Jump to full article: The Royal Gazette (bm), 2005-12-23
Author: INSIGHT by GARETH FINIGHAN
Intro: The number of smokers now forced to indulge their habit en plein air is testimony to the fact that so many companies in Bermuda today have banished smoking from their premises.
It's a fairly recent shift in thinking. In the late 1970s there was a public outcry when one of Bermuda's two cinemas, The Island, tried out the then new social experiment of going smoke-free. Letters to the Editor flooded in and within a short space of time The Island closed its doors for good.
More recently – perhaps as little as ten years ago – most office workers could freely light up at their desks, ashtrays piled high with butts beside them, while non-smoking colleagues sat quietly holding their breath. . . .
Currently, a ban on tobacco in the workplace leaves smokers out in the cold. In future it could leave them out of a job. Could it ever happen in Bermuda? It might seem unlikely now, but then, just a few years ago the idea of banning cigarettes in bars seemed just as improbable.
And such a move already has one backer. During last Friday's debate, Deputy Premier and medical practitioner Ewart Brown told the House of Assembly: "Smoking is the second major cause of death world-wide. Tobacco should be illegal."
Perhaps the one consolation the island's smokers have is that, with the New Year just around the corner, now is the perfect time to stop.
Jump to full article » |