Dear Editor:
Re: Ban smoking in all parks, Letters to the Editor, Burnaby NOW, March 2.
Let me start by saying I am not a smoker. I could not agree more with the writer.
To see cigarettes butts all over the parks, or anywhere else for that matter, it is absolutely not the most pleasant thing to see.
I believe there should be fines put in place for those who throw their butts on the ground.
I believe that the banning of smoking in all indoor public places was the wisest and necessary thing to do in order to have a healthier environment, and consequently work towards eradicating some of disease related to second-hand smoking.
However, that said, to ban smoking in all parks and other outdoor places, it seems to me, that we would be taking this whole thing a little too far. If the government should prohibit smoking in all places, then it should prohibit the sale of tobacco entirely. Yes, I'm aware of the contraband effect this would have. At the same time, it would seem ludicrous to me that it's legal to buy cigarettes, contribute to an enormous tax revenue, but practically illegal to smoke them.
Frank De Cesare, Burnaby
