Smoking in Bars

DPF noted on his blog that he has "mixed feelings" in regards to the end of smoking in bars.

I don't. I wholeheartedly support the ban, and not only from a personal point of view. During my first year at Victoria, I worked at the BackBencher on Molesworth St. Everynight, I would leave work with a sore throat and stinking of cigarette smoke. Although I don't work in the bar any more, I still feel sorry for those that do.

I really don't buy the pub owner's argument that it is going to take business away from them. They might see a small drop in numbers initially, but people will get used to it and it will become part of going out.

I'm having lunch today at the BackBencher with a former VUWSA President, so will be looking forward to seeing the difference.

The second or third page of the DominionPost yesterday had an old digger sitting at a table at the Cambridge Hotel having a cigarette. I half expected the article to say something along the lines of "I went to war for the right to smoke in pubs" etc etc. However the guy said that he only smoked at the pub, would quit with the ban, and welcomed it. A a rare show of journalistic integrity for the DomPost...

But you can't beat the Tui billboard on the corner of Willis and Ghuznee:

I was going to quit anyway. Yeah right.