typically.nl

Face it, if you are a smoker, you are doomed. You might as well quit now, because you will be forced to eventually. As one of the last countries in Europe, smoking is now banned in bars in .nl as well. Unsurprisingly, it went without a hitch.

Smoking is being banned gradually in .nl, starting with public buildings in the early 2000s, and any place where employees work shortly after that. It wasn’t that smoking was being prohibited, but any employee had to be given a smoke-free work environment. Many companies banned smoking completely.

One areas of business was exempt: bars (and coffee shops).

Trainside smoking

Quite a big controversy at the time, Dutch Railways NS were quick to ban all smoking on all trains. This was the only way there were able to guarantee a smoke-free work environment for their employees. You always had smoke free train compartments, but early 2001 all trains were entirely smoke free. There was initial protest, but that quickly faded.

With the ban on smoking in trains came the rookzuilen (smoke pillars) on platforms. Just a big metal stick with a hole for the buds, this is where all the addicts now gather to smoke a quick one before boarding the train. The smookzuilen and rookzones surrounding them are on every platform.

Smoking in bars

Always the last ones to go, bars and restaurants have been able to stave off a smoking ban until July 2008. It was current (2008) minister of health Ab Klink who forced them to become smoke-free. There was outrage! Restaurateurs would lose their livelihoods! Nanny state! But July came and went and the hospitality business did not collapse. Which is what you might have expected, since that has not happened in the countries surrounding us, either. In fact, the ban is hugely succesful thoughout the continent.

There is one odd situation: smoking is also banned in “coffee shops” (i.e. marihuana places).

Bong OK, cigarette bad!

Our current set of laws has created the strange situation where smoking a plain cigarette is illegal inside a coffee shop. Smoking a joint is illegal too, since a joint contains both tobacco and marihuana. But smoking pure weed is fine! And smoking through a bong is fine too! And smoking marihuana through an evaporator is fine as well! No wonder tourists come here in amazement. I am not sure how long this situation is allowed to last, but aforementioned minister Klink has been unable to ban smoking of marihuana.

It is rumoured that public health inspectors have been trained to spot the difference between a pure-weed cigarette and a joint. Booyaa!

Some vestiges of smoker-power have remained. Smoking in your own house is fine, for now. Smoking in bars with a smoke-free zone (for employees!) is allowed as well. Smoking outside is OK too, although even this is being protested. As everywhere else, a smoker is simply doomed. There are now more non-smokers than smokers in .nl and the ratio will only increase over time. If only because smokers, errr, die earlier…