Ralph Wilson Stadium to be Smoke Free

[DrDawkinstein]

Actually, this is the best post in this sickening thread. Sickening in the sense that people's rights are being stripped away as others cheer.

 

 

LOL, where in Constitution does it outline the right to "Do drugs and pollute the air for others around you"?

 

How selfish can smokers get? Calling it a "right"... PUH-LEASE

 

Youre like a group of little kids who dont understand that the school really isnt infringing on your right to privacy by searching your lockers. It's the school's lockers, its their rules. Same here. Get over it.

 

Id like weed to be legalized. NOT because I feel I have the right to get messed up, or because I feel I have the right to smoke anywhere I want to. But because I see the tax drain it causes, and I feel I should be able to do what I want in my own house.

 

When Ralph or NYS tells you that you cant smoke at home anymore, than you can complain. Until then, show some respect to others around you. Something that rarely happens anymore at any level.

 

 

Edit: I should also point out that I dont feel that smoking was a major problem, or a problem at all, at the stadium. But if they choose to ban it, so be it.

Edited June 15, 2011 by DrDareustein

[Bill from NYC]

[/b].

When Ralph or NYS tells you that you cant smoke at home anymore, than you can complain. Until then, show some respect to others around you. Something that rarely happens anymore at any level.

 

This is true. Thanks for cementing my decision of not attending a game this season.

[plenzmd1]

Actually, this is the best post in this sickening thread. Sickening in the sense that people's rights are being stripped away as others cheer.

 

I have a decision to make. I, along with my 3 best friend of 45 years have attended a Bills game every year since the Bills/Miami game of 1994. Every year we leave on a Saturday and come home on Monday. It gets expensive. There is nobody we have ever partied with from this site that will tell you that we skimp. I have made true friends from TBD, and I don't do this easily.

 

My inclination is to not attend a game this season. Brandon helped up the team, now he is ing up the game day experience. Hypocrisy abounds in this thread as well. I have done a few things too many for humanity to be treated as a criminal for wanting to smoke a cigarette on the ramp, away from those "offended."

 

We have spent thousands of much needed dollars in the WNY economy. I am thinking at this point that the right thing to do is let the market sort itself out and keep the money in my pocket.

 

Thanks again for a great post.

Bill I totally agree with you. I can guarantee there will be people who do not go the game because of this. This is not step out of the bar and get a smoke when you need one..this is no smoking anywhere on the grounds.I know if i was still smoking I would damn well be finding a place to have a butt. There is just no way this is going to enforceable with current level of security...and I mean ZERO chance.

 

So either ticket prices are going up....or this is just a sham that is going to get people in a tizzy when they see some dude trying to sneak a Marlboro. Can't wait till the first fight breaks out, and some other disturbance is happening and no security around cause dude was escorting someone out of the stadium for smoking a butt.

[DrDawkinstein]

If you cant go 3 hours without a fix, you have bigger problems than having your "rights taken away".

[Van_phelaN1]

LOL, where in Constitution does it outline the right to "Do drugs and pollute the air for others around you"?

 

How selfish can smokers get? Calling it a "right"... PUH-LEASE

 

Youre like a group of little kids who dont understand that the school really isnt infringing on your right to privacy by searching your lockers. It's the school's lockers, its their rules. Same here. Get over it.

 

Id like weed to be legalized. NOT because I feel I have the right to get messed up, or because I feel I have the right to smoke anywhere I want to. But because I see the tax drain it causes, and I feel I should be able to do what I want in my own house.

 

When Ralph or NYS tells you that you cant smoke at home anymore, than you can complain. Until then, show some respect to others around you. Something that rarely happens anymore at any level.

 

 

Edit: I should also point out that I dont feel that smoking was a major problem, or a problem at all, at the stadium. But if they choose to ban it, so be it.

 

It wans't a major problem IMO either, but you know what they say about opinions. They make a op out of in and ions...wait...that's not right...

[eball]

E-man, this is utter b.s. I mean absolute nonsense. Approx. 75% of domestic violence cases involve alcohol. This I know. What percentage of fights at RWS and accidents after the game do YOU think involve alcohol? C'mon.....let's have an honest conversation here.

 

My point is that if something need be banned, alcohol would be MUCH more important to the health and safety of those who attend games. I have been posting back and forth with you for years and cannot think of a way how you could possibly dispute this. You are obviously a smart person.

 

Please put away the PC nonsense and have a serious conversation.

Bill, I'm not suggesting alcohol doesn't contribute to bad decisions. I'm saying those people are held accountable and punished, and most drinkers don't have a problem obeying the law. Smokers seem to think they have the "right" (there's that word again) to puff away wherever they damn well please, and how dare someone tell them not to. The response is always, "if you don't like cigarette smoke, stay away from smokers." Well, THAT, my friend, is utter b.s. Every one of you who lights up a cigarette in public is essentially saying, "I've got an addiction and I don't give a damn what that means for anyone else."

 

Decisions to ban smoking are being made because the public is demanding it. We're sick of the smoke/smell, the health risk, the litter (yes, dropping all of your butts on the ground is littering). Smokers have a losing argument and they're just not willing to accept it. You can thank the tobacco companies who have gotten rich beyond their wildest dreams for continuing to make sure you can support your addictive, health-destroying habit.

 

Anyway -- I'm really sorry if not being able to light up means you can't enjoy a game at the Ralph. As much as I like to drink, I'd still go to Bills games if I couldn't buy a beer. After all, I attend college games (football, basketball, and baseball) down here at UNC all the time, and there are no alcohol sales.

 

Cheers and Go Bills.

[bbb]

You chose to pick up the first one and put in in your mouth just like I did. I didn't say it was easy, i just said it's possible. Sorry I didn't see your other post about how you quit. Poor thread reading on my part. However that doesn't change anything.

 

As far as going to the games: I live in Albany so I don't make every game. I try to make it to several a year but the last two years I have only been able to make it to one game each (last year was the eye-sore that was our home opener against Miami but CJ waved to my gf while she took a picture so at least someone was satisfied with the game )

 

So I am there enough to see the people who smoke in the stands, and YES they DO exist. To be honest, I am with you in that I was never bothered by it and people who walk past the "smoking area" and still complain about it are stupid.

 

As far as the statement being 100 percent bs? That isn't hard to imagine but if I was going to pick out all the BS statements that have come out of One Bills Drive we would be talking about a lot more than than smoking.

 

No doubt, it's just the latest in a long line of BS statements to come out of OBD.

 

If there's smoking in the stands, then those should people should be immediately kicked out. I think because I have seasons, and it's mostly sth around me, I don't see that.....But, I would imagine that that does happen in the end zones and upper deck.

 

And, like you said, those who walk past the smoking area and then complain are just stupid.

 

I think my biggest concern, that I alluded to, is that people like Bill from NYC will just say screw it, I'll save my money and you can have your smoke-free environment. The way it has worked for the last several years seems like it's fine for everyone.

[Bill from NYC]

If you cant go 3 hours without a fix, you have bigger problems than having your "rights taken away".

 

If you are talking to me, you missed the entire point of my appreciative post to you.

As for having problems, I suppose we all do. My guess is that you have at least as many as me.

[Van_phelaN1]

 

 

The point I think some of you are trying to make, is that someone who drinks may impact others through actions such as drunk driving or verbal/physical abuse, so why not ban drinking as well?

 

The flaw in that logic is that the actions of someone who drinks are indeed regulated and punishable. Drunk driving is against the law. Verbal and/or physical abuse may constitute illegal assault, or result in expulsion from an event. But a person -- in fact, MOST people -- can drink lawfully and never have any sort of negative impact on anyone else. EVERY smoker pollutes the air around him.

 

 

Tell you what, go give that same speech to someone who has lost a loved one in a drunk driving accident. Just because the act is punishable, Doesn't mean it can't have an effect on the people who are not participating in the consumption of alcohol.

 

Besides that, I agree 100 percent. As a former smoker I tend to sympathize with those that do, but they are wrong in this argument. Good post.

 

 

 

If there's smoking in the stands, then those should people should be immediately kicked out. I think because I have seasons, and it's mostly sth around me, I don't see that.....But, I would imagine that that does happen in the end zones and upper deck.

 

 

 

You know, I never even thought of that angle to it. Usually we are by the endzones (thank god ive never suffered the upper deck) but I am probably around all kinds of folks that do not attend even as often as I might. I am probably more prone to be around those kind of people than you are with the season. I too would hate to see less fans attend and support because of this. I guess we will have to wait and see. Thanks for the constructive arguments

[Delete This Account]

If you cant go 3 hours without a fix, you have bigger problems than having your "rights taken away".

you don't much about smoking, do you. do the math. a pack-a-day smoker goes through say 20 cigarettes in a day. there's say 16 waking hours per day. that means, a smoker generally has one every 45 minutes or so on average.

the beauty of when you're having a beer or two, is to sit back and enjoy a cigarette. this is why it's a bit of a big deal when involving bars and clubs. a good long puff on a cigarette is invigorating. and it's an itch that likes to be scratched, especially after a long flight or with your first coffee in the morning, or after a great meal or alone with a glass of good irish whiskey or at half-time.

 

it's no more of a right as salt and sugar is, or twitter for that matter. and buying cigarettes and smoking them in some places are in fact still legal.

 

as for those posters who suggest we smokers are seeking sympathy, well, no. we do, in fact, have a right to voice our opinions. and we're a thick-skinned bunch, too. it's the self-righteous non-smokers and ex-smokers, who kind of bug us with their holier than thou sermonizing, demonizing and tisk-tisking.

 

for those who don't smoke, good for you. for those who are trying to quit, good luck. for those of you smokers reading this, and having the itch to light one up, please do so.

 

after i finishing writing this, i plan to walk down three flights of stairs and have a smoke, and i intend to enjoy it.

 

jw

[Bill from NYC]

Bill, I'm not suggesting alcohol doesn't contribute to bad decisions. I'm saying those people are held accountable and punished, and most drinkers don't have a problem obeying the law. Smokers seem to think they have the "right" (there's that word again) to puff away wherever they damn well please, and how dare someone tell them not to. The response is always, "if you don't like cigarette smoke, stay away from smokers." Well, THAT, my friend, is utter b.s. Every one of you who lights up a cigarette in public is essentially saying, "I've got an addiction and I don't give a damn what that means for anyone else."

 

Decisions to ban smoking are being made because the public is demanding it. We're sick of the smoke/smell, the health risk, the litter (yes, dropping all of your butts on the ground is littering). Smokers have a losing argument and they're just not willing to accept it. You can thank the tobacco companies who have gotten rich beyond their wildest dreams for continuing to make sure you can support your addictive, health-destroying habit.

 

Anyway -- I'm really sorry if not being able to light up means you can't enjoy a game at the Ralph. As much as I like to drink, I'd still go to Bills games if I couldn't buy a beer. After all, I attend college games (football, basketball, and baseball) down here at UNC all the time, and there are no alcohol sales.

 

Cheers and Go Bills.

 

First of all, I do appreciate the tone of this post.

 

But I must say that one dui who paralyzes an accident victimm does FAR more harm to humanity than even an inconsiderate smoker who sneaks a cigarette in a seating area. It isn't close.

 

The two are not to be rationally compared, but this is merely my opinion. I will have to make decisions in terms of attending games accordingly. So will society at large.

 

EDIT: I am going with that my decision to not attend a game is solidified. Perhaps someone else will be glad about this and make up for the loss of revenue to WNY.

Edited June 15, 2011 by Bill from NYC

[Van_phelaN1]

you don't much about smoking, do you. do the math. a pack-a-day smoker goes through say 20 cigarettes in a day. there's say 16 waking hours per day. that means, a smoker generally has one every 45 minutes or so on average.

the beauty of when you're having a beer or two, is to sit back and enjoy a cigarette. this is why it's a bit of a big deal when involving bars and clubs. a good long puff on a cigarette is invigorating. and it's an itch that likes to be scratched, especially after a long flight or with your first coffee in the morning, or after a great meal or alone with a glass of good irish whiskey or at half-time.

 

it's no more of a right as salt and sugar is, or twitter for that matter. and buying cigarettes and smoking them in some places are in fact still legal.

 

as for those posters who suggest we smokers are seeking sympathy, well, no. we do, in fact, have a right to voice our opinions. and we're a thick-skinned bunch, too. it's the self-righteous non-smokers and ex-smokers, who kind of bug us with their holier than thou sermonizing, demonizing and tisk-tisking.

 

for those who don't smoke, good for you. for those who are trying to quit, good luck. for those of you smokers reading this, and having the itch to light one up, please do so.

 

after i finishing writing this, i plan to walk down three flights of stairs and have a smoke, and i intend to enjoy it.

 

jw

 

Not all smokers are pack a day smokers. Nobody is demonizing smokers, there are new rules in place just like at the bar or your office building. Again nobody is telling you that you CANT smoke. They are just saying you can't do it in a particular location. It's the people in NYC who can't even smoke outside in the street anymore that I feel bad for. There has to be worse pollution in the air of NY than cigarettes...

 

EDIT: by "your" building I of course mean it as a generalization, for all I know you work outside lol

Edited June 15, 2011 by Van_phelaN1

[bbb]

You know, I never even thought of that angle to it. Usually we are by the endzones (thank god ive never suffered the upper deck) but I am probably around all kinds of folks that do not attend even as often as I might. I am probably more prone to be around those kind of people than you are with the season. I too would hate to see less fans attend and support because of this. I guess we will have to wait and see. Thanks for the constructive arguments

 

Thanks to you, too.......It's really strange how much of a different experience it is depending on where you sit. An old girlfriend of mine who I am still friends with came up from Binghamton for a Dolphins game with her Fin loving family, and said she couldn't believe all the fights. I said "What? I didn't see any fights!"........I think I have to realize that I shouldn't be minimizing bad fan behavior just because it's not in my section.

 

Not all smokers are pack a day smokers. Nobody is demonizing smokers, there are new rules in place just like at the bar or your office building. Again nobody is telling you that you CANT smoke. They are just saying you can't do it in a particular location. It's the people in NYC who can't even smoke outside in the street anymore that I feel bad for. There has to be worse pollution in the air of NY than cigarettes...

 

EDIT: by "your" building I of course mean it as a generalization, for all I know you work outside lol

 

No, he writes for the AP, so he doesn't really work at all.

[BUFFALOKIE]

It's a free country, well no it's not. Our freedoms / privacy will be judged & slowly taken away, it starts with small stuff. Next you'll here prisons are smoke free,'that'll start a riot.

 

The longest twelve hours of my life was spent in the smoke free county slammer.

[Delete This Account]

Not all smokers are pack a day smokers. Nobody is demonizing smokers, there are new rules in place just like at the bar or your office building. Again nobody is telling you that you CANT smoke. They are just saying you can't do it in a particular location. It's the people in NYC who can't even smoke outside in the street anymore that I feel bad for. There has to be worse pollution in the air of NY than cigarettes...

 

EDIT: by "your" building I of course mean it as a generalization, for all I know you work outside lol

with all due respect, i was responding to the one poster who wrote that they're not going to feel sorry for me. fine. i'm not asking for sympathy. i also question the one poster's tone to Bill/NYC, who suggested he has bigger issues if he can't get through three hours without having a fix.

 

why?

 

we are the new lepers. a dwindling minority. fine. but there are too many hints of the tsk-tskers that have come aboard on this thread, much like we smokers encounter occasionally outside the bars and buildings where we smoke that provide us evil-eye looks. uhhh, what do you want us to do. you've kicked us out of the bar and out of the buildings, and now you're wondering what we're doing out here. well, smoking. that's what in fact we are doing.

 

as for rights, i do have the right to smoke in a legally designated space. and when that right is taken away, then we all know, the terrorists will have won, no.

 

jw

 

ha, ha bbb.

[DrDawkinstein]

If you are talking to me, you missed the entire point of my appreciative post to you.

As for having problems, I suppose we all do. My guess is that you have at least as many as me.

 

no no no, definitely not directed toward anyone specifically, especially not you. was just an off the cuff observation.

 

of course we all have problems. and if our biggest problem is we cant do the drug of our choice at a million dollar sporting event, then id say we're pretty well off with our First World problems.

[The Senator]

you don't much about smoking, do you. do the math. a pack-a-day smoker goes through say 20 cigarettes in a day. there's say 16 waking hours per day. that means, a smoker generally has one every 45 minutes or so on average.

the beauty of when you're having a beer or two, is to sit back and enjoy a cigarette. this is why it's a bit of a big deal when involving bars and clubs. a good long puff on a cigarette is invigorating. and it's an itch that likes to be scratched, especially after a long flight or with your first coffee in the morning, or after a great meal or alone with a glass of good irish whiskey or at half-time.

 

it's no more of a right as salt and sugar is, or twitter for that matter. and buying cigarettes and smoking them in some places are in fact still legal.

 

as for those posters who suggest we smokers are seeking sympathy, well, no. we do, in fact, have a right to voice our opinions. and we're a thick-skinned bunch, too. it's the self-righteous non-smokers and ex-smokers, who kind of bug us with their holier than thou sermonizing, demonizing and tisk-tisking.

 

for those who don't smoke, good for you. for those who are trying to quit, good luck. for those of you smokers reading this, and having the itch to light one up, please do so.

 

after i finishing writing this, i plan to walk down three flights of stairs and have a smoke, and i intend to enjoy it.

 

jw

Enjoy it, John!

 

Because you won't be able to when, if lung and/or throat cancer doesn't strike first, emphysema finally sets in and, like my older brother, you're on an oxygen tank 24/7 at the rate of 4 liters/minute, on your way to eventually struggling for your final breaths as your grieving loved ones gaze down on you through the oxygen tent surrounding your deathbed!

 

 

(That's not an admonition, JW, but rather a concerned and caring warning - I also enjoyed the stupid habit for years 'til I finally gave it up for good, hopefully, this past February - only after witnessing my brother continue to smoke and decline after a laryngectomy to slow his stage 4 throat cancer.)

 

.

Edited June 15, 2011 by The Senator

[Bill from NYC]

no no no, definitely not directed toward anyone specifically, especially not you. was just an off the cuff observation.

 

of course we all have problems. and if our biggest problem is we cant do the drug of our choice at a million dollar sporting event, then id say we're pretty well off with our First World problems.

 

Sorry.

[SDS]

I have a solution to asinine arguments put forth year after year... Offensive arguments so lacking in thought, logic, compassion, and the basic understanding of human anatomy that it can only be addressed with offensive replies...

 

To anyone who has made the following arguments:

 

• being outside means smoking shouldn't bothersome to anyone
  
• smoking is just an unpleasant smell, much like the sight of an unattractive person
  
• Implication that your "right" or "freedom" to smoke supersedes another person's right/freedom to breathe reasonably clean air
  

 

then I have the solution to come to a common understanding.

 

You should be choked.

 

Now, I don't mean choked to death, but you need to be choked. Here is how it would work:

 

1. Hand over $300 to start the process (this covers parking/food/entertainment)

2. The sensitivity administrator would put both hands around your neck and squeeze

3. Pressure on your neck would increase until you start to cough.

4. At that point, the pressure of the choke would be modulated so that subconscious breathing is no longer possible. Every breath requires thought. Every time you seek to breathe it is a conscious decision to attempt to oxygenate your blood. This will result in gasping, discomfort, watery eyes, headaches, nausea, and even holding your breath until you are forced to try and take in more air again.

5. This choke hold will be maintained for 4 hours.

6. While the choke is being applied, the sensitivity administrator will repeatedly say things to you like "we're outside, stop complaining, you can breathe", "Is this what it is like to see an overweight person?", "our military men and women choose to die for the right for me to choke you...", "Difficulty breathing isn't your issue, it is my drinking you should be worried about".

7. After 4 hours, the person being choked will be asked if they enjoyed their day....

 

I think that would help us all get on the same page.

[Bill from NYC]

I have a solution to asinine arguments put forth year after year... Offensive arguments so lacking in thought, logic, compassion, and the basic understanding of human anatomy that it can only be addressed with offensive replies...

 

To anyone who has made the following arguments:

 

• being outside means smoking shouldn't bothersome to anyone
  
• smoking is just an unpleasant smell, much like the sight of an unattractive person
  
• Implication that your "right" or "freedom" to smoke supersedes another person's right/freedom to breathe reasonably clean air
  

 

then I have the solution to come to a common understanding.

 

You should be choked.

 

Now, I don't mean choked to death, but you need to be choked. Here is how it would work:

 

1. Hand over $300 to start the process (this covers parking/food/entertainment)

2. The sensitivity administrator would put both hands around your neck and squeeze

3. Pressure on your neck would increase until you start to cough.

4. At that point, the pressure of the choke would be modulated so that subconscious breathing is no longer possible. Every breath requires thought. Every time you seek to breathe it is a conscious decision to attempt to oxygenate your blood. This will result in gasping, discomfort, watery eyes, headaches, nausea, and even holding your breath until you are forced to try and take in more air again.

5. This choke hold will be maintained for 4 hours.

6. While the choke is being applied, the sensitivity administrator will repeatedly say things to you like "we're outside, stop complaining, you can breathe", "Is this what it is like to see an overweight person?", "our military men and women choose to die for the right for me to choke you...", "Difficulty breathing isn't your issue, it is my drinking you should be worried about".

7. After 4 hours, the person being choked will be asked if they enjoyed their day....

 

I think that would help us all get on the same page.

 

What should happen to drunks who assault and injure others both in and out of the stadium? Do you have an equally imaginative scenario for them?