New York state of mind

Hard to believe it's ten years since Mayor Bloomberg imposed a public smoking ban on New York.

Since then the ban has been extended to parks and beaches and this month Bloomberg announced that he wants to introduce a tobacco display ban (the first of its kind in America).

The introduction of the smoking ban, on March 29, 2003, was marked by the release of a protest song by British musician Joe Jackson who at that point had lived in the city for 20 years.

Joe kindly donated proceeds from 'In 20-0-3' to three groups - Forces and NYClash in the US and Forest in the UK.

In 2004 he spoke against smoking bans at a Labour conference fringe event in Brighton where he shared the platform with health secretary John Reid.

The following year he was a member of the panel - alongside David Hockney and the late Sue Carroll - at a Forest fringe event at the 2005 Labour conference.

That year he also wrote The Smoking Issue which was published by Forest and updated two years later as Smoke, Lies and the Nanny State.

In 2006 we gave Joe our Smokers' Rights Champion of the Year award at a party at the Groucho Club in Soho.

Since then I have been trying to persuade him to play at a Forest event. When he is not on tour however he splits his time between Berlin and New York. Visits to the UK are infrequent.

We remain in touch and Joe sometimes comments on this blog so I haven't given up. Meanwhile perhaps it's time for him to write and record a new protest song ...

PS. 'In 20-0-3' is still available to download here. A short clip was broadcast on the Today programme on Saturday June 30, 2007, the day before the smoking ban was enforced in England.

Lyrics:

In 20-0-3
A man drank a whisky
And then a Martini
Or three maybe four
He climbed in his car
And roared off at eighty
And that night he checked out
Along with three more

So they cleaned up the mess
But they didn't ban cars
And they ban whisky or gin

So do what you want or do what they tell you
It's the land of the free but don't take it too far
You can do what you want
You can smash up your car
But in 20-0-3 you can't smoke in a bar

In 20-0-3
A man ate a burger
And then ate another
Or two every day
At last he keeled over
But no-one could lift him
And there's millions like him
And millions to pay

So they issued more warnings
But they didn't ban eating
And they don't ban potatoes or grease ...

In 20-0-3
A man joined the army
And soon he got shipped out
To fight in Iraq
He was caught in a crossfire
And lost his right arm
But they didn't ban bullets
Or missile attacks

He's on his way home now
And who wants to tell him
He can't smoke in a bar He can't have a smoke with his beer

So do what you want or do what they tell you ...
It's the land of the free but don't take it too far
You can do what you want
You can march off to war
But in 20-0-3 you can't smoke in a bar

Comments

[Jean]

"He can't have a smoke with his beer".
Much better ...

[Pat Nurse]

NYC's authoritarian and dictatorial stance has been recognised. http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2013/03/29/study-new-yorkers-enjoy-less-freedom-than-residents-in-any-other-state-in-u-s/

And yes, 10 years. Some of us have lived every one of those 10 years in abject misery - but then that was really the point of it and to ensure the next phase in punishing smokers could move ever onwards.

[John]

“Personally, if I had it my way I would ban them all,” stated a stern-faced Michael Bloomberg to reporters Thursday morning.

But New York’s Mayor is not talking about soft drinks this time. He is not talking about salt shakers, guns, cigarettes or headphones. No, this time Mayor Michael “The Ban Man” Bloomberg is speaking of Easter eggs. Yes, Easter eggs and the famed 400-year-old hare that delivers them, the Easter Bunny."

And it's not the 1st April joke. :)