Time for a whinge. This time it is about another kind of whinger: the smoker. Whilst I appreciate that nicotine addicts must be feeling harried by the recent wave of smoking bans, it doesn't half get my hackles up when I hear or read their complaints.
The offending arguments usually go thus: "Blasted nanny state telling us what we can and can't do! I should be allowed to do whatever I want! Froth, froth, foam!" I find it scary that even supposedly intelligent people, such as columnists in national newspapers, come out with this guff. They describe smoking as if it is a hobby, merely a pleasant thing to do, when actually it is an addiction. They talk as if smoking were a human right, and neglect to consider other peoples' desire for simple things like breathing clean air and smelling nice. Intervening when one person's activities impinge upon the freedoms of another is not nannying, but is exactly what a government ought to do more often.
Whilst I feel for those poor, shivering souls huddled outside pub doorways in a sad little cloud of toxins, I cannot express my joy at the revolution in my own social experience. The pub is now a nice place to go, and in combination with the death of the 11 o'clock curfew, the ban has turned "going for a pint" into a pleasant and civilized way to spend time with my friends. I am therefore in full support of the ban. This does not, however, imply any kind of moral judgement on smokers, and I would fight for a smoker's right to smoke in their own home.
The more thoughtful smokers of my acquaintance are phlegmatic about the ban. They accept that smoking is an addiction and does have a negative effect on the people around them, and they understand that this is why it needs to be stopped in indoor, public spaces. They agree that smoking is bad for the health and that people should be encouraged to quit. They do not see all this as an attack on their personal freedom.
Nobody likes to be told they are in the wrong. I reckon the whinging smokers are merely reacting in an emotive way, feeling told off for their addiction and responding defensively, when they should be thoughtful. I wouldn't mind, but if those wrong headed values are spread about, it encourages people to continue smoking, which will encourage pubs to find ways around the ban – more covered, outdoor spaces with those awful, wasteful outdoor heaters – and even encourage people to reverse the ban.
Asking people not to smoke in certain places is not an attack on their freedom, any more than smoking around me was an attack on mine.
