Do You Believe Smokers Have Rights?

Everyone has rights BUT the issue here is just like smokers have rights none-smokers do aswell. We have rights to hence completely respect the choice if you want to smoke but simply put not around us. TBH wouldn't want anyone smoking around me in public either, not just health issues it stinks, its disgusting, makes you cough, itchy throat, ruins the atmosphere. I have seen someone die of lung cancer, defintely due to smoking I was quite young, and let me be honest I would never want to go through that or want anyone close or not, relative or not go through that. I remember could not even eat and the pain he had to go through. Atleast the treeatments have improved now. Smokers are free to do whatever they want to, no one should tell others what to do, BUT non-smokers have rights to and don't want them smoking around me. Blunt I agree but the truth. Not to mention some smokers have complete disregard for the law, smoke in underground stations where smoke and stink will linger for hours, in buses. If you confront them then cause trouble. It is such smokers that do more damage to smokers rights than anyone else.

Of course smokers have "right." However, they do not have the right to smoke in a place that forces smoke on those who have the "right" to fresh air! That's a difficult one too. I think restaurants should have the option to be smoking or not then let the customers choose. Personally I would choose a place that prohibits smoking over a place which allows it as I cannot breathe in the smoke. I have always wondered about this. IF I do not want to smoke and someone close to me is smoking, in a sense forcing me to breathe second hand smoke- what am I to do? Leave? That's not fair! Most of the time smokers are very considerate and are careful about it but there are a few that are not!

We all have rights. I smoke and enjoy doing so but I also think that smoking in eating places is unfair to non smokers. But out in public I disagree, I think if you are telling a smoker they cannot smoke out in the public then I want drinkers to do the same. I think no matter what the habit is you should consider the cost in the end. The problem is everyone wants to blame smokers for all these health porblems to me that is unfair. Health problems can be from other life style choices as well. Nice post thanks for sharing.

damage you do to yourself is your own business. damage you do to others is not. somebody standing outside smoking, or smoking inside places for smokers (like their house) is not likely to be damaging anything apart from their own lungs. i smoke, i don't smoke over non-smokers, anywhere near children, or even in the same room as my pets. i consider that i have the right to smoke outside etc if i want. i know lots of people in very similar situations to your roomie that think the same.

i am a smoker, yes, i smoke a lot, and i am the same with you. if there is one person who don't smoke and he/she donot like others somke, i will never smoke in this room, when i need, i will smoke outside or in other room. i think i must consider about other people's healthy and right first.

well, guess they have, but only among other smokers, and not among all other people- smokers and non-smokers, because no one deserves to be poison. that's why i think that the non-smokers have more rights than smokers have!

Yes they do and I respect their rights and their need to smoke. However, they should also respect the proper place where to smoke. There are certain places like malls, restaurants, offices, and other public places where they are not allowed to smoke so they have to follow those regulations. There are also people who are not comfortable when somebody is smoking so maybe for smokers they have to make it clear with another person before they puff in front of them. All of us have our own "individual liberty", however, we have to make sure that we don't compromise other people.

If there are rights smokers should have, it should be primarily the rights to save themselves. I strongly believe that smoking won't do you or your body for that matter any good. It would only deteriorate your every single body parts.

Yes, smokers are people to of course they deserve rights. As for the laws making smoking in a place of business illegal, that is a violation of the rights of the business owner who should be allowed to decide if he wants to allow smoking in his place of business. A few fanatics are going out of there way to force their beliefs onto everyone else no matter what the rest of us think. And no I am not just referring to smoking there. The government has caved to the vocal lunatic fringe stepping on business owners rights by banning smoking in a place of business just as surely as it has stepped on states rights by forcing them to allow the murder of unborn children.