Ryuyuki  +  40404 Mon, 02 Aug 04 01:05 PM yeah, cause they said if they don't smoke. feel sour in the month, or when it's cold weather. i wonder when 10 person make a sircle, sit and smoke together. seem like..... "an indian sign" (hihihi....) sorry Ryuyuki Joined on Wed, Jul 14 2004 indonesia Full Member 224 quote of this day : Time, use it best cause it never come back

	caroline  +  40571 Tue, 03 Aug 04 12:12 PM Yesterday I was late for an appointment and in the rush I completely forgot to wear my seatbelt. Now out of habit, or perhaps seeing how it can really cushion the blow in the event of a crash, I always do make it a point to wear it. The once I forgot it however was the time the traffic warden happened to inspect the interior of our car as we passed by him, and within five minutes I found myself cursing the injustice of it all :P I started complaining that although reinforcing such a law could do much good, in the end it is your own life & it is up to you to take care of it... Back to the current topic, I was wondering whether or not smoking should be completely banned and I just couldn't come down to a conclusion. Perhaps I'm biased since I hate the smell of cigarette smoke with a passion... yet in certain cases, when common sense miserably fails, the only way to stop people doing something harmful is to pass a law to 'correct' the situation, much as I hate admitting it. However I can't help feeling it is quite silly to ask someone to wear their seatbelt or not to smoke because of the fine they might be charged with... I'd like to know what you people think about this! caroline Joined on Wed, Jul 28 2004 Malta Junior Member 61

	Molly  +  40617 Tue, 03 Aug 04 03:53 PM Maybe it would help when there would be a law against smoking but I'm with you Caroline, it's silly to ask someone not to smoke because of the fine they might charged. I would go on a step farther. If there should be a law against smoking, how about a law against alcohol-drinking. Alcohol is also a very big problem. Not only for the users but also for the people around them. Especially when they are getting drunk behind the wheel of a car. I think that when you are willing to ban any kind of smoking from public places (like hotels, restaurants and bars etc.) you should ban the alcohol-drinking from public places as well. Molly Joined on Sun, Jul 11 2004 Full Member 166

	haoqide  +  40648 Tue, 03 Aug 04 06:00 PM The difference between drinking in public and smoking is that smoking in public in any amount is damaging to others. Drinking in moderation in public isn't. Sure, the user can get a buzz, but it doesn't affect the health of others. Smoking in "moderation" (smoking at all) DOES affect the public in general. There ARE laws against drinking in public when the person is "intoxicated," at which point the person can go to jail. Banning drinking in public would make things worse because the few people who are going to get drunk will do so before they go out instead of after they get to their destination, which would make it worse for everybody else on the roads as they drive to their respective destinations. There would be more drunk driving because the idiots who are getting drunk will start out drunk and THEN get in the car to go somewhere. Banning smoking in public, on the other hand, would do nothing but good for the public in general. Smokers would get their nasty habit out of the way before going to public places, which would be more healthy for non-smokers. I look at it this way: Smoking is a TOUGH addiction to break, but LOTS of people have done it. If you want to damage the health of others, expect to be treated like an outcast. It's just the same as someone walking around with radioactive material; they may like it, but not everybody else wants to get that radiation poisoning, so the person with it should expect to be treated differently. Smoking is a very inconsiderate habit that damages the health of others, so it's very reasonable to expect that smokers keep their damaging habits to themselves. haoqide Joined on Mon, Jul 5 2004 Nashville, TN Full Member 307 Difference Between

	Molly  +  40668 Tue, 03 Aug 04 08:21 PM I disagree with you on the drinking part. When alcohol is banned from public places most people won't get drunk and drive to their destination because most people don't like to drink alone. And if you would be right, and their destination would be a public place, they won't get more drunk because they can't get alcohol there. If their destination will be with friends and family, I don't think they want to meet there friends while they are drunk. It doesn't look good when you visit a party drunk. I realize that alcohol is something different then tobacco and maybe I didn't have to compare those two with eachother but in both cases I don't realy think a law is the solution. If you make a law in wich you forbid any kind of smoking, you have to kick them of the habit. Have you ever seen a person who stopped smoking? I have. Most people change. They get withdrawal symptoms. Were would you pull the line. Which smokers have to kick there habits. Some smokers or all smokers. Then you should have a law for that too. Forcing smokers to kick there habit. I do agree on the fact that something has to be done. Maybe an anti-smokers campaign would help. Inform the childeren of today of the danger. They are the adults of tomorrow. Molly

	haoqide  +  40686 Tue, 03 Aug 04 10:52 PM Well, speaking from experience, I know for a fact that some people WILL drink alone and THEN go to a party or somewhere if they know alcohol won't be available there. I've been to "dry" parties where there isn't any alcohol served, and I've known people to come to those parties smelling like alcohol in a big way. They got there by driving. And you don't have to be "drunk" legally to be a danger to people on the road...I just didn't state my original point very well on that. I was simply addressing your point about their being a law against alcohol drinking...A law against drinking it in public wouldn't help that much in a lot of cases. But then again, it would help in some cases. You may have a point there. The thing about drinking in public, though, is that the vast majority of people drinking in public aren't going to endanger everyone they come into contact with; smoking in public DOES endanger everyone around you the second you light up your cigarette. My point wasn't about outlawing smoking in general, but outlawing smoking in PUBLIC. Just like there's no law aganst getting drunk in your own house, only a law about being drunk in public, I don't see a law against smoking at your house being made. There are too many politicians that smoke for a law like that to ever be made. haoqide

	Molly  +  40988 Thu, 05 Aug 04 07:31 PM You are right, smoking in public endanger everyone who's around them. But like I said it wasn't smart of me to compare alcohol with tobacco. I'm sorry. I find alcohol also a big problem. This topic however is about smoking. (i) Maybe a law against selling tobacco to kids/people younger then 21 years could be something. Then kids wouldn't be able to buy that poisonous stuff anymore. With a little luck and a good campagne they won't have the need to smoke when they reach the adult age. Could it work? Molly

	haoqide  +  41003 Thu, 05 Aug 04 08:56 PM I agree that alcohol is a big problem, too, Molly! It's a huge problem that's responsible for many, many deaths every year...I was just tackling it from the standpoint that some alcohol isn't bad...too much alcohol is DEFINITELY bad. Here in the U.S., they already have laws against selling tobacco to anyone under 18, but unfortunately the kids find other ways to get it...they wanna be cool like their friends, or they're bored, or they're stressed-out...they get it somehow because of those and other reasons. :( haoqide

	Molly  +  41570 Tue, 10 Aug 04 08:33 PM Yeah, unfortunaly, I have seen parents giving cigarettes to there childeren. Unbelieveble. What can you do about that? Molly