Jump to full article: Detroit (MI) Free Press, 2008-05-15
Author: JACOB GRIER
Intro: When I head to the Upper Peninsula every summer, one of my favorite activities is relaxing outside with a cigar on a beautiful Michigan night. . . .
The ban is touted as a way to rescue bar and restaurant workers from the much-hyped perils of secondhand smoke. But before approving such legislation, it's worth asking whether these workers really need protecting. Often working as a bartender, I find it a bit disconcerting to see my profession become the object of such concern in so many states and cities. Firefighters, fishermen, coal miners, and even pizza delivery drivers take on far greater dangers than I ever have serving drinks. . . .
There are not, so far as I know, groups of oppressed consumers demanding restaurants where the cooks have dirty hands and the meat is rotten. People do demand places where they can smoke and drink together. . . .
In addition, what goes on in the kitchen is difficult for diners to discover from the outside, while smoking policies are easily ascertained. . . .
The good news for nonsmoking Michiganders is that business owners are already curtailing smoking in response to consumer preferences, just as they were in Washington before our ban took effect. . . .
Nonsmokers have good reason to desire smoke-free bars and restaurants. Tobacco smoke is smelly and annoying. Or is it aromatic and enjoyable? The difference is a matter of taste. . .
Michigan should resist the urge to join California, the District of Columbia and countless other states and cities in the panic over tobacco.
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