Smoking Bans and Crimes?

ItalianFX · #1 10-10-2007, 05:26 PM

Cliff notes at bottom.

I have an Economics of Crimes class. My adviser, who is also the chairperson of the Economics Dept., helped me get an override for graduation because I technically couldn't take it given that it is a 200 level class and to graduate I would have needed to take a 300 level. He got me into the Crimes class because he knows I'm a police officer, blah blah blah.

Anyways, this class has been nothing more than a waste of my time.

Every week we pick a topic, find an article, and write a reaction paper. And then the whole week is basically devoted to discussing that topic. We did Legalizing Drugs, Prison Populations, and Understanding Why Crime Fell. This week she let us pick our own topic as a group. One person mentioned how my college is trying to get a campus "smoking ban." Nobody else gave any ideas, so now we are doing Smoking Bans.

I totally disagree with this topic and do not feel that it is appropriate to discuss in this class. Smoking is not illegal, and smoking bans are policies or regulations. I have yet to see any article stating that smoking bans are a crime. What I mean is, with a smoking ban, you can't smoke and if you do, then you violated the law.

My professor just said "crime is anything that the government says is wrong." She wouldn't even listen to anything I said. I told her I agreed that it was an economic issue, but I do not believe it is a criminal issue.

Does anyone have any opinions and who is right or wrong? Does anyone have any experience with smoking bans? Is Smoking a crime under a smoking ban policy?

Cliff Notes: Analyze crime issues in my economics class, now we are doing smoking bans, and I do not believe it is appropriate for the class.

TheBigPicture · #2 10-10-2007, 05:32 PM

it's not a crime but they will throw you out if you smoke in an establishment that doesn't allow smoking. I'm sure if you repeat offended you might get a misdemeanor.

If you totally disagree with the topic, why didn't you speak up when that person brought up smoking bans? Why didn't you bring up another topic?

Not trying to play the devil's advocate here, but your teacher is pretty much right. If the government says it is illegal to walk dogs without picking up their poop, it is now illegal in new york to walk your dog without picking up the poop. You will get i think a half grand fine. If this is not an example of what your teacher says then I don't know what to tell you. The patriot act literally allows the government to over ride THEIR OWN LAWS, and become a complete dictatorship.

crime

–noun 1. an action or an instance of negligence that is deemed injurious to the public welfare or morals or to the INTERESTS OF THE STATE WHICH IS LEGALLY PROHIBITTED.

Wouldn't that make any law the government passes that is broken a crime?

Kimbell175113 · #3 10-10-2007, 05:34 PM

Just imagine a hypothetical smoking ban, if the current ones don't fit your criteria. The 'legalizing drugs' topic you mentioned implies that you've discussed hypotheticals before in the class.

kutuz_off · #4 10-10-2007, 05:36 PM

If bar owners allow you to smoke in a non-smoking bar, it's is a crime on owner's side, not on the smoker's. Am I wrong?

ItalianFX · #5 10-10-2007, 05:38 PM

The discussion started with like 3 minutes left in class. I really didn't have any other topic. But I was expressing my opinion, but everyone was shuffling around and getting up and nobody heard me except the girl who sits in front of me. I brought it up in class the next day, and she was too stubborn to listen.

I agree that a place will throw you out, and as a repeat offender, they could probably call the police and have you arrested for something. But that doesn't make it a crime, IMO. I have yet to find anything that says, "if you smoke in a place that has a smoking ban, you will be arrested and subject to $X and/or Y days in jail."

It's a policy. When you go into a restaurant and it says "No Smoking" you take it as that you can't smoke in that area.

Just because it's a "law," breaking it doesn't mean it's a crime.

Literally looking at the definition of crime makes anything a crime.

TheBigPicture · #6 10-10-2007, 05:38 PM

[ QUOTE ]
If bar owners allow you to smoke in a non-smoking bar, it's is a crime on owner's side, not on the smoker's. Am I wrong?

[/ QUOTE ]

No. It is a crime for both of you. If a crooked cop sold you some heroin that doesn't mean that because the cop is crooked the heroin isnt illegal

mbillie1 · #7 10-10-2007, 05:39 PM

The only crime is that there are smoking bans anywhere, for any reason. As your president, I will enforce mandatory smoking in the childrens oncology wings of hospitals, in the fresh food areas of grocery stores, and in the faces of soccer moms and their ugly babies. I will also enforce mandatory post-birth abortions of anyone I deem unfit to have been born.

mbillie1 '08

ItalianFX · #8 10-10-2007, 05:40 PM

[ QUOTE ]
If bar owners allow you to smoke in a non-smoking bar, it's is a crime on owner's side, not on the smoker's. Am I wrong?

[/ QUOTE ]

That's my take on it. And the bar owner will probably be fined for violating a public health code or something. But it's not a crime, per se.

My dad is an adminstrator at a nursing home. If the health inspectors come in and find violations, there is no "crime" committed. It's just a violation of the policy and whatever happens to the nursing home, happens to the nursing home.

mbillie1 · #9 10-10-2007, 05:40 PM

Also, serious answer: something can be against the law (smoking in a restaurant) but doing it is not a crime. There are different types of laws, the violation of every law does not constitute a crime.

Bicycles_Biatch · #10 10-10-2007, 05:41 PM

smoking bans are a joke