Massachusetts allowed to ban smoking in private clubs

The Boston Globe reports on the further erosion of your rights:

By October, Massachusetts was one of four states that banned smoking in all private workplaces, restaurants, and bars, according to the American Cancer Society. It was unclear whether the bans in Delaware, New York, and Rhode Island extend to private clubs.

The case before the high court arose after November 2004, when the town of Athol banned smoking in clubs, threatening violators with fines of $100 and more.

''The town said, 'We're going to prohibit smoking in these private clubs,' " said Christopher N. Banthin, deputy director of the Public Health Advocacy Institute at Northeastern University, who represented Athol in the case. ''People were being exposed to a known human carcinogen, people who had to be in there for work."

Three groups in Athol challenged the town's regulation: the American Lithuanian Naturalization Club, the Franco-American Naturalization Club, and American Legion Post 102. The groups contended that the Athol health board had overstepped its bounds and violated the civil rights of club members. In addition, they argued that the 2004 smoking law, by creating an explicit exemption for such clubs, prevented localities from banning smoking in them.

A Superior Court judge agreed, saying the Athol regulation was ''unreasonable, arbitrary, and capricious."

The town appealed the case to the high court, which in its ruling disagreed with the clubs on nearly every substantive point. First, the majority opinion pointed out that the 2004 law, while creating an exemption for clubs, did not preclude future regulation and specifically stated that local officials retained that option.

The court said private clubs were quasi-public institutions that ''are incorporated in and receive the benefit from Massachusetts laws and licenses," thus making them subject to public health regulation, according to the unanimous decision written by Chief Justice Margaret H. Marshall.

Think about it.The Massachusetts Supreme Court has said there are no longer really any private clubs.Anything that the state feels influences health is subject to state regulation.Big Brother is watching you.How long can it be that Massachusetts will not ban smoking in apartment buildings,condo buildings,and homes with children under 18 year old? Soon you may need a license to brush your teeth in the morning.