Yakima City Council Considering e-Cigarette Ban

It's hard to argue with the the mountain of evidence about the harmful effects of cigarettes and second-hand smoke. But e-cigs only emit vapor. So WHY is Yakima considering a ban?

Is it about stigma of people puffing away with it in their mouth? Does the vapor offend others?

The Yakima City Council Tuesday will be holding a public meeting to discuss a potential ban on e-cigs in places where convention cigarettes are already illegal.

KNDO-TV in Yakima talked so a number of people, with varying opinions. One pointed out the environmental impact is completely different with the vapor, no second-hand smoke, so why consider a ban? Another felt it was the visual message that smoking even an e-cig sends - that it's "ok".

While we believe young people should be cautioned about the habit-forming practice of smoking even and e-cig, and the effects of nicotine on the body, this is an interesting situation.

Does an e-cig ban go too far? Is it infringing upon the rights of those who use them? I personally have never been keen on "big government" telling me what to do. I am ok with conventional smoking restrictions, but people do have the right to smoke as long as they don't infringe upon others. Even more so with e-cigs. While not all behavior is necessarily good for us, we do have the right of CHOICE.

You're not smart if you don't wear a helmet while motorcycling by yourself, but the government doesn't have the right to tell you you HAVE to wear one.

This will be an interesting issue, because if a few cities pass such bans, watch for others to fall in line.