Smoking-Please read on for the full resolution

Well thank you for your praise, and I also wish for an enjoyable debate. I will first go over my opponent's case, and then move on to construct my own. "Whether it is to protest, dine, debate or just to live out our lives, all citizens have a right to do anything within the law on public property. " Ah, but this is simply not true. There are many things that one is allowed to do on their own private property, that they are not allowed to do in public. One such act is going nude. It will not let me copy-paste the article, so please read the first portion of this link. http://gocalifornia.about.com... As we can see, you are allowed to go nude on your private property, but not in public. This is but one example of something legal in private, but illegal in public. "In the US, smoking bans are determined by the state and municipal governments. As it currently stands, 35 states have bans in place to varying degrees, while the remaining 15 - Alaska, Wyoming, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Mississippi, Alabama, the Carolinas, Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin and West Virginia - do not have any bans in place at all. " This is true. "These states realize that a ban will not only infringe on a person's personal rights, but the rights of business and property owners." A common misconception. I will address this in full during my constructive arguments. "Nicotine is not an illegal substance, therefore it is not illegal to smoke it in public. All Americans are entitled to do anything they wish within the law on public property. This is an indivisible aspect of American democracy and a ban on smoking in public would be in direct contradiction to this." I have already addressed this. Just because something is legal on private property, does not make it legal in public. I will show in my constructive that smoking should be against the law in public. "Public property belongs to all Americans and the government has no right to come down on one group to please another. Americans enjoy the fact that they are allowed to hold public protests and demonstrations against what they are in opposition to. A ban on smoking will be the first step in stripping away this right. This is not what the Constitution was written up for." If a smoking ban were to be put into effect, it would actually help to protect rights. Multiple studies have shown that second-hand smoke is extremely dangerous, and actually kills more people than smoking kills smokers. (Again, this will all be supported in my constructive.) "As well, the government has no right to enforce a ban on smoking on private property. Business owners have property rights just the same as any American citizen, and the government does not have a right to enforce a ban on a legal substance within private confines." Of course not. I am not advocating this. Please stick to the resolution. "Enforcing the ban on businesses will hurt their revenue. Hospitality businesses in the states with enforced bans have seen a decrease of business since the ban was instituted, leading to lawsuits by several companies in states ranging from Nevada to New York." May I ask who filed the suits? Also please provide sources so I can read into it more. "It has been noted by studies that a ban hurts businesses that rely on low to middle-class customers for the majority of their business. Upscale businesses find themselves content with the ban and no one will challenge their right to enforce their own ban on smoking on their own property. But the government has no right to enforce it on all businesses, causing them to lose untold amounts of revenue. One such business was 4-B's Restaurant in Missoula, Montana, where the owner reported a six-figure loss. The government has yet to reimburse him for this lost income." Well, since you bring up the constitution so much, I will too. Where in the constitution does it say that the government will reimburse businesses that have lost money? Again, please show me your sources. "So I ask you friend, what part of the smoking ban is to the benefit of Americans?" It protects people's health and rights. "What part of the smoking ban is legal under the laws of the United States?" Laws are put in place to protect the citizens. If banning smoking protects the citizens, then it should be banned. "When will the government reimburse businesses for their lost income - if they ever do?" I didn't know the government had that obligation. Please show me where the constitution says it will do that. "I await your response." Here I go. Contention 1- Smoking infringes on people's rights Today most people have heard the statement "secondhand smoke kills." But in society's increasing awareness of the health dangers of tobacco, of the lies manufactured by the tobacco industry, and of an emerging body of law supporting smokefree policies, it is not enough to simply state "secondhand smoke kills" without knowing how secondhand smoke is a health danger, whom it affects, where exposure is the most serious, and what can be done to stop it. Throughout the years, the science of secondhand smoke has driven the secondhand smoke policy engine from separate smoking and nonsmoking sections to separately ventilated smoking rooms to 100% smokefree environments. We now know that 53,800 people die every year from secondhand smoke exposure. This number is based on the midpoint numbers for heart disease deaths (48,500), lung cancer deaths (3,000), and SIDS deaths (2,300) as calculated in the 1997 California EPA Report on Secondhand Smoke. And children are at significant risk to many acute and chronic diseases as a result of secondhand smoke exposure. Contention 2- My right to swing my fist ends where Volkov's nose begins This contention is a simple one. We have established that smoking infringes on people's rights. We have also established that the government is obligated to protect its people. Therefore, the government cannot tolerate the infringement of its citizens' rights. If it did, it would be unconstitutional. Having addressed my opponent's case, and built up my own, I conclude my portion of the round. Good luck. http://www.henryjacksonsociety.org... http://www.smokingaloud.com... http://whyquit.com... http://www.no-smoke.org...