Vancouver bans smoking in public outdoors

[gusman]

from upi.com

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Sept. 2 (UPI) -- A new smoking law in Vancouver, Canada, bans lighting up in 244 parks and various other outdoor public places, but not everyone is complying.

Kathryn Tatchell, a lung-cancer patient, and her two daughters breathed in secondhand smoke at Kitsilano Beach Wednesday -- the day the law went into effect, the Toronto Globe and Mail reported.

"That does bother me. Just a few days ago at the beach someone started smoking, so I had to move," said Tatchell.

"Secondhand smoke is an invasion of your own health. If people were respectful, then that law wouldn't have to exist," said Tatchell's daughter, Georgia Graham, who lives in Vancouver and supports the smoking ban.

Smokers, however, were the exception in the city's parks the first day of the ban, the Globe and Mail reported.

Those who violate the law, passed unanimously by the Vancouver Park Board in April, face a $250 fine, the newspaper said.

"We are there to make sure that all Vancouverites, and even visitors, are able to come down and have a reasonable expectation that they can enjoy the parks, beaches, playgrounds and not have their health put in harm's way," said Park Board Commissioner Aaron Jasper.

"This is about public health, and your right to smoke should not have an impact, or should not prevent other people from coming down and using that same space. It's about helping smokers realize that their habit and their activity is putting their neighbors, their friends, their families in harm's way," said Jasper.

[Progman_1]

Drunk drivers put more people in harm's way then second hand smoke but alcohol is readily available.... I am tired of the government telling us what we can and cannot do. Don't they have more important things to worry about.

[doggy10]

Drunk drivers put more people in harm's way then second hand smoke but alcohol is readily available.... I am tired of the government telling us what we can and cannot do. Don't they have more important things to worry about.

they do, but they seem to worry about some things that some may consider not as important. i'm not saying that this law is not important.

[The Cobra]

they do, but they seem to worry about some things that some may consider not as important. i'm not saying that this law is not important.

Lawmakers (politicians) worry about 2 things------getting elected again and which lobby pays the most for the free ride these guys get. Sure laws are important but let`s not forget who makes these laws---the politicians.....and let`s not forget who put these clowns in place to make these laws----we did. All in all it`s us that have the power---we have the ultimate lobby in our hands...their jobs!! If your local or provincial MPP voted for this tad of absurdity let him know how you feel and that his free ride is almost done----if he hears from enough of you I`m guessing he`ll have a change of heart.

[zoogor]

i smoked for 7 years and quit. been 8 or 9 years now not real sure and you all know that reformed smokers are the worst when it comes to smoking but i for one am glad that law has come to be and i just wish it would come to be world wide. it stinks, it looks ridiculous and it kills.

[gordiecar9]

And some cities in China outlaw spitting in public. Unhealthy ,so it seems. Can "Off with their head" for sneezing in public be soon to come?

[The Cobra]

i smoked for 7 years and quit. been 8 or 9 years now not real sure and you all know that reformed smokers are the worst when it comes to smoking but i for one am glad that law has come to be and i just wish it would come to be world wide. it stinks, it looks ridiculous and it kills.

Why not make it illegal then?----Just a guess but I`m thinking this will never happen because of the taxes collected by our elected officials. You know---the ones sworn to protect and uphold our best interests. Oh, and the lobby $$$ generated by the tobacco companies could get one of these politicians to elect Ted Bundy to a principal at a girls school.
Everything you said about smoking tobacco is perfectly true-----but we live in a free society, not governed by some mystical "World Order"---- be careful what you wish for. As long as anyone doesn`t subject me or mine or underagers with their used smoke let them puff away. JMO

[zoogor]

As long as anyone doesn`t subject me or mine or underagers with their used smoke let them puff away. JMO

i sort of agree and your certainly entitled to your opinion but i for one dont want cigarette smoke blown in my face. if people want to slowly kill them self's then yea, let'em do it in their own homes. JMO

[The Cobra]

i sort of agree and your certainly entitled to your opinion but i for one dont want cigarette smoke blown in my face. if people want to slowly kill them self's then yea, let'em do it in their own homes. JMO

and a good opinion it is pal------I`ll agree 100%. Even when I smoked, never would I be so ignorant as to smoke around non-smokers or even if outside stand where the smoke could blow in someone`s face. That`s just ignorance.

[zoogor]

and a good opinion it is pal------I`ll agree 100%. Even when I smoked, never would I be so ignorant as to smoke around non-smokers or even if outside stand where the smoke could blow in someone`s face. That`s just ignorance.

glad we see eye to eye. the one i hate the most is i see a mom and dad smoking in the front seat of a car and one or two kids in the back with all the windows up. some day im gonna see this and flip out and kick some smokin ass

[The Cobra]

Now those are the ones guilty of child abuse----throw the book at them.

[chuck]

its official, the world is starting to go bonkers.

[kenkell1]

its official, the world is starting to go bonkers.
Starting ????LOL

[Night Prowler]

and yet......most don't have a problem going to work/school/shopping with a cold/flu and spreading it to others........should be a quarantine law for that......:lol:

[n3uspeed2]

Well I smoked to when I lived in Vancouver....to stay with my wife for a while it was very different. There are no Marlboro menthols..closes I gt was Cravens or Kools that costed I think 9.00 a pack...compared to the states buy one get one free...There were asian guys that drove their vans around and sold me a carton of 555 for 70 dollars everyone bought them like hot cakes... in the states they were only 35-40 a carton. It's a waste of money and it will deprive you of years from your children. Life is short...theres no need to make it any shorter.... smoking was the worse mistake I ever made...it didnt benefit me at all couldnt even recall a time that it actually gave me a buzz. Im glad I quit....

[matrixxx]

from upi.com

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Sept. 2 (UPI) -- A new smoking law in Vancouver, Canada, bans lighting up in 244 parks and various other outdoor public places, but not everyone is complying.

Kathryn Tatchell, a lung-cancer patient, and her two daughters breathed in secondhand smoke at Kitsilano Beach Wednesday -- the day the law went into effect, the Toronto Globe and Mail reported.

"That does bother me. Just a few days ago at the beach someone started smoking, so I had to move," said Tatchell.

"Secondhand smoke is an invasion of your own health. If people were respectful, then that law wouldn't have to exist," said Tatchell's daughter, Georgia Graham, who lives in Vancouver and supports the smoking ban.

Smokers, however, were the exception in the city's parks the first day of the ban, the Globe and Mail reported.

Those who violate the law, passed unanimously by the Vancouver Park Board in April, face a $250 fine, the newspaper said.

"We are there to make sure that all Vancouverites, and even visitors, are able to come down and have a reasonable expectation that they can enjoy the parks, beaches, playgrounds and not have their health put in harm's way," said Park Board Commissioner Aaron Jasper.

"This is about public health, and your right to smoke should not have an impact, or should not prevent other people from coming down and using that same space. It's about helping smokers realize that their habit and their activity is putting their neighbors, their friends, their families in harm's way," said Jasper.





Not because i want 2 add my 2 cents 2 this thread, but my problem is this, what do people do when every house hold in Canada and the USA have 3 or more cars per house hold. Like uv got dad, mom, sis, and brother and they all got their own vehicle, aren't they worried @ all about all that Carbonoxide that they evaporating into our Atmoshere, and all them new Borns that r breathing all that sh** in when mom r taking them out 4 a stroll in their vehicle or their buggy. So the point i'm trying 2 make here is people seem 2 be fretting over small stuff when there's bigger and worse things 4 ur Health that they're should be more worried about in life, don't u agree? I mean this is just 1 thing that i'm mentioning here, i can go on and on about the different things that r no good 4 people's Health instead of a cigarette, but if i did that this conversation would turn into a Novel, rite?? I hate smoke 2, but that's face it there's alot worse out there that they should be Banning instead of a lousy smoke, i think if their would be a Poll set up i think we would all be surprised of the outcome of it.

[dasher108]

Awesome! I think this is great!

I hope my city adopts the same law soon

[The Cobra]

Laws laws laws-------we don`t need any more laws -----maybe just a little more common sense and courtesy would do the trick. Maatrix is right----you could find something toxic in just about anything---look in the case of water, they couldn`t dump on bottled water so they dump on the plastic bottle, proving something bad can be found in just about any situation if you look hard enough. Leave the smoking areas to the smokers of choice and keep the smoke away from kids who have no choice but to inhale.


BTW----I`d hate to own a bar in Vancouver, there goes a lot more business

[zdarc]

I was there on weekend and people spark up a joint while walking on the street but cannot light up up a cigarette in public. strange laws

[johnny cash]

Anywhere you go, you have no choice. Politicians are just in place for you to think you have rights, they tell you everything will just be fine. Folks you have no rights, forget the politicians, you have owners, they own you and what ever they chose todo, it's that way and that's it, jmo!

[The Cobra]

I think what bothers me most about this law and those like it---is that it`s a start. I don`t like the term "public" cause it`s definition is too mandible depending on who wants to use it and for what.
I can just see what`s coming---and some idiot will push the matter you can be sure of it. Try this scenario---you`re smoking a butt on your patio in your own back yard---however your smoke gets caught up in the breeze and wafts over to your non-smoking neighbor`s yard and he sues you. Sound far fetched? I`m betting someone tries it before long---if he wins it`s a precident set to nail you for smoking in the privacy of your own yard. It`ll happen.

[lpinoy]

Expanded Smoking in Public Places Law Now in Effect
On December 8, 2005, Washington became the 5th state to implement a comprehensive statewide law prohibiting smoking in all indoor public places and workplaces including restaurants, bars, taverns, bowling alleys, skating rinks, and non-tribal casinos. All Washington residents have the right to breathe clean air. The comprehensive smoking law protects families, children, workers, and the elderly from secondhand smoke.

This State law help me to quit smoking....

[The Cobra]

Expanded Smoking in Public Places Law Now in Effect
On December 8, 2005, Washington became the 5th state to implement a comprehensive statewide law prohibiting smoking in all indoor public places and workplaces including restaurants, bars, taverns, bowling alleys, skating rinks, and non-tribal casinos. All Washington residents have the right to breathe clean air. The comprehensive smoking law protects families, children, workers, and the elderly from secondhand smoke.

This State law help me to quit smoking....

Now this is a law I`d support-----indoors is the key word here. We`ve had that law in Windsor for a couple years now---I was a smoker when I supported it and would support it again today as a non-smoker. Bars etc built outdoor patios etc as smoking areas and were still somewhat successful at it. No way do people have to breathe someone else`s smoke in a trapped environment. And please let no one mention---"tell them to stay home"----non smokers have the right to go in any public forum without being subjected to someone else`s poisonous fumes. Any law prohibiting outdoor use is the major problem to me.

[dorramide7]

Lawmakers (politicians) worry about 2 things------getting elected again and which lobby pays the most for the free ride these guys get. Sure laws are important but let`s not forget who makes these laws---the politicians.....and let`s not forget who put these clowns in place to make these laws----we did. All in all it`s us that have the power---we have the ultimate lobby in our hands...their jobs!! If your local or provincial MPP voted for this tad of absurdity let him know how you feel and that his free ride is almost done----if he hears from enough of you I`m guessing he`ll have a change of heart.

i smoked for 7 years and quit. been 8 or 9 years now not real sure and you all know that reformed smokers are the worst when it comes to smoking but i for one am glad that law has come to be and i just wish it would come to be world wide. it stinks, it looks ridiculous and it kills.

[chickenman]

glad we see eye to eye. the one i hate the most is i see a mom and dad smoking in the front seat of a car and one or two kids in the back with all the windows up. some day im gonna see this and flip out and kick some smokin ass

There is a town next to mine in Nova Scotia Canada that has a law that fines people who smoke in a car with a child who is under 18 years of age. My town it is against the law to smoke in any recreation park or facility or within 10 feet of any buildings doors. Now they are working on a smoking ban on any public place.

[The Cobra]

There is a town next to mine in Nova Scotia Canada that has a law that fines people who smoke in a car with a child who is under 18 years of age. My town it is against the law to smoke in any recreation park or facility or within 10 feet of any buildings doors. Now they are working on a smoking ban on any public place.

I was just reading a piece in the Windsor paper about that very thing---banning smoking in outdoors recreation centres like baseball parks etc----great idea to me. As far as adults smoking in the car with minor kids in it---they should be nailed for child abuse. JMO
However....the "any public place" is too vague and I wouldn`t support it.

[nada233]

I was just reading a piece in the Windsor paper about that very thing---banning smoking in outdoors recreation centres like baseball parks etc----great idea to me. As far as adults smoking in the car with minor kids in it---they should be nailed for child abuse. JMO
However....the "any public place" is too vague and I wouldn`t support it.

that law also was put in practice here in saskatchewan ,canada,but now lets put this twist ,we worry about health issues like that is correct ,but what about ,planes ,buses ,and other motor viechles that polute,look in your streets and in pick hours the exaust going and we breathe that dont see people putting much efforts on stopping that lol,we are constantly bombarded by pollution and get government take a more strong approach with smoking ,but I agree drinking and driving ,is just as hard on the system and yet alcohol is easy accessable ,so is more of a conflict of interest than nothing else.War like middle east ,1000 of planes flying continiously and bombs ,fires you name it where was the consern for health ,this things makes me go humm~well even though I dont agree with the law cause is actually stop freedome of choice by peoples we know we are a minority as a smoker,but what is next telling us when to have xxx,eat ,etc.
there is more danger in a bbq stake than is in a smoke,now the problem has become the chimical added to ciggarretes rather than the smoke it self,so may be stop the additive to it cause that is where the main problem is.just my 2 cents.

[Terryl]

MMMM making laws against people doing something that they are addicted too that the government can stop in one quick stroke of a pen is baffling to me.

Smoking is an addiction, it has an addictive drug in it called nicotine, some can quit some are weak and severely addicted and cant, they should make it a prescriptive medicine that only a Doctor can prescribe to those that are currently addicted to, with no new prescriptions available to those that may feel the need to start. (our younglings)

This problem can’t be resolved by taking away the rights and freedoms of the citizens, (if I want to sit outside and smoke I can, I have the same right to sit in a publicly owned park or other public place as those that don’t smoke) it needs to be stopped at the source.

How?

It would have to start at the beginning by paying the tobacco farmer to switch over to something else like corn or soybeans for fuel, (or their families will starve) retrain the workers at the tobacco possessing plant to do other jobs, (or their families will go with out food) take the tobacco company’s off the national stock exchange’s and tell the stock holders to buy into green technology (or their retirements are gone from 401K’s to 101K’s, some know what that’s like) then tell big tobacco to take a hike, get out of the control of our government or wind up in jail for corruption.

This would take time but telling someone who pays city, county, state and federal taxes that he/she cant sit on the park bench that his/her taxes paid for and waist their lives (it’s their choice) is wrong, the best thing to do would be create a smoking/non smoking section, that way we all have a choice, till all the smokers have died out and no new ones have been addicted to something that should never been discovered.


My 2 cents worth, sorry too much coffee. (another addiction)

[ft@t@lk™]

I agree Terryl....if they are so concerned with our health, why not make it outright illegal?

because the gov likes to reap the taxes....hypocrite it is; while they're at it, emissions from cars and trucks and planes should also be restricted in public lol; not that it would work very well...he he

[The Cobra]

MMMM making laws against people doing something that they are addicted too that the government can stop in one quick stroke of a pen is baffling to me.

Smoking is an addiction, it has an addictive drug in it called nicotine, some can quit some are weak and severely addicted and cant, they should make it a prescriptive medicine that only a Doctor can prescribe to those that are currently addicted to, with no new prescriptions available to those that may feel the need to start. (our younglings)

This problem can’t be resolved by taking away the rights and freedoms of the citizens, (if I want to sit outside and smoke I can, I have the same right to sit in a publicly owned park or other public place as those that don’t smoke) it needs to be stopped at the source.

How?

It would have to start at the beginning by paying the tobacco farmer to switch over to something else like corn or soybeans for fuel, (or their families will starve) retrain the workers at the tobacco possessing plant to do other jobs, (or their families will go with out food) take the tobacco company’s off the national stock exchange’s and tell the stock holders to buy into green technology (or their retirements are gone from 401K’s to 101K’s, some know what that’s like) then tell big tobacco to take a hike, get out of the control of our government or wind up in jail for corruption.

This would take time but telling someone who pays city, county, state and federal taxes that he/she cant sit on the park bench that his/her taxes paid for and waist their lives (it’s their choice) is wrong, the best thing to do would be create a smoking/non smoking section, that way we all have a choice, till all the smokers have died out and no new ones have been addicted to something that should never been discovered.


My 2 cents worth, sorry too much coffee. (another addiction)

You said it all in one sentence my old friend------"control of our gov`t" whether it be thru a lobby or tax revenues the politicians will always have their pocket empty and open for business to the first paying lobby that comes their way.

[tinbinder]

Good idea but then what about alchol,it seems to me that they want to pass laws that requires no work to inforce.