Smoking Outside the Ground - Time to be banned

[MWPP]

But if we're discussing smoking being banned, surely we can discuss the further bans that would be opened up by such a precedent. Street drinking is illegal but every Friday night thousands of drunk people stream from the MCG and onto the streets. Most will be fine but some will be violent, no doubt urged by their intoxicated state. I'd rather walk past a guy smoking a cigarette as he leaves the ground than I would a guy who's smashed drunk and potentially violent.

Other bans being opened up by such a precedent (and enforcing them) , would be a good thing! I'd rather walk past the smoker than the smashed guy too if it was only a choice between those 2 people . But it's never going to be that kind of scenario . I'd rather not have to walk past either of them

I don't think either should be banned and don't really see either as threadworthy - I think society at the moment is packed to the rafters with sooks who want anything that inconveniences or offends them to be banned. It's not the world's job to cowtow to whinging, especially when it's whinging over something that is only a mild inconvenience.

Why not ? It would make society safer /healthier
And it's way beyond simply a mild inconvenience

 

[Off The Couch]

exactly why i dont understand why smoking in public is legal. its filthy and offensive to those not participating.

It's legal because the government likes the revenue so all the whingers are going to have to just suck it up. I can't stand being around drunks, the aggressive behaviour in the main part stems from that drunkeness as the game progresses and when leaving the ground, I hate the smell of alcohol as it drips down my back as drinkers return to their seats BUT that's okay because it's legal to get drunk at the football and therefore I have to put up with it.

Amusingly for those throwing figures around

http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/content/2010/s2991780.htm

"Research by a health lobby puts the cost of alcohol abuse in Australia at $36 billion a year, that's more than double previous estimates.

The increase is due in part to the survey taking into account the costs of alcohol abuse on people beyond just the drinker."


And those figures are 10 years old.
The Hypocrisy of people is laughable

 

[MWPP]

It's legal because the government likes the revenue so all the whingers are going to have to just suck it up. I can't stand being around drunks, the aggressive behaviour in the main part stems from that drunkeness as the game progresses and when leaving the ground, I hate the smell of alcohol as it drips down my back as drinkers return to their seats BUT that's okay because it's legal to get drunk at the football and therefore I have to put up with it.

Amusingly for those throwing figures around

http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/content/2010/s2991780.htm

"Research by a health lobby puts the cost of alcohol abuse in Australia at $36 billion a year, that's more than double previous estimates.

The increase is due in part to the survey taking into account the costs of alcohol abuse on people beyond just the drinker."


And those figures are 10 years old.
The Hypocrisy of people is laughable

Who's being hypocritical?
I'm all for stricter alcohol laws and more restrictions
Please make an alcohol thread if you feel strongly about it too
It isn't a matter of one or other other though
When I mentioned this earlier , someone laughably claimed that the per capita alcohol consumption being "only" 9L/year and less than it was a generation or two ago was evidence that alcohol isn't a widespread problem

 

[Off The Couch]

Who's being hypocritical?
I'm all for stricter alcohol laws and more restrictions
Please make an alcohol thread if you feel strongly about it too
It isn't a matter of one or other other though
When I mentioned this earlier , someone laughably claimed that the per capita alcohol consumption being "only" 9L/year and less than it was a generation or two ago was evidence that alcohol isn't a widespread problem

I have no interest in making an alcohol thread because I don't feel strongly enough that I would want alcohol banned because of a minority group who can't handle their alcohol - I included alcohol because it's tiresome hearing only about smoking related costs - thread needs some perspective. I don't smoke but I respect the rights of those who do and it's a security issue anyway because people aren't supposed to smoke within 4 metres of the entrance of a public building so realistically all they would need to do is extend the no smoking area to include the concourse - problem solved. Maybe the OP should write to the MCG and make this request

 

[MWPP]

I have no interest in making an alcohol thread because I don't feel strongly enough that I would want alcohol banned because of a minority group who can't handle their alcohol - I included alcohol because it's tiresome hearing only about smoking related costs - thread needs some perspective.

It isn't just smoking related costs that we're hearing about though
But it may seem like it because this thread is about smoking
Even if an alcohol ban /further restrictions aren't imposed , further taxes would be great

I don't smoke but I respect the rights of those who do and it's a security issue anyway because people aren't supposed to smoke within 4 metres of the entrance of a public building so realistically all they would need to do is extend the no smoking area to include the concourse - problem solved.

Yep, as mentioned above , if the smoke-free zone was extended to well beyond the exits , that would be acceptable

Maybe the OP should write to the MCG and make this request

If I lived in Melbourne (or Adelaide- the bridge stinks ) and attended games at the MCG/AO regularly , I'd do this. It isn't such a problem at Subi, thankfully. I'll have to see how things go at the new stadium .

 

[Chris Pelchen]

Australian adults average less than 9 litres of alcohol per person per year. Down from a peak in the 1970s of 15ish.

I don't think there really is a valid argument to increase the tax or place further restrictions - unless you can confidently aim said tax / restrictions at the acute alcohol abusing edge.

We wouldn't be a better society if Mums and Dads had to pay an extra 5 dollars in tax to pick up a bottle of wine on the way to a dinner party. In fact, unless you can ringfence non problem drinking by non problem drinkers then further taxes and restrictions should be put on ice.

they've actually become so expensive that pretty soon they're gonna be seen as a status symbol like a big cuban cigar would be lol

I only smoke after sex.
Have cut down to a pack a day since I turned 70. Bloody expensive for us pensioners.

 

[4tone]

All those pesky cigarette adverts they run these days.

Im Trying to quit have not smoked for 1 month, but FFS all the quit ads and nicorette ads are making want to lite up. Im telling these quit organisations are all part of the evil plan of the smoke companies for people to keep on smoking.

 

[Portsmeff]

is there anyone else out there that is a non-smoker, that actually doesn't mind cigarette smoke, caus I don't mind it at all. While I believe smoking cigarettes has got to be one of the most mindbogingly pointless exercises known to man, I really don't mind the smell

 

[Off The Couch]

is there anyone else out there that is a non-smoker, that actually doesn't mind cigarette smoke, caus I don't mind it at all. While I believe smoking cigarettes has got to be one of the most mindbogingly pointless exercises known to man, I really don't mind the smell

As bizzare as it sounds I think it depends on the mood - some days I'm fine with the smell but in other days it's almost gag worthy. Could be different brands - I think the stench on some people is worse than the smell of the smoke itself. Nothing like the good old smell of stale cigarettes, alcohol, urine, shit and unwashed bodies leaning over a counter talking to you first thing in the morning

 

[Play by Numbers]

It's a free country and people are free to do what they like on public property. The stadium companies do not have any legal right to dictate what you can do once you leave the stadium.

No, people are not.

Also, most stadium grounds extend beyond the actual stadium.

 

[BrewSmackerVeiny]

As bizzare as it sounds I think it depends on the mood - some days I'm fine with the smell but in other days it's almost gag worthy. Could be different brands - I think the stench on some people is worse than the smell of the smoke itself. Nothing like the good old smell of stale cigarettes, alcohol, urine, shit and unwashed bodies leaning over a counter talking to you first thing in the morning

I agree with this, it's horrible. Only noticed since I quit, I smoked for about 10 years and walked around stinking basically. I still stink but it's not smokes anymore.

 

[ExTasDeeMan]

Great thread. A+

Just for the OP, if you see someone smoking (oh heaven forbid), go up and drop your guts right next to them. There, you should be good to go.

 

[Hawkforce]

This wouldn't be a problem if Australia didn't have the stupidest restrictions on E-cigarettes.

Tobacco should be banned outright and e-cigs allowed to fill the market.

 

[aCunningPlan]

Well, once upon a time, Conservatives were all about personal freedoms and allowing people to do what they want to do without interference.

You're describing a classical liberal, not a conservative.

 

[Zeke]

You're walking around a car park with hundreds of vehicles moving around spewing out carbon monoxide. Time to ban cars outside the grounds.

Brake pad dust is worse for your lungs and almost unavoidable in built up areas... Best buy a bicycle and move to the country.

 

[Off The Couch]

Brake pad dust is worse for your lungs and almost unavoidable in built up areas... Best buy a bicycle and move to the country.

Arent the fumes from cow pats supposedly bad for you as well

 

[Zeke]

Arent the fumes from cow pats supposedly bad for you as well

We're all ****ed.

 

[Damon_3388]

You're describing a classical liberal, not a conservative.

Yeah, and Conservatism is/was a variant of Classic Liberalism.

 

[VineyIsLORD]

Yeah, and Conservatism is/was a variant of Classic Liberalism.

Lol ****en what

 

[QS]

http://acsh.org/news/2013/12/11/two...-secondhand-smoke-lung-cancer-one-seems-care/

 

[Damon_3388]

Lol ****en what

Conservative liberalism

Conservative liberalism is a variant of liberalism, combining liberal values and policies with conservative stances, or, more simply, representing the right wing of the liberal movement. It is a more positive and less radical variant of classical liberalism. Conservative liberal parties combine liberal policies with more traditional stances on social and ethical issues.

Also, in relation to Australia:

"As the etymology of our name 'Liberal' indicates, we have stood for freedom. We have realised that men and women are not just ciphers in a calculation, but are individual human beings whose individual welfare and development must be the main concern of government. We have learned that the right answer is to set the individual free, to aim at equality of opportunity, to protect the individual against oppression, to create a society in which rights and duties are recognised and made effective." - Sir Robert Menzies

"Menzies knew the importance for Australian Liberalism to draw upon both the classical liberal as well as the conservative political traditions. He believed in a liberal political tradition that encompassed both Edmund Burke and John Stuart Mill – a tradition which I have described in contemporary terms as the broad church of Australian Liberalism." - John Howard

 

[VineyIsLORD]

Conservative liberalism

Where did you get that shit? It is riddled with inconsistency

 

[hawkgal02]

http://www.afl.com.au/news/2017-08-03/get-on-the-grass-mcg-smokers-forced-off-concourse

Smokers to be moved to the grass area.

 

[Gods_Son23]

It's about time.

 

[PieLebo87]

Get ****ed.