Smoking Bans Proliferate

Since California's inception of a complete smoking ban in 1998, the trend has trickled eastward at a rapid pace and has become a concern not only for certain cities, but entire states as well. To date, more than 30 states have enacted some sort of smoking ban, and the trend isn't likely to taper off anytime soon as anti-smoking legislation and rallied support continues, says to Michael J. McFadden, author of "Dissecting Antismokers' Brains" and Mid-Atlantic regional director of the Smokers Club Inc. ( www.smokersclub.com), an organization aimed at educating the public on the effects of smoking bans.

"For the most part, bar owners take the 15- to 30-percent loss in business and swallow it because they have no choice," he says. "After a year or two, a certain percentage of bars will have closed because the bans put them over the economic edge."