A letter to the editor published (with some editing) in the National Post on January 25, 2013:
I wish I could honestly say that Jesse Kline makes a powerful argument on behalf of his puppet masters at Big Tobacco, but I can't: Invalid and illegitimate as any and all arguments condoning public smoking are, Kline's (in, B.C. crusade seeks more restrictions on outdoor smokers [Jan. 23]) definitely rank among the lamest, least eloquent and most laughable.
Take, "Three decades ago, when smoking was commonplace in airports, bars and offices, it was almost inconceivable that these areas would one day be smoke free." for example. Not so many decades ago, slavery was commonplace... and it was almost inconceivable that slavery would ever be eradicated too!
And then there's, "First it was elevators, then classrooms and workplaces..." (emphasis mine). Can you imagine? The nerve of "the tireless anti-smoking crusader" (or "anti-tobacco Nazi", as Bruce Allen calls us), wanting to breathe something other than the toxic, carcinogenic residue of somebody else's habit in an elevator!
That said, whether it's Kline's opinion or that of more eloquent and, presumably, better-paid puppets of Big Tobacco, like the Michael Siegel Kline quoted, they all conveniently overlook one minor detail: Smoking is NOT addictive!
Nicotine is the most addictive drug on the planet, but smoking is nothing more than an albeit powerful habit. With literally dozens of nicotine replacement therapies now available, there is no justification whatsoever for continuing to allow smoking in any public place, workplace or MUD (multi-unit dwelling, including apartments, condos, townhomes, etc.)... indoors or outdoors.
Errol E. Povah
President, Airspace Action on Smoking and Health