Thai Government To Expand Non-Smoking Zones

[Evergreen]

Oh dear, i wondered how long it would take befoe one of the anti-smoking brigade appeared to abuse anyone who smokes. Remember, smoking is LEGAL, it's not a criminal offence unless you smoke in any of the designated non-smoking areas. I personally find your sweeping generalisation that all smokers are not civilised and non-thinking quite ridiculous, maybe you should engage brain into 1st gear before making such sweeping statements. You never known a civilised or thinking smoker in your life??...you aint been around much then have you!!...all in the best part of forum fun of course....

Where in the World was Virginia tobacco invented?

Jamestown, Virginia by any chance??........

[Evergreen]

Before this topic degenerates into a Smokers vs Non-Smokers fight - i would like to ask you guys to stay on topic, keep your insults to yourselves (that goes for both sides of the camp!) and keep it civil.

Right, im off for a fag... brb

Me too...it's driving me to drink, ermmm, i mean smoke, oh to hel_l with it, i'll do both and be really bad and evil

[SeanMoran]

Jamestown, Virginia by any chance??........

Well, I'm certainly not game to go calling those gunslingers uncivilised, but we've been asked to stay on-topic, and discuss this supposed expansion of non-smoking zones which seems (apart from this condominium aspect) to be already fairly much in place over recent years. My personal opinion is that the Health Department might have more success in promoting the civilised and healthy practices that smoking tobacco can achieve, rather than riding roughshod over the whole of this most important component of the evolution of mankind.

[ovaltina]

I had this image of a policeman marching past a group of red-shirts who're lighting molotov cocktails & dynamites & stuff (on their peaceful demonstration), to arrest a nervous civilian guy lighting a cig in an office doorway.

Seems a bit out of perspective, when there's all these direct & pressing societal problems, to focus on a very minor and personal bad habit. Its like Thailand is trying to adopt the Scandinavian and American model for ultra clean living, but without any of the underlying social framework that should come first.

I totally agree that banning smoking in cinemas,restaurants etc. is fine, because non-smoker's paid for their tickets & meals too, but banning it in public places is idiotic, especially public places where revolutionary petrol-bombs are sailing through the air all around you.

[nisakiman]

I am a smoker. Not a heavy smoker, but I like a fag. My wife is a non-smoker, and doesn't like the smell of smoke in the house, so if I want a fag, I nip out to the balcony and smoke it out there. That is what I do here, and what I did when we were living in Bangkok. I really cannot grasp the logic of banning smoking on your balcony. Just where do these people get their ideas from?

But then the zealots don't really care about logic or reason. It would have been very easy to legislate that all bars must have either a non-smoking area or a good air extraction system. (And they are very efficient nowadays. I've sat at a table in a restaurant which had such a system in the pre-ban days, and had a cigar smoker at the next table. I wouldn't have known he was there if I couldn't see him.) That would have been the sensible way to go, as it would have catered to smokers and non-smokers alike.

But no, the zealots wish to make lepers of any who won't conform to their view. There is no reason or logic behind any of the anti-smoking legislation as it stands, no attempt at compromise, no thought for the rights of people who enjoy indulging in a perfectly legal pastime.

"We don't like it, so we'll ban it" is reason enough for the busybodies in the anti-smoking brigade.

[Evergreen]

Jamestown, Virginia by any chance??........

Well, I'm certainly not game to go calling those gunslingers uncivilised, but we've been asked to stay on-topic, and discuss this supposed expansion of non-smoking zones which seems (apart from this condominium aspect) to be already fairly much in place over recent years. My personal opinion is that the Health Department might have more success in promoting the civilised and healthy practices that smoking tobacco can achieve, rather than riding roughshod over the whole of this most important component of the evolution of mankind.

Oh it wasn't me who called smokers uncivilised...i'm a smoker myself

I totally agree with the general concept of banning smoking in certain areas, i've absolutely no problem with most of it. What i'm laughing at is how they can ban people from smoking in the comfort of their own little condos?

Overall it's a health issue really. To try and make it harder and harder for people to smoke anywhere in the hope that we'll get fed up with it and stop, resulting in better healthy lifestyle. The only thing is that it's been in force in the UK for a while now and it's been proven that it's not had the desired effect the ban was expected/supposed to have as smokers still smoke, they just go outside. In fact it turned out to be a nice little social club as you end up chatting to people you may not have spoken to inside the bar. You all gather outside for a smoke, get chatting and end up making new friends.

So the initial concept is fine, i've no problems with it but i know back home it's just not had the impact they thought it would have. Well, that's my experience of it all anyway but who knows, i'm sure plenty will have their own stories about smoking bans and the impact.

[SeanMoran]

Last night, not long after our discussion in this thread, as I lit up a mosquito coil to take out to just outside the door on the balcony, (it's carpeted in this room so the mozzie coils go just outside the door with the door open a little to reduce the fire hazard overnight while I'm sleeping), I couldn't help but wonder whether smoking of mosquito coils on balconies is still legal or not?

Considering that one smoking product is designed for inhalation respiration in a practiced manner, while the other smoking product is designed to deter if not exterminate small non-sentient animals that might be hanging around the room, it really does seem rather senseless to prohibit the former and still condone the latter.

[Thai at Heart]

Last night, not long after our discussion in this thread, as I lit up a mosquito coil to take out to just outside the door on the balcony, (it's carpeted in this room so the mozzie coils go just outside the door with the door open a little to reduce the fire hazard overnight while I'm sleeping), I couldn't help but wonder whether smoking of mosquito coils on balconies is still legal or not?

Considering that one smoking product is designed for inhalation respiration in a practiced manner, while the other smoking product is designed to deter if not exterminate small non-sentient animals that might be hanging around the room, it really does seem rather senseless to prohibit the former and still condone the latter.

Careful now, don't throw a spanner in the works of the legal definition of smoke in Thailand. I mean if they want to come up with something useful as a law, ban bplaa sauce from the inner confines of any building full stop.