Poll: Ban Smoking at State Parks?

john davidson July 16, 2012 at 10:31 pm

Actually JIM CROWE laws were left intact after the 14th amendment was ratified and its why smoking ban laws are still legal even though they too like Jim Crowe segregate and ban people from society. Its a simple part of the equal protection clause, ie due process, many if youve got the votes you can do anything regardless of what protections you thought existed anywhere!

john davidson July 16, 2012 at 10:35 pm

Sure you can toss peelings around or even broken glass. Its why we have litter laws,simply enforce the laws already on the books no need for bans at all wouldnt you agree!

Mary Anne Looby July 16, 2012 at 11:23 pm

Arthur, I agree that you have the right to non polluted air. However a State park is a big place and if you are bothered by it you should move. I am not a smoker, but it is getting nuts the way it is being banned when we have so much polution in our air from industry.

Mary Anne Looby July 16, 2012 at 11:25 pm

Excellent idea Brian! I agree with you completly.

Zach Lindsey July 17, 2012 at 12:21 am

I'm a pretty big hippie. I pick up cigarette butts along the trail when I'm walking. I also pick up wrappers to granola bars, empty bottles of Gatorade ... I even picked up a McDonalds bag once. Should we ban all these things from parks as well? Because, honestly, even if Mr. Davidson is wrong (and I doubt he is), a Gatorade bottle is a hell of a lot worse. Maybe the parks could just attempt to educate users a little better.

D. Wag July 17, 2012 at 12:44 am

Smokers should eat their butts...you guys like the taste so much...have some more!!

Melissa Garland July 17, 2012 at 01:23 am

When I go to a state park to enjoy the fresh air and outdoorts, it is ruined by smelling other people's smoke. I agree that it is nice to have trash cans to dispose of trash, but just like the person who carries their dog poop in a bag until it can be disposed of, smokers should have the same courtesy.

Just Sick and Tired July 17, 2012 at 01:31 am

Local and state government is corrupt, our higher educational system is now best known for raping young boys, the States finances are a mess so what do politicians come up with to distract us, a favorite passtime, beat up the smoker! Tune in next month.....beat up the fat kid, let's ban McDonald wrappers in state parks, and newspapers, ban newspapers and there would be less trash and people won't realize that our politicians are incompetent except when it comes to ripping the taxpayer off.

john davidson July 17, 2012 at 01:48 am

Passive Aggressive Personality Disorder | Peace and Healingwww.peaceandhealing.com/psychology/.../passive-aggressive/Cached
You +1'd this publicly. Undo What is the treatment of Passive Aggressive Personality Disorder? ... One of the goals of therapy is to try to promote self-confidence in these individuals by ... Acting out is frequent in terms of verbal assaults and then rationalized away that it was out of humor or “just a joke.” In reality the intent was clear harm and possible humiliation of another party.These individuals have extreme difficulty with confrontation, and do not no do well with their behavior being pointed out. This cycle is repetitive and part of this reason is due to the fact they find someone to fill their need for sympathy. Some of these characteristics are also found in individuals with borderline personality disorder, as well as antisocial and avoidant personality disorders. http://www.peaceandhealing.com/psychology/personality-disorders/passive-aggressive/

tamarya July 17, 2012 at 02:50 am

I do not like going to stores getting coughed and sneezed on by other lazy customers that are too lazy to cover their mouths, so can we ban disgusting people from the public too? It is pretty bad more germs float around a store than they do in a school.

tamarya July 17, 2012 at 02:53 am

So you saying when you leave the park Common Sense, you do not get into your vehicle and drive away, because if I am not mistaken a car has an exhaust that does not exactly produce water into the air.

tamarya July 17, 2012 at 03:00 am

Do not drive your car if you want pristine air, get on your 2 feet and make your kids use theirs and you will also help the environment, do not knock others when you just admitted in your comment you contribute to air pollution.

tamarya July 17, 2012 at 03:02 am

Oh yeah and John'd comment made me think of something, so you mean you were one of the nice peaceful people on the 4th not using fireworks for your children? Because if you were using them, those make the air alot more filthier than a cigarette.

tamarya July 17, 2012 at 03:52 am

Okay I will add one thing here, to the ones saying throw cigarette butts in a trash can, have you never ever been taught fire safety? You do not put a cigarettw butt in with paper. You normally use what is called an ashtray or those fancy containers they use for cigarettes butts and hot ashes and will not burn. The ones that throw cigarettes butts in trash cans cause some nice fires, then you ould complain your parks burned. Give smokers the same courtesy you would like, or do not expect courtesy from us, because we will complain about everything you do. Some people do not understand treat others as you would like to be treated because they sure fail to give people respect because they smoke. Like one said, take a look around smokers are not the only litter bugs, when you find food containers and wrappers everywhere also. So you want our cigarettes banned do not eat food in the parks either because you litter food containers and food also draws wildlife.

brian July 17, 2012 at 11:09 am

I can't believe you are trying to justify your littering by saying 1) you don't want to start a fire or, 2) everybody else litters, or 3) don't criticize smokers or we'll start criticizing things you do.
Please.

tamarya July 17, 2012 at 12:52 pm

You are missing the point, a majority of smokers do not litter. Everyone complains about cigarette butts all over that I have yet to see. We used to live on mountain and schoeneck rd in macungie and it was amazing to see the food wrappers and containers in our front yard, never saw cigarette butts though and never caught the people throwing the stuff out. Just like you get shopping carts at the store you find either snotty tissues, grocery lists, store flyers all crumbled up in the carts. Sounds like we need to focus on littering garbage over cigarette butts. Unless I am missing these places where people litter butts all over leaving a huge mess.

tamarya July 17, 2012 at 12:53 pm

As for starting a fire, I do what my grandmother used to do if at a place like that, have a cup with a little water in put the butts in there where they will go out then throw the cup in the garbage when done.

Kay Kreitz July 17, 2012 at 02:11 pm

Another freedom taken away. Think about it folks. What will you say when marshall law is imposed on YOU?

captrick56 July 17, 2012 at 06:38 pm

Tamarya,
Actually, car exhaust (as any internal combustion engines) does produce water into the air at the rate of 1 gal of water produced for each gal of gasoline burned. Don't believe it? Watch any car exhaust on a cool morning and there's a puddle under the exhaust pipe. Watch a car pull away from a stop light and sometimes it just pours out of the exhaust pipe. It also collects in the oil pan as combustion blow by gets past the rings and into the oil and the water condenses. During the war, the Germans used to condense, collect and store the water from the exhaust of their Zeppelins to maintain the weight and balance of the aircraft so they wouldn't have to vent gas to maintain neutral buoyancy. Just thought you'd be interested. Any more brilliant observations on your part?

tamarya July 17, 2012 at 09:34 pm

Yeah I know water is mixed captrick56, however it is not all water if it was nothing but water coming out your exhaust you could start your vehicle in an enclosed garage and remain in there for a long period and nothing would happen. However truthfully something will happen, my uncle lost hs brother because he did that.

sherry July 17, 2012 at 11:53 pm

Too many bans on cigarettes. I'm not a smoker but really it is out of hand.
YES--littering is a problem, whether cigarettes or some other item discarded in parks. As much as I dislike smoking, I don't want it banned for others. Isn't that what America is about?.....Freedom

Arthur July 18, 2012 at 12:08 am

Freedom does not mean freedom to impose on others. Smokers impose their smoke on people who do not want to breathe it. That is an action of imposition. Non-smokers are doiing nothing to the air therefore they are not imposing anything on anyone. They are simply passively breathing.

Ann Edwards July 18, 2012 at 01:55 pm

i too am only trying to "passively breath" every time I have to be next to someone who has drenched themselves in a perfume product. It is not only an imposition, but for someome who has allergies and sinus problems is a health hazard. Lets then ban all perfume products.

Mary Anne Looby July 18, 2012 at 05:08 pm

Since we are going off track a little bit, I would like to share something that happened to me a few years ago. I was in the hospital for knee surgery and a number of very kind friends sent flowers. One of the bouquets contained the Asiatic Lillies that are so fragrant. After having them in the room for about 4 hours the nurse came in and asked if they could be taken home. A few of the girls at the nurses station(outside my room) could not handle the smell. Of course they went home. So if you have someone in the hospital you might want to remember not to send "fragrant flowers". As much as I love them, I would not want to make anyone sick.

Angie Haas July 19, 2012 at 01:27 pm

You have good points. "Give smokers the same courtesy you would like", "treat others as you would like to be treated" & "a majority of smokers do not litter". Shame you can't apply the same logic to skateboarders. You evidentally don't like being stereotyped by smoking but will stereotype skateboarders as thugs. Interesting

tamarya July 19, 2012 at 01:44 pm

How can you apply smoking to kids that will wind up hit and killed by a car eventually. And nowhere did I claim they were thugs, and apparently you have no problem with them possibly getting hit, however nyou would be bothered by my cigarette. Yup makes sense to me.

tamarya July 19, 2012 at 01:48 pm

And you don't see me arguing at meetings to take them off of the street, just don't go suing me if one rides in front of my car and gets hit.

Angie Haas July 19, 2012 at 02:07 pm

Where do you see in my comment anything about your smoking? You have the right to smoke just as they have a right to skate. I am just pointing out your hipocritical views. As for suing, again you are generalizing everyone. Not everyone is sue happy. Courtesy & respect should be shown to everyone not just ones who share your views. I would appreciate if people would stop putting labels on everyone & look at them as individuals. You smoke, I do not. I don't think you are disgusting or a litter bug, because I do not know you. You do not know all these kids. Some smokers litter, some skaters are disrepectful.

tamarya July 19, 2012 at 02:44 pm

Angie my point would be like if I did know you and was on your property with my kids and my kids were doing something where they could hurt themselves and you told them to stop. You would have every right to do that because it would affect you, the same way if I would be in an accident with those kids it would affect me, even if not sued, a highlight of my day would not be a child bouncing off my car. We are talking safety there. People complaininng about cigarettes would be like if I would complain about fireworks, I have hated those things since a child but I am not going to sit and argue them to be banned. I do not like people overloading with perfume, but I am not going to fight perfume to be banned and that basically causes sinus issues like for some a cigarette would cause. We are comparing safety to nit picking with the 2. I do agree courtesy is a fix for everything, including the cigarettes, perfume and fireworks even. However some people give no courtesy for either, but we deal with the last 2 things I stated, just not the cigarettes.

tamarya July 19, 2012 at 02:49 pm

Oh yeah and my point with the food, food draws wildlife, which can sometimes cause attacks with wildlife, now you got someone bit by wildlife plus then you have people complaining when the wildlife gets killed. However banning food from a park would be ridiculious, people usually go to a park to picnic, however it still could cause a problem.