Anti-smoking Zealotry......

I think that smoking is a disgusting and dirty habit and I do not smoke cigarettes myself. I do occasionally smoke a cigar when I want to feel awful the next day, though.

The pendulum of opinion does swing, even in Hong Kong, and new legislation restricting smoking in public places is sorely needed here. I find it unbelievably rude when eating to have some thoughtless slob light up a cigarette at the next table the split-second that they finish their meal. I think that their smoke degrades the taste and flavors of the rest of my meal. There is absolutely no place for smokers in restaurants that focus on good food and I am amazed that any of them allow it.

An editorial piece in the Standard outlines the new law and argues that it goes too far.

One group of Hong Kong zealots is about to score a considerable victory and they have a popular cause, bolstered by some reasonable arguments, but because they are zealots they go too far and in so doing manage to discredit otherwise laudable objectives.

The zealots in question belong to an outfit called Clear the Air, which is part of the anti-smoking lobby that will soon be celebrating the passage of a bill that bans smoking in all public places and will contain no wavers for places such as bars, karaoke lounges and mahjong parlors. And they have ensured that only a very limited grace period will be tolerated before enforcement begins.

Mr. Vines argues that his restaurants already have a no smoking policy but his workers don't really need it for their health since they are all already heavy smokers. Huh? What about the other customers or the handful of workers that don't smoke?

Mr. Vines, you are disingenuous since your arguments do not take Hong Kong reality into account and your use of the word 'zealots' misinterprets the problem to meet your narrowly defined needs. I think that you need to use the word 'zealots,' a word that is commonly used as a reference to religious fundamentalists, particularly those that tend towards violence, oppression and fanatical obedience, as a put down to the people promoting these rules since your arguments against the rules are so very weak. Attempting to lower the Clean Air people down attempts to raise your arguments on a relative basis, Mr. Vines but all you do achieve is to cheapen the debate by using this type of language. Why don't you just call them mini-Hitlers? It would actually have some historical truth since Hitler was one of the first to restrict smoking in his drive to achieve racial purity and promote the strength of the Aryan race.

Many times in the past, I have had problems with many restaurants and their smoking policy. I have watched people light up in no smoking sections right under clearly marked signs. Even in no smoking sections, some restaurants provide ashtrays...what is this for? Chewing gum? And workers are loath to confront smokers that light up, even in no smoking sections and typically offer to move me and not ask the offenders to cease or move themselves. And the smoking customers are only a small proportion of the restaurant attending public, but yet they are treated with deference as if they have every right to behave any way that they feel fit. Try sitting next to a table of chain smoking PRC Chinese and see if you enjoy your meal. Its not like tables in Hong Kong are 40 feet apart and smoke does not bother the other patrons. Try going to a noodle shop for a quick meal. I guarantee that someone will light up with in 5 feet of you when you are trying to eat.

Smokers are the rude ones and their thoughtless actions concerning the others around them have caused legislation to restrict their actions and give some teeth to the new laws. Without such severe restrictions, very few of the thoughtless smokers would think twice on lighting up in public places. Mr. Vines, I commend your 'zealots' for their courageous promotion of what they think is right. And now it is on people like you and the thoughtless smokers to prove that a different course of action is appropriate.

Mr. Vines also adds that smoking restrictions apply to bars. Last year, when I visited New York and was meeting my friend, I sat in a local bar for a drink while I waited. Something was just not right as I sat there enjoying my brew. I watched a game on TV and then realized what was missing was the fog and stench of cigarettes that was so pervasive in those environments in the past.

Although I agree that restricting smoking in bars is going a bit too far, maybe this is the type of medicine that Hong Kong needs to send a message to so many smokers here that neither heed the rules or think about their actions. Maybe the pendulum of opinion will swing back and the rules will be loosened in some venues. Until then, I welcome the new rules.