tl20080207-01 "Nick DiMarco Associate News Editor Bar patrons lined the sidewalks of uptown Towson Tuesday night, not waiting for entry, but taking a brief break from their drinks in favor of a cigarette. Lighting up cigarettes outside of bars in Towson is common now that a statewide smok-ing ban in bars, restaurants and private clubs began Feb. 1. Students who frequented the bars in Towson over the weekend shared mixed views regarding the new policy. Most understood both sides of the argument. �I feel like it�s a good thing for people who don�t smoke and a bad thing for people who do. It�s definitely an inconvenience if I want a cigarette but I see the validity in people who come out and don�t want to have smoke blown in their face,� Brad Freitas, a senior electronic media and film major, said. Freitas then took a drag of his Marlboro Light outside of the Rec Room. �You can argue either side, but in my personal opinion when you go out to a bar you should expect to be in a smoky environment. But I guess the world is changing,� he said. Perhaps not the world, but the nation is in fact changing in regard to smoking. With the ban, Maryland joined 18 other states and Washington D.C., that have similar smoking provisions. Bonny Piana, a junior mass communication major, said she hails from a state that abolished smoking indoors in March 2003. �I�m from New York so it�s been a law for awhile, but I feel that you go to bars to drink and smoke. It�s just that kind of atmosphere,� she said standing outside the Recher Theatre. �It�s good for people who don�t smoke and good for people who don�t want to leave reeking of smoke. But I personally don�t think it should be banned.� The policy developed because of serious health concerns regarding restaurant and bar Feb. 7, 2008 Thursday www.thetowerlight.com Now on TheTowerlight.com: View video of bar patrons discussing the smoking ban and watch video of the Involvement Fair... Smokers forced outdoors Statewide ban receives mixed reviews from bar, restaurant patrons in Towson Patrick Smith/The Towerlight Waiting to enter a concert outside of the Recher Theatre, mass communication major Bonny Piana smokes a cigarette, Tuesday night. As of Feb. 1 smoking is illegal inside bars, restaurants and clubs throughout Maryland, forcing patrons to go outside to smoke. TU admin. reworking free speech policy Document stirs student dismay, controversy The Towerlight Published by and for the students of Towson and Baltimore -- twice-weekly See SPEECH, page 8 You can argue either side, but in personal opinion when you go out to a bar you should expect to be in a smoky environment. But I guess the world is changing. Brad Freitas senior, electronic media and film major �u n my persona u Senator Ben Cardin announces TU Forensic Chemistry Institute News, page 7 Kayaking clinic takes over Burdick Pool News, page 7 Sharon Leff Editor in Chief The University is updating its freedom of speech policy, adding many more details, definitions and rules regarding when, where, and how community members may express themselves at Towson. The draft includes guidelines for demon-strations, picketing and protests, and the distribution of literature. �It is it has less to do with the free speech and more to do with the behavior that could cause trouble in the University system,� Teri Hall, associate vice president of campus life, said. Both the old policy and the new draft require a member of the University com-munity to contact campus life prior to a demonstration or protest, but the new draft is more specific as to how a demon-stration is defined. According to the document, a dem-onstration is a less-than-two-hour public display of group opinion toward a cause. A more �spontaneous� activity does not require a notification to campus life. Hall said students weren�t involved in reworking the document but were included when the original free speech policy was compiled in 2001. At Tuesday�s Student Government Association meeting, Hall acknowledged that students should have been a part of the drafting process. She said the need to update the policy started in the summer, when the University began reviewing a series of policies regard-ing space usage in the University Union and across campus. �In the six years since we had [the poli-cy] it�s worked out pretty well, but there�s all kind of gray associated with it. I think See BAN, page 9 "
