Alpharetta is considering a tobacco ban at its six city parks and along its more than six miles of greenway trails. And the City Council appears to be on board. The city’s Recreation and Parks Commission originally proposed banning all tobacco use within 25 feet of organized activities, such as athletic events. But City Council members said at a work session Monday that a complete ban made more sense. Mayor Arthur Letchas said that determi ... Jump to full article >>

It’s getting pretty darn near illegal to light up cancer stick anywhere in California. State lawmakers approved a bill to outlaw smoking at 278 state parks and beaches. As reported at True/Slant, with the future of smoking uncertain in California, let’s look at a brief history of the evolution of smoking bans in order to find out how we got to the place we’re currently at: 1575, a Mexican ecclesiastical council constructed a ... Jump to full article >>

These days I usually do a double-take if I see someone smoking in a car when there are kids in the back. Something that two decades ago was seen as completely normal is now so weird it sends a signal to the back of the brain telling the unconscious that something isn’t right. It’s so socially unacceptable that if you asked any of the yummy mummies around my part of the world if they minded if you smoked around their kids, they’d probably h ... Jump to full article >>

Banning smoking at state beaches and parks is a win for the public and for the environment. There are times when a day at the beach feels more like a frolic in an ashtray, with cigarette butts liberally strewn through the sand and between our toes. On beach cleanup days in California, they are the No. 1 trash item that the volunteers pick up — 340,221 in a single day in 2009. That alone was a good enough reason for the Assembly to pass Sen ... Jump to full article >>