Rights To Express Your Views

11 Comments

• highlysuspect says:

  January 5, 2007 at 1:57 pm

  I agree in principle with what you are saying. Some will tell you I was at the constitutional congress with Adams and Jefferson and the rest. (That is a whole other topic of discussion.) The more people express themslves the stronger we become as a nation. The ideas get better and more people listen to what’s being said. The more we listen, the more we hear, and the more we hear the more knowledge we have. Knowledge is power. If we have the knowledge we have the power. Neat how that worked out isn’t it? The key is knowing what to do with the power.

• Mymim says:

  January 13, 2007 at 7:14 pm

  Power is an ugly word.
  As long as power is used someone will always try to be in control.
  It is time to stand back and be your own inner power.
  We were all born with free will and the burden of knowing right from wrong.
  So why shouild we let someone else tell us what is right .
  It is not my intend to tell anyone how to think or what they should feel but we are expected to do just that everyday.Through politics, media ,religon hell employers sometimes.
  Now the goverment wants to band smoking in bars.
  You have the right to choose to drink ,have an abortion or if you want to vote but you can’t choose to smoke in a public area…
  sounds a little double standardish to me…

• highlysuspect says:

  January 14, 2007 at 2:14 pm

  I agree with you. As a nonsmoker I know when I go to a bar people will be smoking. It is their choice. It is also the choice of the nonsmoker to go there. I don’t believe the government should have the right to ban it. Nor do I think it has a reponsibility to be the conscience of the people. The fact of the matter is, we all have an obligation to do what is right, however, we also have the right to choose the wrong path. No one has the right to take that away.

  more later

• Amathy says:

  January 20, 2007 at 11:14 am

  I agree that we faught for our Freedoms, and now we are fighting for other countries to have their freedom…….as ours is slowly going out the door. So many people are crucified for statements they make anymore, though racial and gay statements are uncalled for, we need to learn to respect other peoples opinions. However, the whole smoking thing…..is a whole other kind of freedom. It is proven that smoking is bad for your health and can lead to many diseases. And is also a fact that second hand smoke is worse for you than smoking yourself. That said I think smokers need to show a respect that non-smokers are trying to choose the healthier path. My husband smokes outside to respect the health of the other people in the house, He also won’t smoke in the car with the children because, they did not make the decision to smoke, therefore they should not have to suffer the consequences. I really do not think that it is too much to ask that people smoke outside at a bar or restaurant, i really don’t like smelling smoke when i eat……..and i really don’t like coming home from a bar, because i will reek of smoke, and am usually blowing my nose for days after, and the stuff coming up is usually grey/black……..so my freedoms are being compromised now………..

• highlysuspect says:

  January 20, 2007 at 8:54 pm

  i agree in principle, but a bar is a different animal from a restaursnt. People take their kids to a restaurant for a family dinner, people go to bars for whatever. A conscious choice is made by both parties to enter that environment. But my question is, does the government have the right to legislate one side against the other?

  more later

• mymim says:

  January 21, 2007 at 4:28 pm

  I see what your saying Amathy but people who don’t drink do not choose to get hit by drunk drivers and yet at a bar a store or most places you dine serve alchol. you can die if lung cancer from environetial things such as smog ,gas vapors and so on so me as a smoker will not be the end all .
  you say we should respect the non smoker well I say we have .you can not smoke at most indor places including the work place ,but they are trying to say not even outside the bar ..so how fair is that to the smoker.
  should cities be devided by smoking and non smoking sections.
  I am not ragging on you but as a smoker i would like to have some respect as well .
  you go to a bar to relax and drink and whatever for some people smoking is relaxing.
  i don’t go to bars so it doesn’t have any effect on me i am just tired of everyone ragging on the smoker.
  the people who thought of this stupid law was most likley a smoker and can’t take being out around smokers without wanting a ciggarett.
  in closing we should be able to choose either way.

• highlysuspect says:

  January 21, 2007 at 4:59 pm

  Lets look at this issue from a broader perspective. Should Americans be expected to surrender certain consttutional rights in order to aid the fight against terrorism? Rights such as freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of choice. We live in a much different time than the framers of the constitution, but does that mean we have to change what they believed in? They drafted the constitution so the rights of the people would be paramount to anything else. Does the government have the right to take those rights away based on the world situation?

• Amathy says:

  January 22, 2007 at 1:20 pm

  I can understand, how frustrating it is for smokers, I do think they are going a bit far with the fact that you have to be so far from the bar/restaurant to smoke outside…..as long as you’re not at the door, where you will infringe on other people, there should be no big deal. But some people are not allowed the right to relax in a bar for a drink or two, because they have allergies or other medical conditions that smoke will cause their body to malfunction, because of illnesses they aren’t allowed the same freedoms. As for drinking and driving, that is not one of our freedoms it is i believe a felony. It is a stupid choice that someone wrecklessly makes without regard of the consequences………..this is a whole new topic, that i could go on forever about, but i won’t…………..Anyway, I think our freedom of speech, and privacy are starting to be compromised in this country all because of some stupid war that we are fighting, the war on terrorism……..

• highlysuspect says:

  January 22, 2007 at 2:10 pm

  I don’t think the war on terror is the issue. We have to defend ourselves against thses people. If we don’t, we risk everything Washinton, Adams, Jefferson and so many others fought and died for. These fanatic murderers will destroy the American way of life. We can not allow that. As for the war in Iraq, Good idea at first, remove Suddam Hussein, let the Iraqi people try him and execute him, which is what they did, but the time has come to let them rule their own destiny. Fight for their freedom, or die trying. But, they are the ones who need to sacrifice, not Americans! We’ve done what we had to do. We shouldn’t have to sacrifice more for them than they are willing to sacrifice for themselves!

• mymim says:

  January 22, 2007 at 3:46 pm

  Again I do understand your points,however again I beg to differ.
  people who have allergies to those types of things should choose to go to smoke free places not all public areas should be branded non smoking.
  I have allergies to certain perfumes and hairsprays does that give me the right to tell people they can’t wear it on the slim chance i may come in contact with them.
  and yes drunk driving is a felony but we choose to allow it when a bar tender serves somene who has had a few to many they should take away the keys and call them a cab.if i have smoked too many ciggaretts he can feel free to confinscate my pack but i won’t be hurting anyone on my way home.
  we will allow hicks to shoot cows in their front yards for tresspassing but a ciggarett is a bad thing.
  sorry just don’t get that…..

• amathy says:

  January 23, 2007 at 11:16 am

  1-highly suspect i completly agree, our president wants us to send more of our own to let more die…….we need to let Iraq fend for themselves at this point……how long has it been 4 years!!!or something like that…….the problems dont only lie in Iraq……the terrorism in the middle east is coming from different groups that are spread between many countries……we need to ween out of Iraq and worry about the problems we have here in our own country….

  2-mymim–the bar tenders need to cut people off i completly agree, sometimes even though i wasn’t driving i wish someone would’ve cut me off..lol, and actualy plenty of people get into car accidents doing something besides driving such as, reaching for a cigarette, lighting it..etc….cell phones, changing the radio…..in general people need to be more responsible drivers………..as for the smoking thing i think we will just need to agree to disagree……and people who put too much perfume on shouldn’t even be let into the bar….lol