Virginia bars and restaurants are soon to be affected by a new smoking ban. This state has been hooked on tobacco since the first settlers established Jamestown, about 400 years ago.
As of December 1st, this state becomes one among many states to ban smoking in bars and restaurants. Though this is not to be the strictest of bans as smoking will be permitted in separate rooms with proper ventilation systems.
Going back as far as the colonial times, Virginia's prime crop and source of money has been tobacco.
Things started to shift in the state once lawmakers began to cut out smoking in places like Richmond and Raleigh, North Carolina. These two cities house the largest tobacco companies in the country - Philip Morris and R.J. Reynolds. If they weren't getting their way, then who's to say Marlboro producing Virginia would stay clear of these changes.
If a state with such an extensive history in tobacco production is slowly cutting tobacco out, this is a sure sign that this trend is only going to spread, which is sad and kills our freedom…
[Via: Washington Post]
Professors at Widener University School of Law will be taking on new role, smoking police, at the start of the new academic year.
They will not undergo extensive training and they will not be wearing uniforms, but they will be carrying cards that give extensive details on the new smoking ban that will be implemented. The ban prohibits any kind of tobacco product or its use on campus, both indoors and outdoors. The school's dean Linda L. Ammons says that if this kind of intervention is not enough to stop students from smoking then they could face a fine.
Widener is not the first law school to toughen up on smoking — bans like this are becoming a growing trend. Smoking is mainly banned indoors and at the perimeter of buildings, but many law schools are working toward having campus-wide bans. In the United States, nearly 176 colleges and universities are entirely smoke-free, according to the American Lung Association.
The director of communications at the University of Arkansas (where smoking has also been banned) Andy Albertson, says that the law has had a positive impact, and that it is very rare to see smoking anymore. He added that there has been very little need for enforcement of the ban.
But, just because you do not see it does not mean it is not happening. University students are adults, they should be given freedom to make their own choices, and they should not be treated like criminals for a bad habit.
[Via: law.com]
As of yet, the sidewalks adjacent to the University of Kentucky have not fallen under the smoking ban that is soon to be implemented by the university.
However, the assistant vice president for campus services, Anthony Beatty, has asked the Urban County Council to allow enforcement of the smoking ban on the sidewalks.
There has been some discussion on changing the memorandum of understanding and the main question of concern has been how the legislation would be enforced.
While others like Councilwoman Diane Lawless, who lives in the neighborhood near the university, worried that smokers would walk across the street to light up, bringing smoking closer to her front door.
Currently the resolution is on hold, and it seems that it will stay that way for some time. But who would smokers be hurting by smoking on the sidewalks near their school? University is not high school, it's not like the few smokers will be peer-pressuring classmates into smoking or something of the like. This is pure stupid…
[Via: kentucky.com]
Due to a slip in Montana's statewide smoking ban, people who want to have a smoke with their beer are still able to do so, even though smoking indoors has been in place since the beginning of October.
The State of Montana indoor smoking ban has no effect on those living on the Flathead Indian Reservation. Smokers at the KwaTaqNuk Casino are still happily puffing away, and this chain of casinos has both smoking and non-smoking locations.
A treaty was signed in 1855 to establish this reservation, and this event took place before the State of Montana had been formed. This treaty acts as an exemption from legislation, basically the law has no effect on the reserve.
Though no official discussion has been put forth on the subject, Flathead Reservation officials say that in the future council could possibly decide to ban smoking but for now things are to remain this way.
This might be one of the rare occasions of natives truly enjoying the freedom they deserve.
[Via: kpax.com]
As bans on smoking grow stronger in the United States, laws prohibiting marijuana are easing up. Cannabis-related prosecution has been ordered to stop by federal prosecutors in the 13 states where the medical use of the drug is not illegal.
It is wrong to prosecute those people who comply to state existing state laws, according to Attorney General Eric Holder.
However, the air is not completely clear he warns, those using medical marijuana laws as an alibi to traffic the drug are still going to be subject to prosecution.
This is a very sharp shift in policy in relation to that of the Bush administration, and is all a bit ironic because smokers are now seeing the same tyranny that medical marijuana user once had to face, and the question has to be asked - will smoking bans be dropped in a few decades? Will all the money that has been spent on implementing these laws proven to be a waste?
[Via: BBC]
