Just when we thought Wisconsin took a progressive step in a cleaner and healthier direction, Puff the Magic Dragon and his friend Camel Joe publically announced their plans to repeal the newly enacted Wisconsin smoking ban. Republican candidates for Governor, Scott Walker and Rep. Mark Neumann, have made it quite clear in their campaigns they consider the smoking ban an unnecessary barrier within the economy. While there are questions about whether Walker consistently contested the ban or if opponent Neumann inspired his open opposition, the important issue shouldn't revolve petty ""he said, he said"" debates but rather the sole fact that these candidates aim to lift the ban at all.
I don't need to lay out a list of reasons why smoking is a hazardous habit, nor preach the negative effects secondhand smoke has on the public. I think most Wisconsinites understand that the smoking ban has been put in place to protect citizens looking to spend their money in bars, restaurants and other facilities. Yet because Walker and Neumann brush the research, dangers and honest intentions fueling the ban aside through their efforts to relieve it, Wisconsin voters are lead to believe that the reasons for the ban's enactment are insignificant to these Republican candidates. Well played, guys.
Apparently health and safety take a backseat to the needs of the economy in the minds of these two black-lung fanatics, and Walker even went as far to say that he doesn't, ""think the government should have been involved in a smoking ban in the first place."" This seemingly-humble hope to keep the pestering hand of Big Brother out of personal business doesn't follow many of his other campaign promises. Walker's diligent stance on government regulation and the banning of gay marriage fails to legitimize his stance that public smoking and the all around health of the community is anything but a government issue. It's hard for me to believe that Walker thinks the spread of cancerous agents among the public is not worthy of government attention, but sacred vows between two individuals are.
Whether or not the public smoking should be on the government's agenda is irrelevant, since it has already become a political issue, and the fact that Walker and Neumann aim to repeal the ban because businesses are at risk is completely backwards. Prohibiting smoking within certain facilities throughout the entire state is the only way to ensure the existence and success of targeted businesses. With the ban affecting all bars and restaurants throughout Wisconsin rather than only those in participating cities, all businesses have the same rules to play by. Consumers don't have the option to choose one bar over another based on smoking limitations, since they all follow the same guidelines.
If Walker and Neumann hope to take public smoking out of state hands, they consequently burden towns that have already taken progressive steps to adopt the ban, and businesses may suffer when deciding whether or not to limit smoking. Enacting a state-wide ban eliminates this potential competition and provides a cleaner environment for Wisconsin citizens to enjoy.
While I agree that individuals have the right to smoke on their own terms, those being subjected to secondhand risks have rights that deserve protecting as well. Walker and Neumann need to take a different perspective on the smoking ban and understand that it isn't dismissing smoking all together, but rather eliminating health hazards that undoubtedly affect the wellbeing of the general public.
The state-wide smoking ban is an extremely progressive idea that many passionate advocates have spent years fighting for, and the fact that it has actually taken physical form says a lot about the direction Wisconsin is headed. The last thing we need is for these two candidates to repeal that initiative, forcing us to take one giant step backwards.
