Antone's Nightclub
Austin Will Survive and Thrive With Ban
RECEIVED Fri., April 15, 2005
Dear Editor,
I am a native Texan who lived in Austin for five years and moved to Los Angeles two years ago. Los Angeles is one of those radical cities that implemented a smoking ban in bars and clubs – that's right, a city with a thriving nightlife has a smoking ban. When I first moved to the city, I was shocked to find that smoking was prohibited inside restaurants, bars, and clubs and yet they were still packed most nights of the week. And as is the case with many Austin transplants in L.A., most of my friends are from Austin, and most of them smoke. How could all of these smoke-friendly Texans survive in a land that doesn't allow you to light up indoors when throwing back drinks with friends or dancing the night away to your fave band? I'm sorry to break hearts, but everyone – smokers and nonsmokers alike – has adapted just fine. In fact, now when we return to Austin we complain about how nasty it is to have the smell of smoke forever infused in your hair and clothes from being at a bar for more than 15 minutes. I think that smokers and nonsmokers can agree that the smell of stale smoke on you, as well as the refreshing feeling of your eyes burning, is a less than pleasant experience. If you want to smoke, step outside. It's not as if venues are so large, so cumbersome to navigate, that you will forget how to find your way back inside. In fact, you might even meet some new friends out there.
Somewhere along the line smoking became the icon for individualism and peoples' rights, much to the chagrin of big tobacco I'm sure. And I realize that Austin, as much as it tries to fight it, is a part of Texas: a good-ol'-boys club that loves its smokes as much as it loves its beer. But maybe it's time Austin evolves to the healthy city it portrays itself as. Make a change for cleaner air, inside and out, before the sprawl continues and the smog lingers. Austin will continue to thrive and rock with the ban. It takes an adjustment, but that is life.
I am a native Texan who lived in Austin for five years and moved to Los Angeles two years ago. Los Angeles is one of those radical cities that implemented a smoking ban in bars and clubs – that's right, a city with a thriving nightlife has a smoking ban. When I first moved to the city, I was shocked to find that smoking was prohibited inside restaurants, bars, and clubs and yet they were still packed most nights of the week. And as is the case with many Austin transplants in L.A., most of my friends are from Austin, and most of them smoke. How could all of these smoke-friendly Texans survive in a land that doesn't allow you to light up indoors when throwing back drinks with friends or dancing the night away to your fave band? I'm sorry to break hearts, but everyone – smokers and nonsmokers alike – has adapted just fine. In fact, now when we return to Austin we complain about how nasty it is to have the smell of smoke forever infused in your hair and clothes from being at a bar for more than 15 minutes. I think that smokers and nonsmokers can agree that the smell of stale smoke on you, as well as the refreshing feeling of your eyes burning, is a less than pleasant experience. If you want to smoke, step outside. It's not as if venues are so large, so cumbersome to navigate, that you will forget how to find your way back inside. In fact, you might even meet some new friends out there.
Somewhere along the line smoking became the icon for individualism and peoples' rights, much to the chagrin of big tobacco I'm sure. And I realize that Austin, as much as it tries to fight it, is a part of Texas: a good-ol'-boys club that loves its smokes as much as it loves its beer. But maybe it's time Austin evolves to the healthy city it portrays itself as. Make a change for cleaner air, inside and out, before the sprawl continues and the smog lingers. Austin will continue to thrive and rock with the ban. It takes an adjustment, but that is life.
Courtney Kemp
Los Angeles, Calif.
Los Angeles, Calif.