What Smoking Bans are Really About

Buried in an uplifting article about the rise of illegal "smokeasies" in Seattle is this revealing story:

And it worked out that way all winter until one night in April when somebody complained to the health department. Inspectors came, saw people smoking and gave the bar a warning. One day "an older couple who wasn't a regular went out onto the patio and I guess the smoking made the guy mad," said Mark Edmison, the restaurant's general manager. "We told him how it works, and it's about survival and almost everybody in our clientele smokes. But he filed a complaint."

The other night, an apologetic waitress told a customer who wanted to smoke on the patio: "We don't allow that anymore. We got into trouble."

The guy was "mad". You know, like when someone hears about two men having sex together, or learns that a video store in their town is selling porno videos. Sure people could not have sex with people they don't want to have sex with, not buy porno videos, and not go to bars that allow smoking, but why not make the whole world cater to your personal preferences?

What really upsets me is the old couple were not regulars. Where do they get off? Oh wait, they probably don't. Which is why they're total assholes. Rent a porno and smoke a cigarette afterwards, people!