FOREST #fundie forestonline.org


We don't believe that smokers have the right to light up whenever and wherever they want. We urge smokers to be considerate to those around them, especially children. We do however believe that smokers – who represent almost a quarter of the adult population – should be accommodated where it's possible to do so without inconveniencing non-smokers. Why does smoking have to be banned in ALL enclosed public places? What's wrong with well-ventilated, designated smoking rooms or, better still, pubs and bars that are licensed to allow adults to smoke so smokers and non-smokers can socialise together, if that's what they choose to do? This is about freedom of choice, which is why so many non-smokers support our work.

(...)

Good health is very important, but it's not the only factor in the pursuit of happiness. We accept the health risks associated with smoking and other tobacco products and we accept that government has a role to play educating people about those risks, but in a free society freedom of choice and market forces are equally important. The anti-smoking culture that has developed in Britain is profoundly unhealthy because it encourages some people – employers and politicians, for example – to openly discriminate against a significant minority of the population. What next? Is government going to target fat people or those who, in the eyes of evangelical health campaigners, drink too much? Oh, sorry, that's already happening, isn't it?

(...)

Of course we encourage smokers to be considerate to those around them, but many of us live and work in an urban or industrial environment full of car fumes and other pollutants, so why make such a fuss about a tiny bit of tobacco smoke that is massively diluted in the surrounding air? In the real world we all have our likes and dislikes and we have to be tolerant of other people's habits, one of which is smoking.

14 comments

Confused?

So were we! You can find all of this, and more, on Fundies Say the Darndest Things!

To post a comment, you'll need to Sign in or Register. Making an account also allows you to claim credit for submitting quotes, and to vote on quotes and comments. You don't even need to give us your email address.