Letter to the Editor (10/03/06)

Dear Editor,

You seem to have missed a crucial point in your editorial “Allegheny County… Dear Editor,

You seem to have missed a crucial point in your editorial “Allegheny County Quits Smoking.” Your column wrongly assumes that establishments such as bars, restaurants, casinos, etc., are “public” establishments. In fact, nearly all of these establishments are privately owned businesses which receive no public funding.

While smoking itself is not a good idea, regulations such as those recently approved by Allegheny County are crushing blows to the property rights of business owners. It is an individual business owner’s right to choose whether or not to permit smoking in his private establishment.

If individuals wish to avoid the perils of secondhand smoke, then they can quit patronizing establishments that allow smoking — there are many smoke-free establishments already in business. If what the public demands is a smoke-free environment, then business owners will voluntarily make the decision to go smoke free.

What we don’t need is governments deciding for business owners whether they should be able to allow smoking in their private establishments. I’m glad to see the Pennsylvania legislature, even if motivated by purely economic reasons, has stood up for the property rights of casino owners — I only wish it had extended this amendment to include all privately owned establishments. This is an issue that doesn’t matter whether you smoke or not, or even if you hate the smell of cigarette smoke — it’s about governments taking away the property rights of business owners.

Michael Aird

aird@umich.edu