Posted 5/12/2008 05:56:00 PM by Douglas

Another smoking ban narrowly defeated in Amarillo, or as I like to call it, America!

Amarillo residents have once against snuffed out a citywide smoking ban.

Amarillo's second attempt at a smoking ban Saturday was as close as its 2005 try.

"Everyone wants to change our way of life," said Scott Camarata, who heads Speak Out Amarillo, a group opposing the ban. "There's nothing wrong with the way our life is now."

Damn right, buddy. Nothing wrong with people choosing to kill themselves, if that's what they want to do. But don't laugh, there was some pretty compelling science this time around:

A smoking study released this week is adding to the pile of evidence of the possible harmful effects of secondhand smoke.

Breathe Easy Amarillo, an organization that pushed Amarillo's smoking ban to a vote this Saturday, and the American Heart Association took the release of the study to further support a ban on smoking in most public places.

The study, conducted by the Center for Tobacco Control Research & Education at the University of California-San Francisco, found that even a 30-minute exposure to secondhand smoke causes damage to the heart, arteries and other blood vessels, as well as the structures that repair them.

However, there were issues with the study. The study was conducted on 10 people in their late 20s and early 30s. The individuals were placed in an enclosed area, simulating the smoke exposure that would take place at a bar, according to the study.

Whether the damage was permanent was not addressed, according to a brief of the study.

Give me a freakin' break. A study bought and paid for by the group that wants to ban smoking, consisting of 10 people? Where was this held, on Colin Farell's couch? Because I bet 100% of those respondents found the experience, and I quote, "awesome."

Smokers already have to go somewhere else to smoke. Let them, and shut up about it.