Personally I hate smoking. I can’t stand going to a pub and returning home with sore eyes and clothes that stink. I was quite disappointed that 1 month before the smoking ban became effective in the UK I moved to Poland (and backwards in time) where it often appears that everybody smokes.
To be honest the fact that Polish bars are incredibly smokey doesn’t affect me too much nowadays because quite simply I frequent them very rarely.
Regarding eating establishments I have noticed that a lot of restaurants have got their own ‘no smoking’ rules in place anyway, particularly those that have been refurbished or used for weddings, so at least I can eat a meal without having the disgusting smell of somebody’s cigarettes forced upon me.
Smoking Ban in Poland
But as a forward moving EU country it was just a matter of time before Poland decided to ban smoking like much of Europe has done or is in the process of doing. I am pleased to see that this is now gathering pace. This week there has been a lot of talk in the news about a new act of parliament (link here) that has been put forward to ban smoking in work places, pubs and restaurants. I just wonder how long it will take to become law and how strictly it will be enforced.
Passive Smoking
Another related news item is Poland’s first legal case regarding damages for passive smoking. 72 year old Hanna Niewiadomska from Gdańsk is suing her former employer Skanska S.A for damages because she has lung cancer (link here). Personally I am surprised that it has taken until 2009 for such a case to appear. I hope she wins and this causes Polish employers to realise that in this day and age smoking has no place in the workplace.
UPDATE AS OF 15TH NOVEMBER 2010 – SMOKING BAN HAS BECOME LAW IN POLAND.
Tags: passive smoking, smoking ban
I’m totally with you on this. I’m from Canada where strict anti-smoking laws exist and are enforced. Of course, bar and restaurant owners kicked up a fuss initially, about losing clientele, lost revenues etc. But now everyone complies and very few complain. Canada is really cracking down on the effects of second-hand smoke. Legislation will soon be passed making it illegal to smoke in one’s car when there are children in it. I notice the differences regarding smoking alot when I travel and it really annoys me.
I must have arrived a couple of months after you, as I had about 1 month of smoke free joy in the UK before moving to Warsaw. The upside of my non-existent social life here in Poland is that this hasn’t affected me too much, but on the odd occasion I have ventured out in the evenings, the smoke everywhere is really quite a kicker. Really enjoying your blog – keep up the good work!
This is hypocrisy. Smokers give billions of currency to the state! Of course it doesn’t mean they should be eligible to poison others but they should be treated with respect. Or the tobacco industry should be banned and not only smoking!
You can smoke in your own house. In a public place, treat others with respect and don’t force them to inhale your smoke!
YAY for smoking ban in Poland!
look at the science, second hand smoke does not cause harm. LOOK IT UP, so some research yourself instead of listen to what the TV tells you. The EPA, which was a USA study, proved that SHS(second hand smoke) casued 3000 deaths per year, but, they produced that number before the studies, and then skewed numbers to reach what they said, it was fraud science. The only valid science was a 7 year study in england i believe, that came to the conclusion that SHS, is you worked or lived with smoking equalled to about 5-6 smokes a year, and actually decreased the risk of lung cancer in kids. Do your own research you numps, instead of listen to what the media tells you.. It goes with breast cancer too!
John – to be honest I don’t care about SHS – smoking stinks and makes my clothes and hair stink, and my eyes sting. I don’t like the smell, so don’t want a smoky environment in a pub or restaurant. Bring on the ban.
Then it’s simple, you’re selfish, and you anti-smokers want the entire world. You also fail to see the hair in front of your face and a fascist.
“The next two obvious steps, already in progress, are restricting smoking on beaches, parks, lines, doorways…and then restricting it in homes, particularly where there are sensitive children.”
– John Banzhaf, CBS Good Morning, April 22, 2001
Look at what’s going on, this is not about health, this is about nothing except making money and taking complete control of people and their lives
“Action on Smoking and Health has decreed that exposing others to secondhand smoke in any circumstance, including in the home, should make all smokers liable to criminal prosecution for homicide with depraved indifference, punishable by death in areas of the United States.”
-John Banzhaf
So smokers should be put to death for fraudulent science?
These are the type of people you support…. People need to fight the smoking ban to fight for control of your lives, fight for all your freedoms, don’t let the people with money dictate what you can and cannot do, because that is whats happening
Yes John, you are right, I am just selfish. Personally I would be very happy to see a ban on smoking on the beach. I think it’s disgusting that smokers seem to feel it’s OK to throw their cigarette butts everywhere and the sand is full of them.
Personally I have no problems with Banzhaf’s comments that you quoted.
So, you will be on that applauds when we live in a world of fascism. You disgust me. And it’s not about the smoking, i understand not liking the smell, it’s the people you support blindly.
The basic deal is that I happen to hate smoking so don’t have a problem with increasingly draconian rules banning it as it works in my favour. Of course if I happened to be a smoker (as I guess you are) I would be complaining about it too.
If that makes me a fascist then that’s a shame, but I’m afraid it won’t make me start campaigning for smokers’ rights….
well, i shouldn’t say you are one, but you are supporting them. I do however consider you selfish, as you care nothing of the impact that this has had on small business and jobs.
no more selfish than smokers who don’t care that smoking around other people is anti-social behaviour.
I personally think the argument that the smoking ban affects jobs is total bollocks – people get used to the ban and still go out to drink, and in my experience any drop in drinking levels is off-set by an increase in food sales.
How can you call smoking anti-social… It’s a behavior, it’s an action, whether anything is anti-social or not depends on the person. I only wish you and all the others could see what’s going on, and not foolishly support this. Oh because you don’t like the smell… Well, I live next to a korean joint, and every time i pass the place i start gagging and damn near vomit, I think korean restaraunts should be banned, i dont like the smell, and since i’m gagging because of it, it must be bad for me… Hell, let’s ban koreans too…. That is as valid as your arguement. And on a windy day, sometimes the smell enters my apartment. There is no way around this, I can’t simply walk down a different street, because..well, i just can’t, i want that street to walk down. Also, no one should one dogs, not enough people pick up the shit, and it makes the streets smell bad. Ban on dogs.
There is a massive difference between the smell of korean food and smoking. You say smoking doesn’t harm others – I thing you are wrong. But you are so blind on this that next you are going to tell me that smoking doesn’t even harm smokers. Well I watched my uncle die a slow horrible painful death from cancer so forgive me for remaining convinced that smoking kills smokers and I have no doubts is not healthy for others in that environment.
Korean food doesn’t make peoples’ eyes sting and force them to wash their clothes does it? Korean food doesn’t make people cough does it?
Non-smokers ‘foolishly’ support this? I find that ironic as my personal opinion is that non-smokers are sensible and smokers are foolish. My personal opinion is that smokers are generally quite stupid and are mentally weak to be not able to give-up.
Of course there is a difference, there is nothing wrong with korean food, I simply don’t like the way it smells, and it makes me gag, and I have vomited because of the smell. I was not seriously saying that it should be banned. It’s just the same shit that people are saying about smoking, they don’t like the smell. While all the anti-smoking organizations are talking about it causing health problems in others and in kids, while actual science(not backed by big tobacco, big pharma, or anti-tobbaco groups) says otherwise. And Don’t think that this anti-smoking movement is a peoples movement, it’s a money movement, the big players in this all have lots and lots of money, also, big pharma companies are making huge profits because they make all the quiting aids, like the patch and the gum.
If it was a health issue, then Mcdonalds should be banned, along with all fastfood, that shit is horrible for ones health, and it does affect others, as many parents feed that crap to their kids, why is that not a bigger issue, in reality it’s a massive health issue, why does nobody complain about companies who put salt in their bottled water? Processed sugar, frozen dinners, high fructose corn syrup. It’s all very unhealthy, and it affects others, as this is what is served to us.
Also, why is big pharma not being attacked for pushing medication, they’re making people drug addicts, not healthier, if you want to get into personal issues, my brother was diagnosed with depression, then put on some pills, shortly after, he tried to kill himself numerous times, he stopped taking them, and nolonger tried to, the pill he was on, still in use.
For the record, i never said that smoking was not an unhealthy habit for smokers, it is, i know it is. Also, I don’t support big tobacco, i refuse to support any company that neglects human life, I also refuse to support any one who neglects human liberties.
So if you know that smoking is unhealthy, how can you be so convinced that it is not unhealthy for passive smokers? After all, they are breathing the same smoke (albeit at a much less concentrated rate). I haven’t looked up the research that you keep talking about, but this just seems like common sense to me.
Just so we’re clear, I am not saying that smoking or McDonalds or koreans or dogs should be banned, but smoking shouldn’t be allowed in public places.
ok, i’ve come to realize, we are from different parts of the world, and lived in very different societies. Now, to make one thing clear, I do agree with some smoking restrictions, I understand it is not a pleasant thing to smell. And with that understanding i do not think people should be subjected to it, say on public transportation, or office building and such, where people are going to start careers and go everyday. But in bars and restaurants, where it is a customer service industry, people should be able to have a cigarette as long as the owner gives it the ok. You start work there, full well knowing that there will be smoking, if you do not want to be around it, you don’t work there, and you don’t give the place your business. Also the thing is, the attempt to ban it in homes is in progress, and that is absurd. The development of these smoking restrictions is going to far.
Also, for the record, I am a health nut, despite my smoking, there are just something i enjoy. To name a few, a good cigarette, a good cup of tea, coffee, a good whiskey and a good beer. I like to make my own beer, I’m learning how to blend my own teas. I’m all about natural medication, maybe through diet and herbs, pills being an extreme last resort.
yes I agree with you about the smoking restrictions and it should be down to the landlord to decide whether smoking should be allowed or not as opposed to a legal ban. Already there are restaurants (typically newly refurbished ones) in Poland where they have decided themselves to ban smoking and of course there are some that don’t, and that’s fair enough.
I think restrictions in people’s own homes is excessive and that I wouldn’t support.
There are a few things i need to say,
one; congratulations on your kid, which i saw you posted, I hope the best for you and your family, and hope you all live long healthy lives.
two; I apologize about calling you a fascist, I think we may be similarly minded, the difference being i smoke and you do not.
three; if I insulted you in any other form, i do apologize, at points i was just irritated in general, about the world we live in. I’m not a big fan of it.
I live in the united states, where everyone is only trying to make an extra buck and disregard others for it. Most people I have met only care about themselves, they stand up for no one, at times not even themselves.
I also believe we live in a world where no one thinks about how others live, they do not take others moral code into account, only their own, and everyone should live the way they live. Which is becoming the moral code of the state, which in reality morals do not exist with states. My irritation is not only with smoking bans, it’s with government invasion in personal lives. We don’t have much, and we should cherish what we do have.
I’ve spent much time in Poland also , and things like smoking bans are inevitable for good reason – in the same way seatbelts became a legality. Poland is not as backward as many like to see it and a smoking ban is a great thing to improve the health of an entire nation! – Bear in mind the Polish government makes nowhere near the kind of revenue from tabacco sales as the UK government – no one loses out!
What most concerns me about these comments is that some people still appear to view smoking as not harmful. This is absurd.
Also I am directing this to John with the intention of a little help – no one enjoys smoking, that is an absolute fact and to say you’re a health nut but smoke makes no sense. I recommend you read Allen Carr’s book “Easyway” as soon as possible and realise the error of your ways. The only reason you will not stop smoking is fear, not through enjoyment of smoking, as that doesn’t exist.
Nice site Ben and good luck with the web design.
John is absolutely correct about the passive smoking fraud. You’re all being brainwashed. A 39 year study by the BMJ in California found no risk to health from passive smoking. Those who say ‘But you’re stinking up the air’ appear to have no problems walking & driving in massive concentrations of carbon monoxide from car exhaust fumes every day, often blithely pushing their kids in buggys inches in front of them while crossing the road! Yet strangely we hear no clamour for a car ban.
I’m allergic to formaldehyde & end up gasping for breath in the presence of glossy magazines…would I be able to get its use banned? I doubt it.
The UK ban has ruined the pub trade. Beautiful buildings that formed the heart of rural communities are boarded up daily. A huge amount of non-smokers oppose the ban as the fun & life has drained away with their smoking friends, who are now effectively placed on house arrest & denied the pleasures others take for granted. I’m all for separate rooms & good ventilation, but a ban is, imo, victimising & discriminating against people with a disability & should be overturned by use of the Disability Act, as they are being denied goods & services enjoyed by non-smokers. Before anyone hoots with derision at smoking being a ‘disability’ I’ve seen it classed as such by the WHO. It’s not a ’selfish choice’ but an addiction. Publicans tell me UK town centres are becoming far more violent since the ban as people are now snorting cocaine in the loos to relieve cigarette cravings, thereby making them paranoid & aggressive, the opposite effect of cigarettes, which calm & mellow the user. What has society come to where the NHS is, as of today, prepared to dole out free heroin while demonising smokers, who have paid far more into the NHS than they’ve taken out. Give us back our civil liberties & reverse the social erosion of our once beloved country I say.
You are wrong about cars – it is the emissions that are the issue here not the cars themselves. I think smoking stinks but I also think that car exhausts stinks. That’s one of the reasons I moved to Poland so I could escape living and working in London. In the UK they have already introduced emissions checks as part of the annual vehicle test and old buses and lorries are now banned from the centre of London. I am sure with time there will be more of a push to move to cleaner sources of fuel. A ban on cars is stupid and not relevant to your argument.
Yes the UK pub trade is in decline, but don’t tell me this is entirely due to smoking. Pubs have been closing for the past 30 years, not just since the ban. This is to do with a number of factors such as cheap alcohol available from supermarkets and more people socialising with friends at home etc..
Fine – if your smoking is a disabilitiy and an addiction then get help for it – there are plenty of free helplines, websites and advice centres. In the UK the health service even offers you a counsellor.
Hmm, OK Ben, so emission checks mean exhaust fumes are OK? Which would you rather be shut in a locked garage with, a smoker or a car belching out fumes?
I’m not advocating a car ban obviously…I’m pointing out the hypocrisy of the aggressive non-smokers who swoon & force little hacking coughs out within 20 feet of a smoker whilst freely allowing their babies to be pushed between car exhausts while crossing the road!
The recent & severe pub decline is absolutely down to the smoking ban. Whilst drink driving law, poor public transport systems, & the proliferation of cheap supermarket booze has contributed to a very slow reduction in pub clientele from the early ’80s, this pales into insignificance compared to the decimation of pubs since the ban. I don’t know anybody who would not stampede back to their locals if this ban were lifted. Smokers are miserable exiles who are denied the social contact of pubs, & their non-smoking friends choose to keep them company, drinking awful canned supermarket fizz at home rather than beautifully kept real ale. It’s a no-brainer. Nobody would give a fig about the difference in price as they’re paying for a happy experience & ambience, in the same way people visit cinemas, restaurants, & hair salons, despite there being cheap mobile hairdressers, frozen ready meals, & DVD hire.
Many people are unable to beat their addiction. Nobody is stopping alcoholics drinking in pubs & they are addicts who do actually damage others as well as themselves in terms of violent assaults etc. (unlike the lie that is the fictitious harm of passive smoking) yet nobody is excluding them & forcing them to get counselling! You say ‘In the UK the health service even offers you a counsellor’. If you think a counsellor is sufficient to stop nicotine cravings then your naivety is staggering. Many smokers actually smoke more since the ban, due to the stress & depression of the social isolation & demonisation caused by this disgusting & unjustified witchunt.
Hi Ella. Did I say that emission checks means exhaust fumes are OK? No I didn’t. I said that there were controls in place and I am sure over time they will only become stricter. Personally I don’t agree with you about the impact of smoking on pubs. My friends and I have never drunk real ale and don’t care about it. Why pay 4 pounds a pint when I can buy some cans for a quarter of the price and not have to leave at 11 or 12pm? Don’t tell me people don’t care about the price difference.
I can only presume you are an addicted smoker. Unfortunately I have no sympathy. If it’s so hard to give up then don’t be so stupid to start in the first place. We are clearly not going to agree on this so there’s no point in me writing any more on this topic, other than to say I personally hate smoking and welcome a ban with open arms.
Why’d you do that man, i was just gettin ready for another heated debate, with lots of yelling and insulting! Only I was going to shift it from cigarettes to global warming! It was gonna be so much fun. Why? Why’d you delete my post?
Oh dear Sorry John! As I mentioned in my last comment there is no point in continuing this topic so I had closed it to more comments. Cheers. Ben
Oh, but why, I was expecting so much fun from this, at least for the morning.. Thanks ben, thanks for ruining one single aspect of one sing part of my day. I do not believe i can ever forgive you for this…. Oh no no, thats nonsense, I do, I do, it’s ok. I understand why you closed it, it was either you were defeated by logic and science, or just plain irritated with me and the few comments by Ella. Just know, that it was going to a blast arguing about global warming! With love and much concern, and a heart filled with nothing but everlasting gratitude- John
Hey everyone, some interesting things being bounced back and forth and as I am doing a bit of market research on smoking in POland, thought I would post this article and see what everyone else thought and had heard.
Frankly, I am getting ready to open a business that falls under the gastronomie category in my city here in Poland (though, from the US). In the store, we will also have art and young designer clothing for sale in a small boutique setting spread throughout the store. The problem is the smell of cigarette smoke infiltrating the clothing and paintings…
We smoke occasionally over drinks and with friends, I also enjoy smoking bans as I don;t go back smelling of cigarettes when i leave the bars…
Has anyone heard anything about this ban taking affect?
http://www.upi.com/Top_News/2009/04/24/Poland-to-ban-indoor-smoking/UPI-50741240590498/
Personally, that article disgusts me greatly, though it is not as bad as the ban here in chicago, atleast bar owners can have a choice, but I know that won’t last either, another year and smoking will be banned everywhere in Poland. As far as your store, can you simply just not allow smoking in your store to stop the smell from infiltrating the clothing and paintings, it seems like a simple solution, unless of course Polish laws prohibit you from doing so.
I’m a smoker and I welcome the ban (in principle). It is now coming into force in my newly adopted country of Slovakia too.
I have always tried to be a responsible smoker, at least thats how I see it. I won’t smoke in a busy shopping street full of people, likewise I have never lit up in a restaurant and I always dispose of my cigarettes in a bin or a little metal case I keep with me for the purpose.
What really gets my goat is, like a lot of things, they just are not thought out properly half of the time. Sure, ban smoking if pubs, clubs, cafes etc but surely everyone should have a choice whether they want to smoke or not, the same as people who do not smoke should have a choice whether they want to be in a smoking environment.
Here in Slovakia, whilst the smoking ban is only just coming into force, I think they have been sensible about it – if the owner of a bar, cafe etc can physically seperate the smoking and none smoking space (including seperate entrances) inside the building, smokers are allowed to smoke and none smokers can enjoy a smoke free evening. A lot of the bars even have seperate outdoor area’s for smokers/none-smokers.
Someone mentioned cigarette butts on beaches – thats pretty grim and the culprits should be very heavily fined but to ban smoking on a beach completely is going too far.
The normal purpose for going to a beach is to relax and have fun smokers can’t do that if they are constantly craving a ciggy but by the same token, none smokers don’t want to be wading through piles of dog ends.
No smoking in the workplace should be enforced. When your in a situation where you cannot leave, like an office, then none smokers should definitely not be subjected to passive smoking, some elses farts or your colleagues garlic breath.
It’s just the whole overkill that makes the red mist descend. Smoking ’shelters’ outside in workplaces have to have no more than half the shelter ‘enclosed’ (including the roof) – why for goodness sake? They are smoke shelters, for smokers, not none smokers grrrr
John, You’re right. They’re all very selfish. There is no real science behind passive smoking. And the bitch of all this is that they have governments on their side. But I think, as the world becomes a more reasonable place (right now it’s anything but), people will be given more freedom of choice. Take your heads out of your ass and don’t implement nazi-like bans. Let the bar owners etc. decide whether they want their establishment to be a smoking or a non-smoking place.
Smoke simply STINKS. Apart from all other scintific and not-scientific facts, us non-smokers can enjoy the smells that this world has to offer: flowers, trees, perfumes, FOOD! Smokers are denied the beauty of other scents, they onle feel the stifling smoke stink they carry around with them.
I guess some people in this world just have less sensitive noses that prevent them from inhaling beautiful smells.
Comical rants on this site. Science gets bashed so folks ignore it and go with “Oh no, but it smells.”
Following that sound logic (heavy sarcasm) ban all cars. They produce pollution, pollution smells. Also cars can kill people.
Gyms, people smell when they get sweaty, they can also kill themselves through heart attacks. Ban gyms.
Babies, ban them they really do smell funky.
I just want to say congratulations on writing a blog that poeple read. My blog at about.waw.pl is read only by me…
-Martin