--although my mother smoked through all three of her pregnancies, and none of her three sons will go anywhere near cigarettes, or anything else than requires inhalation.

I do understand that those who smoke do feel that their individual rights are being trampled on quite a lot lately. I tend to look at this as a public health problem, not a rights problem, however. To me, smoking in enclosed public places cannot be condoned because the act of smoking results in other people breathing in potentially dangerous substances they did not consent to inhale. Smoking in the ventilated outside can be condoned, as people do have the option to move away. Smoking in private depends on the wishes of the people involved.

I liken this to alcohol consumption--drinking is fine, until one engages in an activity, while under the influence, that involves the possible mitigtion of other people's welfare, such as driving, operating construction machinery, performing surgery (!) . . .

I do extend this to other polluting activities--I think we should be far more regulatory about the release of toxins into the atmosphere and the aquifer. It's the old "my right to swing my fist ends where your nose (or lung) begins".