University of Louisiana prepares smoke- and tobacco-free policy

[Hammer58]

So in today's America you can smoke a joint or smoke a pole but you can't smoke tobacco.

[SlappyCajun]

So in today's America you can smoke a joint or smoke a pole but you can't smoke tobacco.

You probably can't smoke a joint on campus either.

[cajunfan337]

I agree with a ban on smoking at UL. I disagree on banning smoke in all bars. I believe each bar should be able to choose their smoking policy.

What's wrong with stepping a few feet to burn one down outside?

[Big Buds]

So in today's America you can smoke a joint or smoke a pole but you can't smoke tobacco.

I believe the word you are looking for is bowl...not pole. As in the bowl of a pipe.

[Hammer58]

I believe the word you are looking for is bowl...not pole. As in the bowl of a pipe.

No, I meant smoke a pole.

[Big Buds]

No, I meant smoke a pole.

I see, said the blind man.

[GeauxCajuns]

What terrible examples you're using. We're not talking about a guy lighting up in a classroom. That's already illegal and deservedly so. We're talking about making it illegal for a guy sitting on a bench in the quad to light up a cigarette even though no one could possibly be bothered by it.

Banning smoking indoors is done to protect others.
Banning smoking outdoors is done to modify behavior.

That's a huge difference. I'm okay with the government using it's authority to protect others. I'm not okay with the government using it's power in an attempt to change the way people behave. That's not okay. It's not okay for a "committee" to say "I don't like the way you behave, so I'm going to pass a law/policy that forces you to behave the way I think you should behave." If that's not a blatant form of tyranny I don't know what is.

But hell, I'm one of those crazy people who think we shouldn't throw people in jail for years for putting harmful substances in their body. I know I'm in the minority.

since you brought up alcohol, and no one wants to see that banned, alcohol is actually banned on campus, atleast the academic side of campus.

[Sir Cajun]

To me, this issue might be tied more to insurance premiums than modifying behavior. Companies I have worked for past & present make the claim of "smoke free" to help keep insurance cost down.

[RaginCajun77]

I'm curious to see how the University will address the use of e-cigarettes on campus, as they are not tobacco products and it is vapor not smoke.

[CajunRebel]

How can you say no one could possibly be bothered by it? Should a non-smoker not be able to sit on that bench because a smoker lit up? What about the person walking to class and has to walk through a puff of smoke? I think banning is a bit much, but there needs to be designated areas and non-smoking areas need to be policed. Those areas already exist and no one adheres to them. Who thinks banning will make a difference if it's not policed? I remember the backside of Moody hall. The only way to walk from the quad to the back door was through the smokers pit. It was disgusting.

The way I see it, that non-smoker can decide for himself whether he wants to sit on a bench with a smoker or move to the next one.

I know smoking rules aren't always enforced but that's not the fault of smokers who follow the rules. We shouldn't blame the rule followers and we certainly shouldn't make rules that punish them. The ironic thing is because the rule breakers already break the current rules, this policy will ONLY HURT those smokers who have been following the rules all these years.

[Cajun Monkee]

The way I see it, that non-smoker can decide for himself whether he wants to sit on a bench with a smoker or move to the next one.

I know smoking rules aren't always enforced but that's not the fault of smokers who follow the rules. We shouldn't blame the rule followers and we certainly shouldn't make rules that punish them. The ironic thing is because the rule breakers already break the current rules, this policy will ONLY HURT those smokers who have been following the rules all these years.

Reb, at the end of the day, smoking is inherently rude.

Was it my responsibility to wind my way down Jefferson last week during Festivale to avoid smokers? Nevermind cigarettes tend to be at eye level of a 4 or 5 year-old.

Should I not go to Cajun Walk on the chance I'll be standing somewhere when a smoker walks up and stands next to me?

If I'm sitting at a park bench and somebody sits down next to me and lights up, is it my responsibility to move?

I don't have a problem with designated smoking areas.

But the smokers on Jefferson Street last week, were just as much a pain in the butt as those little knuckleheads with their skateboards or the hipsters and their pedicabs.

[Zeebart21]

I see, said the blind man.

You have to understand my friend. Hammer, myself, Steve Bodden and our spouses had the unfortunate experience of visiting San Francisco back in September.
Long story, but it all ties in. Trust me..it all ties in. LOL

Z