Mmmmhmm, another smoking ban might just be coming to a State near you.

Well, maybe. It’s up for debate. But I wouldn’t be surprised if it gets through – we’ll just be the next (and certainly not the last) in a long line of states or municipalities which have passed legislation which directly denies a proprietor’s right to his own property.

Bans are often bad for business. But with regards to any particular business, you can’t know that, and neither can any politician. I would presume that smoking bans are generally favored by proprietors who would prefer to have a non-smoking restaurant, but who don’t believe such a unilateral move would be profitable. So they turn to rent-seeking, as a means of eliminating the competitive edge held by others, who don’t mind running a business that allows smoking. Curiously, it’s always the restaurant owners who oppose these measures:

The Michigan Restaurant Association opposes the legislation, saying it should be up to restaurant owners and individuals to make that decision.

“I’m a non-smoker and in 2006, one of my restaurants went smoke free and sales increased immediately,” said Larry Schuler, owner of a chain of restaurants including the venerable Schuler’s Restaurant in Marshall. “It was a solid economic decision based on what the customers wanted. But I’m vehemently opposed to this.”

Mr. Schuler might be ardently pro-liberty. Or he might realize that the success of his economic decision is due to a competitive advantage vis-a-vis his competitors, most of whom probably allow smoking. He will earn an economic profit until the competition catches up, or until the market segments itself accordingly. The last thing he wants is a law that encourages – nay, mandates – that his competition adopt his “successful” strategies.

For the record: Nobody is ever “put at risk by second hand smoke.” Choosing to accept the presence of second-hand smoke, or to patronize restaurants, bowling alleys, night-spots, etc., which tolerate smoking is one of the consequences of living in an arguably free society. Either you value the experience of bowling more than you hate second-hand smoke, and you go bowling – or – you really, really hate second hand smoke, and even though you like bowling, you choose not to bowl. Nobody should make this choice for you, and you should not make this choice for anybody else. It is perfectly legal to open a restaurant, bar, bowling alley, strip-club, etc., and prohibit smoking – because this follows naturally from the owner’s right to use his property as he deems appropriate. The smoker cannot cry foul at this any more than the non-smoker ought to be able to cry foul about an ashtray on lane 28.

If you don’t like it, don’t give the owner’s your money, and stop wasting your time trying to figure out a way to force them to take your money.