HOLY SMOKES
Cigarette smoke is not healthy for kids, but neither is a society that eliminates individual rights
BY HEIDI HARRIS

Heidi Harris frequently appears on Fox News Live and Fox News Live Weekend. Look for her soon-to-debut radio show in Las Vegas soon. Visit her website www.heidiharris.com. Other stories by Heidi Harris

What happened to the Wild West? Nevada used to represent personal and business freedom. After all, we put ourselves on the map through legalized gambling and quickie divorces. Nevada even conducted the first gas-chamber execution in America, in 1924. We've always been mavericks to a certain extent. Throughout Nevada history, legislation has been introduced to limit our freedoms and increase our tax burden, and while some legislation has been successful, there was still a glimmer of hope. Or so I thought. 

Over the last 25 years, our population has increased exponentially, including many refugees from over-taxed and over-regulated states. You'd think the new residents would be mindful of the bad legislation that drove them from their home states and loath to see former mistakes repeated. But alas, some never learn from history. Since liberals continue to implement the same failed policies again and again, why should anyone be surprised? I guess I was hoping that the number of liberals who had seen the light, combined with Nevada natives who generally do, would constitute a majority and common sense would prevail. I was wrong. The last election told us everything we need to know about the future of our state. 

Smoking in public places is not a health issue; it's a freedom issue. The misinformation campaign waged by the anti-smoking cartel should have been easily dismissed by discerning voters. Trouble is, it's getting tougher and tougher to find discerning voters. As I talked with voters before and after the election about the smoking issues, even smokers were talking about protecting the children, rather than individual rights. Cigarette smoke is not healthy for kids, but neither is a society that eliminates legal choices for adults.

The arguments made about protecting children are overblown. The fact is, you can raise a child in Nevada and never see a cigarette. It's already illegal to smoke in daycare centers, movie theaters, schools and any public government building. Quite a change from when I was in high school in Clark County and there was an outdoor smoking section for students! Frankly, that was the first time during my education that I could actually breathe in the ladies' room, and I was thrilled. I never smoked, but I spent plenty of time hanging out with friends who did. How did I ever survive the onslaught of secondhand smoke? 

It should go without saying that if a business owner wants to allow smoking in his bar or convenience store, that should be his decision. He doesn't care if I have to hold my breath while I grab my Big Gulp and cup cakes. He's making his money on the slot players, most of whom smoke. Besides, convenience stores are in the vice business. If it weren't for cigarettes, alcohol, caffeine and sugar, what would they sell? So now we'll pick and choose which vices he's allowed to accommodate. Are they coming for my cup cakes next? 

As for the horrendous practice of smoking in the slot machine alcove at the grocery store, who even notices? It's truly ironic to hear parents whine about slot players smoking in the alcove of a grocery store, while they're filling their carts up with frozen pizzas and ice cream. What's worse for kids in the long run: A two-second whiff of secondhand smoke or the lifetime of bad dietary habits parents foster? Obesity is the fastest growing health problem for kids these days. If government were truly interested in protecting the children, we'd mandate recess in school. 

Nowhere in the country are more workers exposed to secondhand smoke than in Las Vegas, yet we don't see casino workers dying in epidemic proportions. I personally worked in a smoky environment for 15 years, often six days a week when I was a singer, and I can still hike, ski and sing without gasping for breath. Is it the healthiest way to earn a living? Of course not, but if that's your desired occupation, you're willing to chance it. 

The slogan, "What happens here, stays here," may soon become "Nothing much is allowed to happen here" at the rate we're going. Both Questions 4 and 5 were nothing more than an attempt by the high and mighty to tell you how to live your life, based on their determination of what is or isn't good for you. Liberals always ignore facts and push the "it's for your own good" agenda, but I expect voters to have enough sense, economically and practically, to see through the propaganda. Apparently, my expectations are too high. As a native Nevadan, I'm not thrilled with all the amenities my state has to offer, but adult choices and unrestrained business opportunities made this state economically successful, and we've all reaped the benefits. Let's not allow outsiders with misplaced compassion and left-coast logic to destroy the last sliver of the Old West. LW