Wednesday, January 18, 2006

Smoking Banned

I agree, it is a great day for Springfield. I’ve been very busy today and this is my first chance to blog, but Jim is right; it’s nice to see Springfield get out in front of a progressive issue for once.

I’m amazed at how quickly things have turned about. A year ago, I thought it might be decades before this city saw smoke-free establishments. Then, in the course of just a few months (a blink of an eye in cultural evolution time) we have a comprehensive smoking ban.

The difference was leadership. Leadership from Mayor Davlin and leadership from the alderman. There was enough controversy on this issue that it was probably easier to do nothing, but our city leaders tackled the issue. They debated, sent up proposals and in the end did the right thing.

Congratulations Springfield, it’s a great day.

4 comments:

Unknown said...

Dito!

Anonymous said...

Mayor Davlin only backed this under pressure after opposing, and then stalling, a smoking ban. I hardly call that leadership.
But yes, it is a good day.

JLogue said...

We have a rampant homeless problem with not enough shelters.

We have highly racially segregated neighborhoods.

We can't seem to get any other major businesses to come to Springfield, favoring towns named after our town's important hero.

And we more bars per capita than Chicago.

But hey, lets make banning smoking our primary issue.

No, Springfield is not on the progressive edge of this, especially not when Lexington, Kentucky (Kentucky for pete's sake) bans it first.

Once again, we are bandwagon jumpers.

Yes, I suppose banning smoking is a good thing, especially for those of us who have health issues; however, I am against turning the smoking community or any community into virtual pariahs or lepers.

Anonymous said...

I'm a reformed smoker, and as such not a big fan of smoking. Every time that I go to a bar and my clothes end up smelling like smoke for the next week I realize the benefits of banning smoking.

But, in what sense is this a "great day?" How is this a "progressive issue?" My feeling is that it is Puritanism, plain and simple -- something the Left wastes no time in disavowing on any other issue. We already had consigned smokers to their own sections of bars and restaurants. Now we are thrilled that they cannot smoke anywhere? I don't get it.