New York City restaurant and bar owners are facing yet another problem with the new smoking ban. As if it wasn't bad enough that they have to police smokers, lest they be faced with stiff criminal fines or the prospect of losing their business license, but now it would appear that some patrons are excusing themselves to grab a smoke outside, and never coming back to pay the tab. CNN (via Reuters) thinks that people running out without paying is a riot, but I wouldn't imagine that too many proprietors are laughing. The smoking ban will prove to be an expensive proposition to business owners, and may even lead to some of them shutting their doors.

The anti-smoking debate boils down to a question of choice. Employees and customers had the freedom to go someplace else if the smoke bothered them. Rather than exercise that freedom, they simply nullified the property rights of others, and put thousands of jobs at risk. Owning a small business is hard enough, without having to be the smoke-nazi, as well as be on the lookout for crooks who 'drink and dash'. In the east coast land of liberals, however, nobody seems to care.