If You Smoke...

...do not come to Long Beach. Or Santa Monica either. Or a lot of other California cities.

I sit on a bench overlooking the beach on Ocean Blvd. counting heads. Guesswork: a quarter to half mile in either direction, less than a dozen people on the beach. Lots of air space overhead, west, east, south and north of any individual who would, if allowed, enjoy a smoke. The wisp of smoke from a cigarette, cigar, or pipe is quickly carried in the wind and dissipates.

Yet the hysterical people of Long Beach are so afraid they will get lung cancer if anyone smokes, smoking is not only banned at the beach, but in all Long Beach parks. City Council was considering banning smoking in small parks, guess they decided if someone is walking along Spring Street at El Dorado park, they will harm the lungs of someone strolling by the duck pond near Willow and Studebarker.

I feel for all the homeless that hang out at Lincoln Park having nowhere else to go. I imagine they will leave the park, smoke on the sidewalk at Pacific Avenue or around the promenade. I imagine, next up on City Council agenda will be to ban smoking on sidewalks and near City Hall and Main library.

Yes, yes, I know cigarette's are disgusting, nasty and now, criminal, habit. Yet many of those homeless smoking at Lincoln Park became homeless due to a circuitous route after serving in the U.S. military.

We need to strike those words "land of the free, home of the brave" from the Star-Spangled Banner.