Put out your butts

And so the ban begins...DC is one giant step closer to instituting a smoking ban in all of its bars and restaraunts. As a pretty regular patron of DC drinking establishments, I'm certainly not going to miss the pile of smokey laundry I have to do at the end of every weekend. Now maybe that has something to do with the fact that I have sworn off of casual/social smoking (which means I lit up every time I had a pint in my hand) or maybe I think it will lead to better overall health. Either way on an individual level I won't miss the public smoking.

However as a person of libertarianish tendencies I find it ridiculous that the government should be interfering in the way that privately-owned businesses choose to operate. If bar owners wish to ban smoking in their establishments, so be it. And those that wish to permit smoking should be equally entitled. What I don't understand is where this legislation is getting its momentum from. Markets work. If there is a substantial public demand for smoke-free establishments businesses will respond. But I don't think that is the case here. The DC government is legislating this for a reason which they have not fully explained. I wonder what's up.