Puppet Masters

Fascist statewide smoking ban takes effect in Alaska

Angela Krenzien
KTVA
Mon, 01 Oct 2018 19:41 UTC

Take it outside! The "Smoke-free Alaska" law went into effect Monday, ensuring smoke-free workplaces and public places across the state. The measure extends an existing ban on smoking in public workplaces to private businesses.

Gov. Bill Walker signed Senate Bill 63 into law at a ceremony at Anchorage's Lucky Wishbone restaurant in July.

More than 25 years ago, the Lucky Wishbone was the first business in Anchorage to go smoke-free on April 19, 1990.

As of Monday, under the new ban, businesses must:

Post no smoking or vaping signs in plain view at all major entrances
Remove all ashtrays
Ask anyone smoking or vaping indoors to stop and go outside

Dr. Jay Butler is the State of Alaska Chief Medical Officer and praises the ban, saying the rules are based on science, protecting Alaskans' health and save money.

"In a state that prides itself on its independence and libertarian values, this law strikes the right balance between personal freedom and personal responsibility," Butler said.

Like any new regulations, the ban has faced some pushback. A compromise is an opt-out clause which lets communities exclude themselves from the ban if residents vote for it.

Reader Comments

LindaMay ·

Outside n outta sight

· 2018-10-04T16:41:12Z

Artex · 2018-10-04T18:54:26Z

Welcome to the rest of the US, Alaska.

You seriously won't miss walking out of restaurants and bars smelling like an ashtray. Give it some time.

sbc · 2018-10-04T19:43:54Z

Artex I don't smoke, but would rather smell like an ashtray than to be subjected to breathing in everyone's personal odorants that give many people asthma attacks and chemical sensitivities.

Don't even get me started on Patchouli dirty sweaty hippies and patchouli oil smell so much worse than some cigarette smoke.

The science of the health benefits to non smokers is poorly described at best and mostly cited without context. Results are skewed by not a large enough of a cross section of individuals, and also does NOT consider other factors that could have led to the heart disease and blood pressure issues they described. Nor are there ANY long term studies about the effects of transient smoke exposure like these laws are aimed to prevent. The studies pertain only to people who are subjected to second hand smoke in a long term (hours a day) environment on a regular basis.

This leaves the argument like you stated that people don't like the smell. That is all preference and point of view. Like I said, I would rather smell a cigarette than twenty five women and ten men in the same room with too much perfume and aftershave, or ONE dirty hippy with patchouli oil.

These type of laws in my opinion are completely based off of junk science and are fully discriminatory as they do NOTHING to address the EXACT SAME HEALTH ISSUES that are completely exacerbated by different yet similar circumstances.

sbc · 2018-10-04T19:48:13Z

sbc that being said, i do not think that smoking is the healthiest, yet there ARE life long smokers who have better cardiovascular fitness than some whom NEVER smoked or breathed in second hand smoke. I am not against some anti smoking legislation, yet that legislation should ALSO address the other environmental issues that are creating the same health problems in the populace instead of only picking on the one. If everyone had never smoked i guarantee there would still be lots of lung cancer, lymphatic cancer, and cardiovascular disease since most people now days are lazy asses that try everything they possibly can to never have to break a sweat, and who eat processed food three times a day minimum.

sbc · 2018-10-04T19:36:22Z

In a state where the majority of the interior relies on wood heat and thus is exposed to fine wood smoke particulate in their homes, who run personal use smokehouses, breath in outdoor fire smoke, and sit in their cars while they warm them up in the morning it is laughable at best that they are worried about a few lungfuls of second-hand smoke.

Residue from exhaust is way worse as the particulate from it is small enough to lodge into your lungs and NEVER come back out, or pierce into your skin and stay lodged in it creating skin immune responses.

Look at cancer rates for automotive tunnel workers who are subjected to internal combustion exhaust.. You ever see the half running vehicles in Alaska that need to be hooked up to block warmers to even get going in the morning, while people sit in them and warm them up before driving?

Yep, you are screwing yourself more breathing your exhaust than inhaling a few lungs of secondhand smoke. Plus the unburnt gasoline binds to your hemoglobin and prevents it from carrying oxygen for long enough to actually suffocate you if you breathe enough of it in.

The particulate you breathe in from multiple sources every single day non stop is way worse than the (larger) particulates that you are only transiently exposed to if someone lights up around you.

It is especially worse for the most at risk also, i.e. elderly, very young, and the immune compromised. They bathe themselves in pollution all day every day, then blame second hand smoke.

This will only get worse as on top of the indoor pollution already discussed, the adults who smoke will be that more likely to smoke inside a vehicle with their kids or elderly present, or chain smoke at home where no one can escape from it.

This law will actually most likely make the young and elderly who have minimal exposure to second hand smoke receive way more exposure due to having to hide your smoking activities in a private space.

People have no critical thought skills anymore.

It seems to me - century old cherries must have value - did Washington anticipate this - that ole French - Indian war commander? If so, sons of...

Buffalo_Ken

I got my own personnel assets been "confiscated" by these mother fucker - "RSX" out of Van-Eck and mother fuck them - if you steal from a pirate...

Buffalo_Ken

I would have eaten a cherry and tried a shot of the brine too!

globalgrrl

Just another psyops/hoax, move along nothing to see here.

Fewtile

Risible, farcical & hilarious. First of all the whole science of Stonehenge is a completely farce & lie. Stonehenge was moved long ago...

VooDoo6

Puppet Masters

Fascist statewide smoking ban takes effect in Alaska

Reader Comments

Latest News

Picture of the Day

Quote of the Day

Recent Comments

Quantum Quirk