Smoking • U.S. Open 9 Ball Champion

[smoooothstroke]

I don't want to get into the whole smoking debate but...

Does it not make sence to smoke outdoors rather than in?

Is it to much to ask to just go outside before you light up?

Seams like common courtesy to me...

 

[spktur]

We live in a free market society...presumably.

If enough customers have a problem with smoking and would increase the revenue of the room, whether it is the only one in town or not, the room owner would be stupid to not change to support the demands of his clientele.

The problem is that people proclaim one thing and do another. The silent majority is to blame.

While you may call my comment selfish and stupid, I disagree. It most definitely is selfish in that I don't want legislation telling me what cannot be done in a private business.

I have smoked in a business exactly one time--it was a billiards hall with a cigar shop.

This was the first step to what has been happening in NYC. NYC banned foie gras in restaurants. Next it was trans-fats. Now NYC is banning the selling of soda over 16oz in restaurants. Seattle is trying to ban smoking in public parks. Seattle has banned plastic bags at grocery stores and now forces stores to charge at least a nickel for any bag. What is next? No beef? No pork? No bacon? No tupperware?

The endgame of all this will be that because of weak-minded and weak-willed people many of your rights will be exterminated.

I don't want to live in that world. I would rather live in a world where we make choices based on our own intelligence.

I smoked cigarettes for about a year, recently. I now smoke cigars a few times a week. I give people on the street a wide path when I smoke.

My main point is that people in this country are too lazy to change the world around them.

If you want to live somewhere that is exactly like America except the government tells you exactly what you can and cannot do, move to the UK where it is illegal to work on the outside of your own house without filing the proper paperwork to use a ladder.

dld--no offense taken.

I agree with your thoughts. Let the business owner decide and let the customers decide if they want to do business there. By the way where was the poolroom with the cigar shop? I play in one is why I'm curious.

 

[spktur]

Nashville. Buffalo Billiards.

I was actually there to play a foosball tourney.

dld

I haven't there, about the only room in Nashville I get to is JOB's and don't go there much anymore. I play at Chattanooga Billiard Club. They have cigar shops with the poolrooms too. And the poolrooms are smoker friendly.

 

[lstevedus]

NON SMOKING for ME

I play every Sat nite and some Thursday nights at the 8 Ball Sports Bar on Morse Rd. in the Morse Centre in Columbus, OH. There are usually 25 to 30 players in the 9 ball on Thurs and 50 to 60 for the bar box 8 ball on Sat. It is a very nice, well run ( read well managed ), NON SMOKING pool room. It has a full bar, decent food and clean restrooms. Lots of women play there. Smokers go outside to smoke. I've never heard one complain, but I don't go out and hang with the smokers. I don't know their financials but they always seem to be busy with leagues and tournaments. I drive 62 miles one way to play there. You can bet I would not do that if I had to go home smelling like an ashtray, and by the way, that's what smokers smell like when they come in from being outside smoking, an ashtray.

 

[Neil]

Smoking or not smoking; it's really about respect for one another. I think that those who smoke should respect the rights of those who choose not to smoke.

And non-smokers should respect the right of those who choose to smoke.

There should be compromises made for both groups but that's just my own opinion.

Joey, I'm curious why you posted this post, when you also posted that you want smoking banned everywhere? If you don't like the smoke, then don't complain because you went somewhere that does have it. In reality, all you are doing is trying to take away others freedom to suit your agenda. Is that really what you served in the military for?? For us to lose our freedoms? Just something to think about.

 

[mandalamps]

We live in a free market society...presumably.

While you may call my comment selfish and stupid, I disagree. It most definitely is selfish in that I don't want legislation telling me what cannot be done in a private business.

dld--no offense taken.

DLD - I didn't mean YOU specifically. It is just a general statement that I have heard over and over again from numerous people. I just don't think it is a fair statement to make is all.

Thank you for not taking offense.

Amanda

 

[Houstoer]

Wow, I'm sorry that you viewed the teasing that I did toward Ray as a dis toward James Davis, Jr. It wasn't meant to be that at all. If the rest of the viewers got that out of our commentary, then I didn't do my job.

James Davis Jr is and has always been one of my favorite players.

The breakfast bet was just something that I did to liven up the commentary. If it came across as you suggest to the rest of the viewers I made a mistake and will surely abstain from making bets and teasing Ray about matches in the future.

I have always admired James Davis, Jr as a top pool player who has not only great talent but always carries himself with dignity and class.

James had an incredible tournament and played at world class speed most of the tournament.

If James watches a rebroadcast and feels like I was dissing him, I will personally apologize to him and refrain from the teasing and betting that I did toward Ray in the future.

Since you brought up the subject, I would be curious to hear if the rest of the viewers thought I was out of line. I'm always interested in hearing what others had to say, including your admonishment. I think most everyone who knows me, knows I am a very nice and fair guy and don't go out of my way to injure anyone unless I am provoked. (Seriously, thanks for your perspective. Regardless of what others might say, I'll keep what you had to say in mind. Seriously, thanks!)

I'm not perfect and if I need to modify my commentary or refrain from taking sides in a match or to refrain from making silly bets etc, to make the broadcast more enjoyable for the majority of the people, I will do just that.

You could be right and if so, I will fix it in the future.

Sincerely,

Joey - I watched the entire thing and didn't take it like the above individual did at all. As a matter of fact I've always enjoyed your're commentating and that you go above and beyond treating people with respect. I guess perceptions differ with different people but I didn't take that you were dissing James at all. SVB is a rare talent and we all know that and it is probably watching history everytime we see him play but there are many players that play very well on barboxes in local tournaments and James Davis Jr certainly played lights out and deserves all the accolades you can throw at him. If commentary on pool streams starts to worry about every little thing being said and the perception that people have when they say it I'm afraid we'll have a lot more dead time and I personnally like the commentary.

 

[bigshooter]

Quit trying to control people's behavior, it's time people take responsibility for their own choices, let cigarette manufacturers advertise, legalize drugs, quit trying to make laws to create crimes with secondary desired results.

Punish the actual crimes with actual victims, no more victim-less crimes.

Jaden

Yes people should take responsibility for their own choices. If smokers would have chosen the right thing and went outside in the first place it would have been a non-issue. Poor choices on the part of smokers caused the entire issue.

 

[cuenut]

Now this smoking thing takes on a whole new meaning after last nights results in Colorado and Washington. You can now get high on second hand smoke in a pool hall! It will now create quite a few interesting scenarios with employees who may go into a public place and be exposed to second hand doobie smoke and are later given a random drug test by their employer and flunk. We have as a country started to slide down a slippery slope in my opinion.

 

[JoeyA]

Joey, I'm curious why you posted this post, when you also posted that you want smoking banned everywhere? If you don't like the smoke, then don't complain because you went somewhere that does have it. In reality, all you are doing is trying to take away others freedom to suit your agenda. Is that really what you served in the military for?? For us to lose our freedoms? Just something to think about.

Neil,
I volunteered to serve my country despite the 99% chance that I would serve in war. I didn't fight for my, your, or our freedom. Our feedoms were never at at stake. Vietnam was a stupid war, started by politicians and business people. If I were 19 again, knowing what I know now, I most likely would not volunteer to serve in the military unless our country were under siege.

As to trying to take away other peoples freedom to suit my agenda, I say that your freedom to do as you see fit with yourself is fine with me, just as long as it doesn't infringe on my rights and freedoms.

Public intoxication and urination in public is against the law as well as many other laws of the land. The elimination of smoking in public places is becoming the law of the land nearly everywhere because it is for the betterment of society as a whole. (It's time for Louisiana and the other states to legislate laws that protect all of its citizens from the hazards of smoking).

My reason for posting this is to bring attention to something worthy of attention and to bolster the will of the people in charge to do something that is for the betterment of the whole.

Just so you know, I won't be entering into a discussion with you or anyone else about justifying my position in the future. You have been civil in your request so that's why I answered this one, but most discussions about this end up like aiming discussions, politics and religion with nothing nice being said. I prefer to just state my perspective and leave it alone. Everyone has a right to their opinions. You are no different. But I'm not going to post ad nauseum infinitum.

 

[JoeyA]

Joey - I watched the entire thing and didn't take it like the above individual did at all. As a matter of fact I've always enjoyed your're commentating and that you go above and beyond treating people with respect. I guess perceptions differ with different people but I didn't take that you were dissing James at all. SVB is a rare talent and we all know that and it is probably watching history everytime we see him play but there are many players that play very well on barboxes in local tournaments and James Davis Jr certainly played lights out and deserves all the accolades you can throw at him. If commentary on pool streams starts to worry about every little thing being said and the perception that people have when they say it I'm afraid we'll have a lot more dead time and I personnally like the commentary.

Well, I'm glad you posted. I wasn't sure if Teddy's opinion was most of the listeners or not. Perhaps Teddy just has a different perspective and we're all entitled to our own.

I'm not worried about every little thing I saw and do while doing commentary but my goal is to make the pool matches enjoyable and vary the content from time to time.

Teddy's comment did give me some pause after I wrote my first response. I make every attempt to never shark any player regardless of who they are, by the use of my voice or the motion of my body, especially while in the booth. It would hurt me greatly if any player heard my commentary and thought that I might be intentionally disrespecting them or intentionally or unintentionally trying to shark them.

There seemed to be a lot of people in the Chat room but I was unable to read many of the posts due to the match coverage and "interviewing" I was doing during downtime and such.

Thanks again for posting. You too Teddy. It's great to hear other people's perspective even if they differ from mine.

 

[RealLive]

Now this smoking thing takes on a whole new meaning after last nights results in Colorado and Washington. You can now get high on second hand smoke in a pool hall! It will now create quite a few interesting scenarios with employees who may go into a public place and be exposed to second hand doobie smoke and are later given a random drug test by their employer and flunk. We have as a country started to slide down a slippery slope in my opinion.

fyi by "law" you're still supposed to smoke cannabis privately, in CO and WA

 

[Kickin' Chicken]

"Your rights end where my nose begins."

-Oliver Wendell Holmes



best,
brian kc

 

[Bob Jewett]

I have never seen a tobacco farm in Louisiana. I doubt that there are any tobacco farms in Louisiana. Sugarcane farms sure, but tobacco... I doubt it.

I never saw one either but I was thinking there might be some up around Shreveport. Nope. According to a gum'mint survey, there is no tobacco farm in Louisiana. Here are the top tobacco producing states by acreage:

Ranked By Total Tobacco Acreage
1. North Carolina 170,083
2. Kentucky 87,641
3. Virginia 20,881
4. Tennessee 20,109
5. South Carolina 20,084
6. Georgia 17,989
7. Pennsylvania 7,886
8. Ohio 3,499
9. Connecticut 3,128
10. Indiana 2,174

Not all of them are in the South, I notice. Nearly all the acreage is in the top two. Who would have guessed that you could get a fine New Haven seegar?

 

[RobMan]

Yeah NC is a huge tobacco state. Intersting enough, I played last week in Greensboro and it was nonsmoking due to legislation. Perhaps it was local and not state legislation. Also, I think the tobacco grown up north is primarily used as wrappers for cigars. Not really sure.

GA still has smoking, but you have to be 18 to work or patronize. I play a lot at Marietta Billiard Club and it can be damn awful sometimes. Why do I go you may ask? Well if I want to play in a pool hall, with pool players, then I have no real choice. I go and deal with it. We they had the tourney there a few weeks ago that Kiamco won, they didn't allow smoking in the center player section, but it think they did throughout the rest of the club.

 

[cuenut]

fyi by "law" you're still supposed to smoke cannabis privately, in CO and WA

Yeah, but that has been stretched quite a bit, even in some cities where smoking in public places is against the law. A bar simply turns themselves into a "private club" and they charge a "membership fee" (cover charge) to join at the door. Voila, smoking in private. Sorry Joey, I think this may be better served for a different thread. My last post here.

 

[Kickin' Chicken]

see it with your own red, burning, eyes . . .

Ray, aka "BigTruck" was gracious to just post the hot seat match at White Diamond between James Davis and Shane. What a great match, btw.

Watch the clouds of smoke at 50:25, 52:00, and 53:28.

What I think may be lost on some, is this:

Shouldn't we all have the right to pursue our love of pool without having to risk our health to do so?

If someone wants to smoke, that's certainly their right and it's just fine with me. But, please, don't make me smoke with you.

Seriously, take a look at the times I listed above on this link. As Ray would say, 'brutal, just brutal'.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cmEuDZaXeU&feature=plcp

best,
brian kc

 

[phil dade]

Kudos to Joey A

Joey,
Thanks for the call out. I totally agree with you. Smoking is a opersonal choice, however inside it affects others. We all know the bad things it can do to the individual, but the person who smoles is offending others and additionall, exposing them to second hand smoke. Pool would be better off and enjoy more popularuity if there were in smoking in pool rooms. Owners can not make money of the tables, they need food, liquor, as well as other activity games. Every now and then a thread pops up complaining about smoking bans killing the pool room business. I submit that is old thining. Pool rooms need to move forward. A hndred years agothere were spittoons in pool roooms as well. BTW, I live near jacksonville and the pool rooms here stink, even ones with smoke eaters. Walk in for awhile and your clothes stink! I end up knocking balls around at home which gets boring.

thanks Joey

 

[mandalamps]

Greenies!!!!!

Neil,
I volunteered to serve my country despite the 99% chance that I would serve in war. I didn't fight for my, your, or our freedom. Our feedoms were never at at stake. Vietnam was a stupid war, started by politicians and business people. If I were 19 again, knowing what I know now, I most likely would not volunteer to serve in the military unless our country were under siege.

As to trying to take away other peoples freedom to suit my agenda, I say that your freedom to do as you see fit with yourself is fine with me, just as long as it doesn't infringe on my rights and freedoms.

Public intoxication and urination in public is against the law as well as many other laws of the land. The elimination of smoking in public places is becoming the law of the land nearly everywhere because it is for the betterment of society as a whole. (It's time for Louisiana and the other states to legislate laws that protect all of its citizens from the hazards of smoking).

My reason for posting this is to bring attention to something worthy of attention and to bolster the will of the people in charge to do something that is for the betterment of the whole.

Just so you know, I won't be entering into a discussion with you or anyone else about justifying my position in the future. You have been civil in your request so that's why I answered this one, but most discussions about this end up like aiming discussions, politics and religion with nothing nice being said. I prefer to just state my perspective and leave it alone. Everyone has a right to their opinions. You are no different. But I'm not going to post ad nauseum infinitum.

I can't give you greenies at the moment so I'll just say it here....I LOVE this post of yours!

Amanda

 

[mikeyfrost]

I am a smoker and Joey I think you have this right. I don't mind going outside to smoke. Hell I enjoy my cigarette more when I get the chance to do it alone and away from people. There's no good reason to allow it, especially in places like the South where the weather is absolutely no excuse. I think damn near 100% of non smokers are against indoor smoking and I'd venture a guess that close to half of smokers feel the same way.

If a vote was ever had, indoor smoking would be banned by the majority, I'm certain of that.