Screening out smoke

The Island Now

The smokers of Long Island have lost another battle.

In the Town of North Hempstead it is now illegal to smoke in a park or on the beach other than in designated areas. And smoking will be banned in parks within 50 feet of any public building

For the smokers who have lost the right to light up almost anywhere besides their homes or their cars, the new law is no doubt frustrating.

In the words of Town of North Hempstead Supervisor Jon Kaiman, “This is something whose time has come.”

The vote by the town board to extend the ban on smoking follows a public campaign led by the Tobacco Action Coalition of Long Island.

Enforcing the ban won’t be easy. Police officers won’t want to be handing out tickets to friends and neighbors for this new crime and there is no money to hire a smoking patrol.

Still in the year 2011, this is a step in the right direction.

A Blank Slate Editorial

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