Yes, it is time to ban smoking in St. Charles County. It is time to ban it in public places in EVERY state and county!

The government already dictates measures for our safety with seat belt laws, helmet laws, etc. Let’s take it one step further to ban smoking and ensure clean, smoke-free air in public places.

It is like hiding your head in the sand if you do not face the fact that SMOKING IS HAZARDOUS TO YOUR HEALTH! Many studies have indicated same - why can’t you believe them? I, personally. have suffered great losses due to smoking.

Yes, I avoid certain St. Charles restaurants and bars that allow smoking. After coming home from being in them, I have had to leave my clothing outside because of the stench. My breathing was also compromised after being there.

I still patronize Appleby’s or others occasionally - although there is a smoking section (at the bar). However, the measures taken to contain the smoke in all of these restaurants is not effective. And Heaven forbid we must use the restrooms - we must inevitably walk through the thickest smoke to get there.

I urge all to write to your local Alderman, Representatives and Senators to express your support of a smoking ban! The Senate Bill is SB 309 and the House Bill is HJR5.

Demand our freedom to breathe clean air in all public places!~

Is there any doubt?

1. Yes, because I seen relatives die from cancer and emphysema. That’s a miserable way to die. I don’t want you to smoke and die that way. I was a 3+ pack a day smoker when I quit 22 years ago. It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done. I want all smokers to quit.
2. It’s not the government, it’s your fellow citizens who have that right. Quit putting the blame on a nameless, faceless “government”.
3. I avoid bars, restaurants, and Casino’s because smokers!
4. I only patronize businesses where smokers are completely separate from me!

I’ll bet none of you anti-smokers ever went to a restaurant or bar owner to ask them to make their establishment smoke free. Because they can! No law prohibits them from NOT having no smoking now.

So those of you who don’t like smoking, request your restaurant ban it.

Stop making government waste their time on you. Do it yourself. In this economy, everyone needs MORE business, not less.

The government shouldn’t ban smoking. There is a market for both smoking and non-smoking bars and restuarants. A majority of restuarants are already smoke-free and more and more bars moving toward it. Let the market take care of it.

Another issue is that its not inevitible as they want you to think. They want you to believe that its not if, but when. Illinois, Ohio, Nebraska, Colorado and Hawaii all have leglislation that either kills or softens thier bans. Smoking bans are now going the other way. Cities and states realize that bans hurt economicaly. If you don’t believe that, you only have to look at the results for the casino industry. Missouri had a 5% jump and Illinois had a 21% decline.

St. Charles shouldn’t enact any smoking ban which covers bars, billiard parlors, bowling alleys, and small restaurants.

All cities, including St. Charles, CAN’T legally ban smoking in those places, because MO state law says they can have as much smoking as they want as long as they post signs warning potential customers that no nonsmoking ares are available. A city can’t make something into a crime when it’s authorized by state law.

When the courts strike down KC’s smoking ban for this reason within the next couple of months, the few similar bans throughout MO (like in Ballwin, Nixa, and Independence) all will be null and void. The St. Charles councilmen aren’t stupid enough to get into that mess. Smoking won’t ever be banned in bars in St. Charles unless the whole state bans smoking, and there’s no sign that’s going to happen anytime soon.

Tough luck, renegade county mayors.

The state should go smoke free. I travel all over the country, mostly to smoke free states. Not one owner has lost business. In fact, most that I have interviewed stated business increased after a ban. People don’t even think about it anymore. They go where they want and those who smoke can do so outside. In talking to some smokers they said it has helped them cut down, which they liked. Of course, those are the smokers with the guts to want to quit.
Governor Nixon- Where are your guts to make Missouri smoke free????

I would like to see this happen but I would prefer to have this over the state of MO not just local areas. The points above such as the seat belt, helmet law etc are good, but I think this potentially will have a greater impact than the others. My gosh, we are in 2009, wake up. Smoking was deemed dangerous in the 60’s over 50 years ago. Why does it take so long to get this going.

Only as a state wide ban

Smoking should be banned in the state. It is time for Missouri to have a ban like Califonia has set. My family look for places that are smoke free as much as we can.