Here’s a little background… Yesterday evening, the Marietta City Council voted to ban smoking in the city square which is a public park. While I don’t particularly like ciggarett smoke, it doesn’t bother me when people do it in an open space such as A PARK. What does bother me is the fact that the city council feels the need to protect the guests to the park to this extent. Apparently, its more smokey at the square then I thought. Anyways, here’s a letter I wrote to the Council and Mayor this morning. It’s not as good as I had hoped, but I think it gets the job done…

Dear Marietta City Council,

I’m afraid you have failed the citizens of Marietta, GA, by enacting what is possibly the most inane piece of legislation possible. A smoking ban in a Public Park? Are you serious? Don’t get me wrong, smoking is a nuisance, and it should be banned in public places such as buildings, or other CONFINED areas where there isn’t an abundance of fresh air to replace the foul odor created, but in an outdoor atmosphere, such as the one at the Square, it’s just plain ridiculous to ban smoking. While you’re at it, you may want to consider banning driving around the square, mowing lawns near public parks, and walking dogs on the square as well as each of those contribute just as much harm to a person’s well being as smoking.

It’s this kind of encroachment in to the lives of individuals that causes a sour taste in the mouths of your constituents, and it’s one step closer to the socialist regimes that the United States used to stand against.

It might make sense that instead of a BLANKET ban on smoking in the park, you limit it to certain areas of the park. During expected high traffic times (such as the 4th of July, summer concerts or the taste of Marietta) traffic may in fact be lower now that you’ve banned smoking in that area. Was the “smoking ban” a rash decision or did the city council take time to think of and consider all the effects that such a ban would have on future activities?

As a frequent visitor of the square, my wife and I love to bring the kids to play on the train, to hear the music and to see Santa Claus, I was severely disappointed to hear that the city council was taking steps to further encroach on the liberties of their constituents. What’s next? Banning the selling of cigarettes inside City Limits?

Sincerely,

Mark Angeli

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