Light up, drive, and DIE!!!

[Thesemindz]

Ok, so I was watching the news and they said that NJ is now considering a bill which would make it illegal to drive and smoke, punishable by a fine of up to $250.

http://www.thebakersfieldchannel.com/automotive/4764205/detail.html?ontheside=story

Now, I am not a smoker. I have smoked ciggarettes on some occasions, and I have smoked pipe tobacco and cigars, but generally I just don't find tobacco to be an enjoyable intoxicant. But I can't stand the way anti-smokers seems to think that they have the right to constantly attack smoking and smokers at every possible opportunity. Billboards, taxes, invasive legislation, those offensive truth.com adds, it just keeps getting worse. The sponsors of this bill say it's not about health, it's about highway safety, and to prove their point they quote a study showing that smoking is a factor in 1% of automobile accidents. 1%! That's ridiculous. I wonder what percent of accidents are caused by bean burritos. This is another attempt by anti-smokers to change by force or fiat something they don't like. I can maybe see how smoking in a restaurant can affect other diner's experiences, although I don't think the government has the right to regulate whether or not you can engage in a perfectly legal activity on private property, but how does a person, smoking alone, in their own car cause someone else a problem? This is ridiculous, and offensive. People may not like it, but they sure like to spend a disproportionate amount of their time bothering those who do.

You seem to like to wear swimming trunks as an acceptable form of apparel regardless of the weather. I find that disgusting, so my friends and I are gonna make your life a living hell. I know it's not any of my business. I'm making it my business. And since most people find it at least distasteful, no one is going to stop me from being a jerk about it. ALL THE TIME.


-Rob

 

[FearlessFreep]

I wonder what percent of accidents are caused by bean burrito

To what kind of accidents are you referring?

 

[hemi]

I agree 100% I bet cell phones cause more than 1% what about those that read the paper, talk on the phone, put on makeup and drive all at the same time. What percentage of crashes does that cause? I am a smoker and I’m over 21, I pay for my cigarettes and for my truck ,my insurance and I even pay taxes. No way will the Govt. stop me from smoking in my truck as I drive down the road.



That said it drives me crazy that America is doing it’s best to disarm its law-abiding citizens!! But that is for another thread.

 

[Sam]

I agree. My dad owns a tobacco store here in st louis and all the time people are coming in making arses of themself preaching the gospel of non smokers and complaining about the smell. If you don't like it, leave! no one asked you to barge in and be annoying.

*edit*
I would also like to mention how much those laws in cali about no smoking in a resturant have really messed business up. There used to be a huge convention in florida where different companies got together and sold stuff - theres samples of everything and tobacco store owners from around the US go and get together - that law made it impossible and they had to move the convention. Its getting harder and harder to smoke a good cigar where you want to any more. People are rude about it and snotty and always think you shouldnt smoke in public at all. There have been laws passed to steadily raise ciggarette taxes, and the taxes to ship tobacco, and the taxes to sell tobacco... Business has been not as good as it usually is these past few years. Money has gotten tighter around my house - but they dont mention these things when they play those stupid commercials

 

[Thesemindz]

My understanding was that as part of the tobacco settlement, the money used for the truth.com commercials was specifically not to be used to imply that the tobacco companies were responsible for tobacco related deaths. Of course, those commercials explicitly state exactly that. Maybe there was a time when the tobacco companies lied and they should be held responsible, but no one who took up smoking within the last thirty or forty years has anyone to blame but themselves for their decisions. I recognize the power of addiction, and people stop every day. I am not a smoker, and I find those truth.com commercials personally offensive in every possible way. They have also repeatedly used deception and half-truths to push their anti-tobacco agenda, including using statistics that don't match up when attributing deaths to tobacco use.

Here in Springfield Mo they passed a law stating that you had to have a completely seperate, walled off section of your restaraunt for smoking unless you were basically a bar. One of the local restaraunts responded by opening up a smoking only location across the street from their original location. The city ordered them to shut it down because it didn't allow for non-smokers, despite the fact that they had a completely non-smoking location ACROSS THE STREET. This is one of the oldest locally owned businesses in our city, and has been a contributing and important part of Springfield for decades. This was a totally offensive move based solely on the opinions of anti-smokers who insist on ramming their agenda down everyone else's throat.

Smoking may be a bad idea. It may kill you in a slow and undeniably horrible fashion. It may be distasteful, disgusting, and uncivilized, (although I don't personally think it is), but it's not against the law, and the repeated attempts by a certain segment of our population to backdoor this kind of anti-tobacco legislation when they know that they could never accomplish a complete ban on the product if they were open about their agenda is most definately distasteful, disgusting, and unamerican.


-Rob

 

[Drac]

I agree 100% I bet cell phones cause more than 1% what about those that read the paper, talk on the phone, put on makeup and drive all at the same time

Next to those idiots that slow down to a crawl to look at an accident...

 

[andy]

don't you all just feel warm and fuzzy? I know I do, I'm so glad my tax dollars are going to those people that want to legislate morality and personal choice.

 

[Makalakumu]

This is a good topic.

A good point was made above about how smoking is not illegal...yet. I wouldn't support making smoking completely illegal. However, I do support getting all of the facts out there to people so they can make healthy decisions.

As the ill effects of smoking cost society more and more, I can understand how certain groups in our society, namely insurance companies, would want to subvert people's personal freedom.

In the city across the bay from us, there is a city wide smoking ban in all public places including bars, bowling alleys and restaurants. Statistics have shown that rather then driving business away, business actually increased. Yet, this is a curbing of personal freedom. Was it worth it?

 

[B. D. Cooper]

Boy I feel dumb, I thought that a lack of attention and stupidty was the root cause of most accidents. Now that the cell phones and ciggies are gone we are safe, right? I wish people would stop banding together for the greater good. The mob mind is way to fickle to make a good choice. Look what it did to the education system.

Benjamin Cooper

 

[rutherford]

This is the same state that makes it illegal for you to pump your own gas, presumably because the average driver in NJ is to stupid to figure out how it's done.

With that in mind, this makes a bit more sense.

 

[B. D. Cooper]

This is the same state that makes it illegal for you to pump your own gas, presumably because the average driver in NJ is to stupid to figure out how it's done.

With that in mind, this makes a bit more sense.

I get a good view of what stupid really is in my job as a substitute teacher and even though it feels like a betrayal of my ranting punk roots I have to say that nobody starts out stupid, they are made that way. Just like genius true stupidity takes a lot of work to to make it to stupid. I am sorry to hear that NJ is helping that process. As long as we as a society continue to nerf the world and sand off all the corners in our lives we are going to have problems that will grow up to be issues. Regulating ciggies, cell phones, Burritos, guns, standardized tests gas pumping all of it is just a band aide for the real problem. I still working on how to articulate said problem and I am sure that "pay attention" is in there some where in there.

Benjamin Cooper

 

[Flatlander]

I can understand making smoking in the vehicle illegal when there are children in the car - that's legislation that should be passed everywhere. When you're alone in the vehicle? Please. If the goal is to reduce automobile accidents, I'm sure there are other areas that require greater attention than smoking and driving.

 

[Akashiro Tamaya]

I have a co-worker who is a hard core anti smoker and will not hide her disgust of smokers. yet, she drives a nice antique, air polluting, oil burning , gas guzzling cadillac ! :idunno:

 

[still learning]

Hello, Politician's are busy again with something that is not that important?

People driving cars kills more people and create more injuries/deaths...maybe they should ban people driving cars/trucks.

cigarette butts are a problem, especially at the parks and beaches!.

or is it air pollution? does your car smoke too? ...........as far as children goes if they see their parents smoke chances are greater they will grow up to smoke too! Does it matter if it is in the car/ house/ garage?

Maybe ban people from smoking in front of children? ........You should see the VOG on the Big Island ? looks like LA in the old days. (Volcanic smoke from the Lava flows-still going on over 20 years now)...cough, Cough....Aloha

 

[still learning]

Hello, Politician's are busy again with something that is not that important?

People driving cars kills more people and create more injuries/deaths...maybe they should ban people driving cars/trucks.

cigarette butts are a problem, especially at the parks and beaches!.

or is it air pollution? does your car smoke too? ...........as far as children goes if they see their parents smoke chances are greater they will grow up to smoke too! Does it matter if it is in the car/ house/ garage?

Maybe ban people from smoking in front of children? ........You should see the VOG on the Big Island ? looks like LA in the old days. (Volcanic smoke from the Lava flows-still going on over 20 years now)...cough, Cough....Aloha

 

[arnisador]

It's about distracted driving. I'm all for this bill. Think about how it'd cut down on littering too!

 

[OUMoose]

It's about distracted driving. I'm all for this bill. Think about how it'd cut down on littering too!

Unfortunately, it also sets a dangerous precident.

If I recall correctly (and please, one of the LEO's speak up if I'm off with this), it's already illegal to drive while distracted, though a minor offense. That includes eating and talking on the cel phone. So, I'm wondering what's next? CD players? You have to look away from the road to fiddle with the controls. As a matter of fact, music in general in the car should probably go, since many people focus on the song rather than drive (how many times have you sung along with the radio?). What's after that?

I agree that smoking around children isn't right, but it should be the choice of the smoker not to do it, not some law that is nearly unenforcable. YMMV.

 

[rutherford]

In some states it is illegal to not have both hands on the wheel. That would seem to cover smoking as well.

But, what precident?

 

[Drac]

If I recall correctly it's already illegal to drive while distracted, though a minor offense. That includes eating and talking on the cel phone.

Not sure about that law..Usually I can spot a distracted driver by the way the car weaves. Usually they are talking on the cell phone and not smoking..I few of these morons continued talking AFTER I pulled them over and had to be told to end their call, that's an instsnt "Failure to Control" cite..My favorite is the idiots who have replaced their back seat with a sound system believe that everybody wants to hear whatever garbage they're listening you..Talk about distraction...

 

[OUMoose]

But, what precident?

It's another instance of the slippery slope idea, I think. First, you take away something simple. Something that people agree upon is bad to begin with. Then you take something else, citing the first one and how "well" it worked. etc etc.

It starts with smoking in your car... It ends with no cars, and everyone rides in government mass transit (under constant survelliance of course). :idunno: