Years from now, social scientists are certain to marvel at our present-day folly. They'll wonder why non-smokers and workers put up with -- or were forced to put up with -- employers who allowed smokers to poison the places where they toiled, drank and dined.
Special-interest groups for far too long ruled the day in restaurants, for example, and effectively crammed second-hand smoke down patrons' and employees' throats -- and lungs.
Tobacco, liquor and restaurant lobbyists forever pumped cash into state politicians' outstretched palms to fend off pro-health legislation, specifically the ban of smoking in places where the public could come in contact with smokers' deadly exhalations.
But anti-smoking advocates have gained ground in recent years, successfully pushing smoking bans in government buildings, vehicles and eventually in many private workplaces. Smart employers embraced the many benefits of either banning smoking outright on their grounds, or ushering smokers to the great outdoors to practice their deadly habit out of lungshot from nonsmokers.
But too many jut-jawed restaurant owners stuck to their tired let-the-customer-decide mantra, as if nonsmokers had any say when some upwind lout lit up just as the entrees arrived. And captive restaurant employees had no escape from the toxic conditions, except with a new job elsewhere.
And therein lies the big lie espoused by politicians, lobbyists and restaurateurs who vehemently opposed state smoking ban legislation: The government-off-my-back crowd dutifully ignored the dire health consequences of second-hand smoke for employees, and refused to acknowledge a legitimate public health issue.
Restaurant owners must abide by numerous health codes -- they can't let sewage flow free and they can't let a chicken rot on the counter. Nor should they have been allowed to subject employees and customers to the dangers of second-hand smoke.
The tide seems to be turning against public smoking, and so many Grand Traverse region restaurants finally are going smoke-free that the area is among statewide leaders in the butt-out trend.
That's good news for patrons and employees alike, and ultimately for restaurant operators who for too long kept their heads stuck in the sand when customers clearly wanted smokeless meals.
Longtime smoky haunts like Minerva's Restaurant & Bar and Li'l Bo's in Traverse City, and Boone's Prime Time Pub in Suttons Bay are among the latest converts to unlit enlightenment. They received plenty of applause.
"We're all excited; it's like we can finally breathe in this place," said Pam Valrance, a bartender at Minerva's.
An arcane and dangerous habit is going by the wayside and it's as welcome as it is overdue. To the ground-breaking restaurants here that bucked a smoky trend and banned cigarettes, congratulations. To those that joined recently, kudos. And to those that refuse to face facts, it's possible your livelihood may go up in a puff of smoke.
Print this story
E-mail this story
