Dear Editor:

Many activities are illegal in Rock Springs, Wyoming, as well they should be. It is illegal here to commit murder. It is illegal to commit rape. It is illegal to commit robbery. It is illegal to smoke in a public building. It is illegal to dance provocatively without a proper license. It is illegal to commit assault. It is illegal to possess or sell illicit drugs. It is illegal to play your stereo louder than 55 db(A) in a commercial zone. It is also illegal to drive over the posted speed limit on the city streets. Of all these illegal activities, one stands out.

Of all these illegal activities, it is my job as a business owner to tell you that it is illegal for you to smoke in my building. I don’t need to put up a sign in my bathroom telling you that it is illegal for you to mug someone there, but I have to put up a sign telling you that you can’t smoke there. I don’t have to put up a sign in my lobby telling you that it is illegal to assault someone there, but I have to put up a sign telling you that you can’t smoke there. I don’t have to put up a sign on my door telling you that you can’t smoke dope in my store, but I have to put up a sign telling you that you can’t smoke a cigarette there.

I even have to change my employment applications so I can “communicate” to prospective employees that they can’t smoke at work. I don’t have to “communicate” to them on their employment applications that they aren’t suppose to murder anyone while they are on the clock, but the “No Smoking” clause belongs right there on top of the job application.

Am I missing something here? Is this where our priorities are? Is “No Smoking” so much more important of a message than “No Murdering,” “No Stealing,” and “No Loud Music?” Or, is this just another stupid unfunded government mandate? Come on Councilors. It isn’t my responsibility to explain the city’s ordinances to the people of Rock Springs, it’s yours. Put up signs on the roads, right next to the speed limit signs, that say, “No Smoking!” Eliminate these stupid requirements. Let me use my wall space for an important sign like “No Unlicensed Erotic Dancing,” and let me use my employment applications for something important like finding prospective new employees.

Sincerely,

Island D. Richards