Resolving Capitalism and Smoking Bans
Today, the DC City Council ratified the Smoking Ban by an 11-1 margin, with one council member absent. I am overjoyed that this happened. As a free market capitalist, however, many people are asking by what hypocritical personal moral is this at all okay? I believe in the power of the market, I believe in personal responsibility, but I also believe that society has a responsibility to itself to help enforce the rights of the individual, even in private spaces. For me, a restaurant is a semi-public place. A bar is a semi-public place. These are places where you go to socialize, to partake in conversation, in debate, in darts, in pool, in drinking (yes, drinking, more on this in a moment), and to carry out the social parts of our lives. Humans are social creatures, we crave contact with one another, and our nightlife here is a method for that interaction.
I love interacting in a neutral social setting, where you're neither on your turf or theirs, but rather a neutral ground free of "home court" advantage and a place where I don't have to wash every glass that I drink from, or make every snack that I hunger for, or pour every libation I wish to drink. I like the space of a bar, the people that it brings me into contact with, but man, do I hate going home smelling of someone's ashtray. Hanging out with Karin and Shane and Tracey at the Courts is great, I have a Guinness, I watch the news, I read or write, I relax. It's a wonderful public place for me to enjoy. Recently, I've discovered the Elephant and Castle in DC, as a great place to have a good burger and a fresh-pulled ESB from cask. My problems there are the same, I really dislike smelling of cigarettes when I go home. But, Tom, you ask, are you not killing yourself softly with beer and cholesterol in those bars? Wouldn't banning alcohol and fatty food be next?
No, it wouldn't be. Here's why. As they say on Fark, "here comes the science". Me drinking a pint of plain, or having a half pound bacon cheeseburger affects only my health. My choice to order those two is sheerly mine. My choice to inhale cigarette smoke while doing it, though, is different. That is a factor out of my control. The choice to smoke isn't one that a person makes just for him or herself, it's a choice they make for themselves and anyone within a significant radius of themselves. The side effects of a burger and a beer are negligible to other people around you. The side effects of a cigarette or a cigar, though, are clear and dangerous, as second-hand smoke damages lung tissue in a similar fashion to first-hand smoke. I watched my grandfather deal with the effects of lung cancer not once or twice but six times. I don't think anyone should suffer that. No one deserves that. Yet, many people smoke cigarette after cigarette and cigar after cigar, hoping they'll get lucky and opt out of the inevitable. Am I for banning tobacco? Part of me says yes. Part of me says no. You should have the good sense to quit smoking. It's really fucking bad for you. Really, really bad. But you should also have the common courtesy to take your dirty habit outside and away from others who have chosen not to smoke. It's sad that we can't just agree societally that if you smoke, you do it outdoors where it's less bothersome to individuals around you. But we can't, and so laws like this get passed.
I don't get upset about them, because they apply to smoking, which folks ought to have the good sense and common courtesy to take outside as a politeness to others.
Comments:
I don't think anyone who supports free market philosophies can ever believe that the public good can be met with the use of force -- by government or by private companies that use government.
You have the choice to enter a restaurant. Private property is private property. If you think this will help your market, you'll be sorely mistaken.
Smoking bans are mercantilistic, just like zoning laws and building codes. No true capitalist can resolve freedom through force.
Good blog though!
Posted by A.B. Dada on January 4, 2006 — 7:17 PM
Thanks for the thoughts Mr. Dada. No philosophy works in absolutes. I think Capitalism requires some regulation in order to work in practice. It's pragmatism, overall, that matters to me.
Posted by Tom Bridge on January 4, 2006 — 8:25 PM
What are the limitations on this ban? Seattle had a similar one on their ballot, which restricted smoking within 25 feet of commercial establishments, which basically makes it illegal anywhere in downtown Seattle.
Posted by strand on January 5, 2006 — 12:45 AM