The Right to Choose

On July 4th, 1776 a group of people decided to declare their independence and created a famous document which proclaimed the principles of equality and liberty and said "that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." This group of people were the Continental Congress and the document was the American Declaration of Independence. More than two centuries later America celebrates another victory for basic human rights. The right to live without fear of personal damage.
With the discovery of America the Old World discovered another great thing...Tobacco. It had been used for centuries by the Native American tribes in their religious practices as an entheogen. But the world had now discovered its favorite poison. Ever since, smokers have been putting the lives of non-smokers at risk through their second hand smoke. Finally the world is waking up to the harmful effects of tobacco and America is once again leading the crusade against smoking and tobacco. According to a recent report a lot of lobbies in the United States celebrated a partial victory this year. The fact being celebrated was that more than half of the American population now lives under strict anti-smoking laws which make smoking illegal in all public places including privately owned bars and restaurants. Finally, the right to life of non-smokers is being upheld by the state. Non-smokers need not live in fear for their lives anymore, the murderous monster called second hand smoke has been banished.
But what about the smokers? What about their right to liberty and the pursuit of happiness? Shouldn't a smoker be allowed a safe haven to smoke in a public place? If a restaurant/bar owner wishes to allow his customers to smoke, shouldn't he be free to do so?
If smoking is such an evil that it has to be banned from public view then why tolerate it at all? Go to the draconian extreme and make it illegal to smoke tobacco, because smoking kills and suicide is as illegal as murder. But that would cut down on tax revenues, wouldn't it? So lets all be hypocritical bastards and say that you can smoke but only in your private space. It is fine if you drink in a public place and knock a few people down while driving back home, but you can't expose them to your filthy smoke which might kill them in the long term. Statistically speaking, many more people die every year in the United States due to road accidents than due to exposure to second hand smoke. Let us carry this further and ban parking spaces in and around places that serve alcohol.
Unlike what most of us have been made to believe, the issue at hand is not just one of public health. The issue concerns basic human rights and the way we look at modern society in the 'free world'. The basic human right is not the right to life, but the right to choose. And by enforcing anti-smoking regimes the smokers are being denied this basic right. This is happening in the nation which is the self-proclaimed leader of the 'free world' and champion of democracy, liberty and human rights. The message going out is "We won't tolerate intolerance on the basis of color, sexuality, religion or social status but we'll be intolerant of anybody who smokes."
I agree that for many people second hand smoke is a highly avoidable risk and I respect their right to live in a smoke free environment. But if a man, knowing about all the ills associated with smoking, chooses to smoke then isn't it his 'unalienable right' to do so? Why can't there be bars and restaurants which allow smoking? Then anyone who does not want any second hand smoke can choose not to go to any such place, while letting the smokers retain their right to smoke.
Talking about normal individuals in a normal situation, if any non-smoker were to politely ask a smoker not to smoke while around them then I'm sure the smoker would respect the request. Let smokers smoke freely unless someone around them objects. Why should common courtesy be codified into laws? Let everyone get the unalienable rights to life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness and above all, the right to choose.