I consider myself a fairly tolerant person and I respect the freedom of those who smoke. They can poison their lungs and clog their arteries for all I care. But I demand respect in return. I have the freedom to live and breathe in a smoke-free environment—because I do care about my lungs and arteries—and that includes being able to have a beer with my friends in a pub in downtown Reykjavík during weekends without being exposed to cigarette smoke.

Believe me, red and watery eyes, the pungent and aggressive smell of smoke, having to take short, forced breaths, excessive coughing, ash in my hair, holes burnt through my stockings by people smoking on the dance floor, having to wash all my clothes and my hair upon returning home and massive hangovers the next day magnified by the smoke from hundreds of cigarettes which I inhaled, is not my idea of a good night out.    

The only way to withstand this situation was to get absolutely hammered, and well, that is not the recipe for a good night out either. So, before the smoking ban, I was very reluctant to go downtown at night during weekends. Even just one beer exposed me to so much smoke that I could hardly handle it. And I don’t have any respiratory condition like asthma, so I cannot imagine how people who suffer from such a condition could ever go out before the smoking ban.

When the smoking ban took effect in Iceland in June last year I cheered and I went out to celebrate. Oh, the wonderful, clean air (well, apart from the stench of sweat and the occasional farting, but I can live with that). Oh, the wonderful smell of my freshly washed clothes which stayed fairly clean after my night out. I wasn’t the only one who celebrated the smoking ban. Many smokers did too. My uncle, who is a heavy smoker, said he was absolutely fine with the idea of banning smoking in public places. He would just step outside for a cigarette if he felt like it.

I’m sure bartenders were the happiest of all. Imagine working night after night in a dense and toxic cloud of smoke. Apart from the discomfort, imagine what it does to their health. One of my friends worked as a bartender in Café Karólína in Akureyri (which is now wonderfully smoke-free and not any less bohemian) and he told me that he had often felt hungover the morning after his shift, just because of the smoke. He didn’t, of course, have a drop of alcohol while working.

There were a few unhappy voices though. I especially remember the owners of Ölstofan in Reykjavík being against the ban. They even considered a lawsuit. But they did as they were ordered to, sent their smokers outside and Ölstofan was wonderfully smoke-free as well. The smoking ban seemed to be working fine.

But then the winter came. At first it was mild, but since the New Year’s it has been rather harsh. Poor smokers. They had to practice their dirty habit outside in snowstorms and biting frost. I feel so sorry for them... not. If they cannot live without having a cigarette for a few hours, they have to brave the storm. So sorry, I should not have to suffer for their addiction.

Some bar owners do, however, disagree. In protest of the smoking ban and out of respect of their smoking customers (and out of disrespect of their non-smoking customers) they have permitted smoking inside their bars again, including the owners of Barinn and the aforementioned Ölstofan, totally in breach of the law. In some places smoking is only allowed in designated areas (though not thoroughly isolated) and in others only at the bar. Fantastic, that sure prevents bartenders from being exposed to smoke, whose health the creators of the smoking ban was especially concerned about protecting.

Bar owners can whine about losing customers and having their rights deprived by the smoking ban as much as they like, but by not respecting my freedom as a non-smoker they have lost me as a customer. I will not set my foot inside any pub, bar or nightclub which permits smoking indoors until they decide to comply with the law. I urge everyone who respects the freedom of others to boycott these places too.

Apparently bar owners think the smoking ban is vague in terms of how to punish those who are in breach of it, but as it turns out, they can be deprived of their operating license. And if they don’t come to their senses soon, I hope they will.

ESA – eyglo@icelandreview.com