The smoking ban issue is getting a lot of attention here in North Dakota again as the nanny-staters seek to dictate to us all what sort of lawful, unobtrusive activity we can engage in on our own, privately-owned property.  The new ban being considered seeks to stop smoking in all publicly accessible places, including bars and bowling alleys.  Meaning, for all intents and purposes, that the only places in North Dakota where it would still be legal to smoke would be outdoors and in our homes.

For me, there has always been a very common-sense solution to this issue.

First, we should recognize that when we’re talking about public property (government buildings, parks, sidewalks, etc.) where all citizens have access smoking should be subject to the will of the people.  If the majority of people in a town, county or state want to ban smoking in the courthouse or in the local park, so be it.  That’s fine by me.

Second, we should recognize that when we’re talking about private property smoking should be subject to the will of the property owner.  If someone doesn’t want to be around cigarette smoke then they shouldn’t patronize private businesses that allow it.

If we’re going to pass a law about smoking, it should simply be that all businesses open to the public should have to post the smoking policies in a place where potential patrons can clearly see them before entering.

Unfortunately, this sort of common-sense solution holds no appeal to the big-government, nanny-state liberal types who aren’t going to settle for anything less than a policy that seeks to protect us all from ourselves.