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No more chewing tobacco at local ballfields

By adamg on Thu, 09/03/2015 - 10:29am

The City Council yesterday approved an ordinance banning the use of smokeless tobacco at all professional and amateur sports venues in the city. The measure needs the signature of Mayor Walsh, but since he originally proposed it, he'll probably sign it.

At-large City Councilor Michael Flaherty said the measure is a step towards helping young people avoid oral cancer and other problems the stuff can cause.

Neighborhoods: 
Boston
Topics: 
Politics
Free tagging: 
City Council
Michael Flaherty
Marty Walsh
Fenway Park
public health


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Comments

By anon on Thu, 09/03/2015 - 10:38am.

Remember when adults had the freedom to use legal products in public when it caused no harm to others?

By cybah on Thu, 09/03/2015 - 10:51am.

The city council knows whats best for us, right?

Yes the same people that thought they deserved a 20% raise.. right.

By lbb on Thu, 09/03/2015 - 2:58pm.

What is fascism?

By PBones on Thu, 09/03/2015 - 11:06am.

Does this apply to the athletes, on the field? I rather doubt it, but that seems like it would be the most meaningful step to prevent kids from using this.

By JeffT on Thu, 09/03/2015 - 11:29am.

Yes it also applies to the athletes.

By PBones on Fri, 09/04/2015 - 9:55pm.

My question wasn't specific, but I was thinking of the Red Sox (and visitors) specifically. I just can't imagine an officer walking up to David Ortiz and saying "Excuse me, Big Papi, you can't chew here anymore".

But hey, if it works that way and it stops the pro players, that'd be huge. The MLB themselves ought to ban it, but this would be a start.

By 02132 on Thu, 09/03/2015 - 12:06pm.

Not only does it apply to the athletes, it was written with the athletes specifically in mind. Pretty much designed to enforce good role modelling in the ballpark.

By anon on Thu, 09/03/2015 - 2:05pm.

Since when is it ok for the government to use legal force to create good "role models"?

By anon on Thu, 09/03/2015 - 2:12pm.

They are athletes. Not role models.

By anon on Thu, 09/03/2015 - 3:32pm.

Does this also apply to the labor? I look forward to Walsh checking the gums of the steelworkers for dip working there this offseason.

By Neighbor2 on Thu, 09/03/2015 - 11:35am.

I really don't want the government making these choices for me.

By itchy on Thu, 09/03/2015 - 1:44pm.

That shit is vile.

By Michael on Fri, 09/04/2015 - 10:22pm.

No more tobacco juice on the Metros and scratch tickets and dog crap and Dunkie's cups!

By anon on Thu, 09/03/2015 - 12:17pm.

It boggles my mind that anyone born after 1970 in the USA thinks it's a good idea to try tobacco. What are they thinking?

By lbb on Thu, 09/03/2015 - 3:01pm.

Me too, but the message is clearly not getting across. Clearly there are a lot of ignorant people (some of them with educations and no excuse) who have a lot of wishful-thinking beliefs about tobacco -- look at the number of people in that age range who smoke, which is a blatantly stupid thing to do. If you smoke, you WILL die an ugly unpleasant death, guaranteed. The only question is which flavor of ugly unpleasant death it will be.

By Rick C on Thu, 09/03/2015 - 12:58pm.

People can still get shitfaced drunk and piss in the bleachers.

By Michael on Thu, 09/03/2015 - 3:10pm.

But it's not like kids are influenced to drink beer in any way

By bibliotequetressnotloggedin... on Thu, 09/03/2015 - 4:15pm.

Since when does the gummint required to provide you with a baseball field? Are they infringing on your enshrined right to play half-assed middle-aged softball?

Given that we do have parks, why do the Park Maintenance employees have to deal with your gross tobacco gobs? Are the "fascists" stopping you from crapping on third base, too?

Enjoy your refreshing smokeless tobacco all you like in the comfort of your favorite saloon, between gunfights and can-can dances. I was a long-time smoker and enjoyed every cigarette I ever had, but even at my most addicted, I could figure out a way to not smoke in my seat at Fenway for the course of a game. If you can't manage that, how do you ever leave home?

By Problem on Thu, 09/03/2015 - 5:51pm.

This applies to private property within the city limits too. That is the problem.

By roadman on Fri, 09/04/2015 - 1:22pm.

where the public is invited to watche and/or participate in events is not quite the same as private property.