Richardson smoking ban doesn't completely stink

Generally, smoking bans reek of a nanny-state attitude, a triumph of the hysterically health-conscious over the right of an individual to manage or run their property as they see fit.

The smoking ban recently passed by the city of Richardson, however, provides some reasonable caveats that don't quite put it in the "health-Nazi" club. And, while bans of this sort are generally disagreeable, Richardson's ban actually splits the difference between property rights and health concerns in an intelligent fashion.

The ban stipulates that bars that derive more than 70 percent of their revenue from the sale of alcohol can be exempt provided they make sure their air conditioner doesn't let the smoke leak into adjoining facilities and they post a sign informing potential patrons that they are about to enter a smoking establishment.

What a marvelous concept. The very notion that some people want to go to a bar and have a smoke with their beer after a long day's work, and that some business owners may want to keep those people as customers rather than the type of person that freaks out every time somebody lights up a smoke is the kind of plain, honest logic that governments at every level usually seem unable to follow.

It never makes sense to enforce smoking bans in bars, for the simple fact that drinking alcohol is, in and of itself, risky behavior. Alcohol has known health effects, and in certain situations can cause fatalities much more quickly than cigarette smoke. Also, cirrhosis is just as lethal as lung cancer. It's pointless to ban smoking in bars. If health was really the issue, alcohol would be illegal, too.

Beyond that, some places, like Main Street Liquid company on Main Street - or as I call it, "Bar" - just wouldn't be the same without the smoke.

Places like "Bar," and my other favorite establishment, a little place off of Arapaho and Plano called "Lonestar" have a certain style. The smoke, the cheap beer, the loud music (usually twangy Texas country or metal) the people (generally mellow, generally unpretentious, generally happy to leave you alone), these are all part of an ambience that would be lost if you took away the heavy cloud of smoke.

The Richardson City Council should be commended for recognizing that some people genuinely want that cloud. They go to those places because they can have a cigarette with their beer. They don't mind so much that they come home smelling like an ashtray, because they had a good time with like-minded individuals. Places like that belong to them, and it's good that the city respects that.

Unfortunately, the city failed miserably with respect to hookah bars, which are very popular on Main Street. Although they are tobacco shops, they are unlikely to derive a full 90 percent of their income from tobacco sales, as the ban says they must to be exempt.

This is especially unfortunate because the people that push for a ban like this would surely never go to such a place. Still, you win some and you lose some, and at least bar owners still have the right to make a choice about their own property.