Austinist Debates the Smoking Ban So You Don't Have To, Part II: Against

Let's face the plain truth about human existence: No one likes to be told what to do. Places like Austin, in particular, where there is an educated and motivated populace, send out a resounding "go f*&^ yourself" when ordered around. As Austinist is fond of telling people, this is Austin, but it's still Texas. That is why the new smoking ban is so disingenuous: it goes against fundamental beliefs we hold as a community, even if it would make us all healthier in the long run.

Let's not forget, in addition to Austin's traditional municipal opposition against so-called "moral" or "ethical" bans, the economic damage that would be visited upon local business owners. According to accounts from around the country, a municipal smoking ban visits a 30% - 60% decrease in business for 6 months to a year. How many locally owned business can take that? A 30% reduction for 6 months can be devastating, especially in a business that is already at the whims of huge monetary swings - already, a bad day at a bar can mean losing a significant amount of money. This added financial problem, on top of the combination of maintenance costs associated with the myriad problems that these often 100 year old buildings with 80 year old plumbing cause, as well as the other associated costs with running a bar (insurance, TABC tax, etc.) leads us to believe that at least several businesses will find themselves in ruin over this "short" 6 month period.

Remember that 6 months of bad business is the very minimum amount of time all other cities under a smoking ban faced. And remember also that a larger portion of Austin's economy is based in these institutions than in other cities. The issue should not be whether or not the ban will run all bars out of business. It should be whether it will run any of our small businesses into the ground.

Many would say that this is not a civil liberties issue, since smokers can just walk outside and puff away. Were our lives only that simple! Any law that infringes on your personal choices is a civil liberties issue. Smoking is a legal activity, and we see no reason why it cannot be left up to the owners of these establishments, and to market forces, to set reasonable smoking policies. Bars are already able to specify that smoking is not allowed, should they want to provide a non-smoking alternative to their patrons. Why is it necessary to mandate that no bar can choose to allow a smoking option?

And how is 2nd hand smoke oppressive to non-smokers who choose to be in a smoking venue? Must their be a law to protect the person who, not being a fan of smoking, decides to stand, of all the places in the entire world, in a smoke filled bar? It was their choice to be there, no one else's. If it is that upsetting, then they are in the wrong place. You don't go to a synagogue to sing Christian prayer, and you don't go to Emo's to have a fresh, healthy experience.

Keeping Austin weird involves more than just t-shirts. It requires a diligence by everyone within in the community to remain involved and understand how these issues affect us all. Most importantly, it requires an understanding that while outside forces, such as public smoking, may not be beneficial to us personally, forcing their removal, for our own personal benefit, has negative effects that ripple across the entire community. The limiting of freedoms is frequently a slipperly slope, and the passing of the smoking ban could indicate the tip of a larger, more scary iceberg. We believe that it is our duty to stand against laws that encroach upon our personal liberties, even if we don't particularly support the specific liberty being limited. Because if we don't stand up for our freedoms, they're that much easier to take away.

Besides, in the end, no one likes to go to a suck bar anyway.

Contact the author of this article or email tips@austinist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By Reed Becker in News on May 6, 2005 1:38 PM 0 Comments

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Andrew Spark

Making smoking a more-distasteful behavior than it already is is the only fair and honest way to stop it. The smoker’s surcharge is another step on that road.

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davidnunez

A two-second moment-of-zen video of said suck bar from the austinist meetup last thursday can be found here:

Austinist Meetup

Reed Becker

Also, this was a colaborative effort on the part of Ben and I, because I am a little bitch, but not afraid to admit it.

I to pressed the post button too early, Juice.

Reed Becker

You ever heard of Opal Divine's Penn Field location? That's a suck bar that you can go too, and still smoke! I think this is an issue every Austinite has to struggle with. I goes to the heart of our belief in individual freedoms, and yet totally against our progressive stance on health and health care.

But we can all agree that LIGHT RAIL IS SOMETHING WE CAN ALL VOTE FOR, and that the Austin American Statesman sucks balls for endorsing George W. Bush in the last election. Also, these issues, interestingly enough, are less contentious for the anything but average Austin voter.

dakotasmith

Where might I find one of these 'suck bars?'

Also, I think it's a stupid law. Much stupider than seatbelts and motorcycle helmets. Less stupider than the drinking age being higher than the voting age (we have to get at least one election out of potentially sober youth).

The one area I am filled with inner turmoil (if it were outer turmoil, I wouldn't be filled, just stepping in it) is the people who work in the bars. I do think they should not be forced to be around smoke. Commonly, people will say, "Oh, they choose to work in a bar, so they should just expect it," and I agree that they do work in a bar, but how many Austinist readers have a job they chose, and how many have a job they just fucking took because they needed money to buy cigarettes? Exactly.

Justin

I hit "submit" before I meant to.

Thank you Reed for making these points in your post. I can't stand when "vote no" people fail to argue this aspect of the debate.

Justin

I could care less about all this talk about the rights of smokers and non-smokers. Both need to shut the hell up and quit whining. That's right, I said it. Shut up. Both sides. I don't care if you hate coming home smelling like smoke. I don't care if you want to kill yourself with a cancer stick.

The only thing I care about is the government (local or federal) having ZERO place telling business owners they dont have the right to decide for themselves when its comes to letting THIER PAYING CUSTOMERS partake in a LEGAL activities on THEIR PROPERTY. I don't like the doors this type of ordinance opens up.

Andrew

If this town wants to live off the image of a hip, live music town, then it should damn well listen to the people who have and will continue to fuel that image. People who support live music (i.e. not just a Willie concert once a year) tend to smoke more than average, and a smoking ban seems like a smack in the face to the very people at the core of Austin's image.

I hear a lot of people say that they'll start going to shows if they're non-smoking. Hell, I'd probably go out more often as well. But for every well-intentioned "maybe," there is somebody else who fuels this town by smoking their brains out at multiple shows every night. SxSW didn't spawn in Austin because it's healthy. Bands don't move to Austin for the sweetly scented nightclub air. Those things happen because of the people who live for the bars and the music. And if live music isn't worth breathing in a little smoke, then that ain't you.

Smoking is dirty. It's unhealthy. It is unabashedly not sanitized for your protection. Take it away from Austin bars, and we're just one more step down the sordid path of sameness that leads to a land of safe and well-intentioned boredom.