There has to be a happy medium that accommodates most people because blanket bans are not best in all situations. And also on another point it hasn't been the pubs oozing with character which have banned it. IT is the chain pubs like scream and Witherspoons which have blanket banns already. I mean can we all agree that the raisin has no character to begin with.

[fat bastard]

is it true that some pubs will be able to stay smoking as long as they don't serve food?

or was this a malicious lie

and can private clubs can retain smoking? does that not mean the union?

[Fionnlagh]

Quoting fat bastard from 18:44, 14th Dec 2005
is it true that some pubs will be able to stay smoking as long as they don't serve food?

I believe that's England. In Scotland that won't be an option.

[flarewearer]

Quoting Senethro from 17:55, 14th Dec 2005
So this isn't an example of the nanny state interfering in peoples lives, because Flare approves of it?

Well public places are public, this isn't telling people they cannot smoke and interfering with their lives in private, it is telling them they cannot smoke where others are working, for the benefit of the public at large. Throwing in such a media-friendly term as this for the basis of an argument is incredibly weak.

It is an undesputable fact that passive smoking causes lung disease, passive drinking does not cause liver cirrhosis. The only atmosphere that pubs are going to lose is the thick eye-burning throat-tickling haze. I go to pubs for a drink, for the company, for the talk and perhaps for the music that is on Going to breathe in other peoples cancer fumes is way down on my list.

Smokers are a minority, and if they can't face up to the fact that they are a minority then thats their problem, they are welcome to go and stand in the cold and get diseases together. Most other people will just be glad to get rid of their filthy habits.

And Rilla / Sid, you cannot be a teetotaller if you have a "social drink" or a vegetarian if you enjoy the "odd bit of chicken", so how does smoking when you are pissed on a night out count as a non-smoker? You either are or arent.

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[flarewearer]

Quoting fat bastard from 18:44, 14th Dec 2005
is it true that some pubs will be able to stay smoking as long as they don't serve food?

or was this a malicious lie

and can private clubs can retain smoking? does that not mean the union?

No, absolutely no enclosed places of work can allow smoking, the only exception is for a small number of designated bedrooms in hotels / guest houses. No pubs, members clubs, offices or anything else can allow smoking, not even in a specially designated area. You only have to look at the Union's diabolical smoking arrangements, where air conditioning only seemed to appear for 1 or 2 months of the year only to be yanked out again, and the smoking area is (or was, until some cretin changed it) in a raised area with no extractive ventilation and a very low cieling, so the smoke simply rises and gets trapped and sinks right into the non-smoking areas with the aid of some conveniently situated fans to keep it moving. So no matter where you are, you have to put up with the smoke (and remember, the smoke is a filthy mixture of various nasties, and even if you can't see or smell it, you are still likely to be breathing unpleasantness in.) Remember, despite what the powers-that-be would like to think, smoke does not obey signs, merely the laws of physics.

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[Al]

For a start, and I know it is labouring the point, but a pub is not a public place.

Smoking may be a cause of lung disease. That is a quite different thing to saying that it causes lung disease. And even such bodies as the WHO and IARC are agreed that there is little risk of passive smoking causing cancer. And who knows what part other environmental factors have to play? A study conducted years ago found that non-smokers from urban areas had more lung damage than smokers from rural areas.

Finally, I would say that smokers are - at present - a majority in pubs.

[Midget]

flarewearer you really seem to have a problem.

Drinking, smoking, etc are all bad for us. And there isn't a difference re: choosing to inhale smoke, drink is volutary. When you get run down by a drunk driver, it may hurt even if you haven't been drinking, hence drink harms people who don't drink just as much as smoking harms those that don't smoke.

Hence ban drink, Ban cars. Ban knives. BAN BAN BAN just so we can all live in a safer world and eat uncooked unchopped up potatoes.

Safety should not always trump all other aspects of our lives, and frankly its up to us how safe we want to be. And other people's safety. Well I will think about other people but ultimately someone has to think about me and my happiness and some of the time that has to take top priority.

Sometimes I have to say "other people's safety" who gives a fuck. We all going to die live with it.

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IMAGE:img9.imgspot.com/u/04/241/18/160019.jpg Too far.