State Sen. Don East, of Pilot Mountain, yesterday voiced opposition to a smoking ban in restaurants and bars across the state.

His reason? East told The Mount Airy News these establishments were private enterprises and the ban would constitute excessive governmental interference.

On the surface, we think Sen. East is correct. Any business owner — be it a department store, bar, or restaurant — can ban smoking on the premises now, without oversight from the government, and the marketplace could sort out whether such a business survives.

If consumers want a smoke-free environment, then they should visit restaurants and other businesses which offer that, and refuse to patronize those which do not.

If consumers want to be free to light up after a meal, then they should be free to do so as well, and patronize restaurants which allow such.

We’re not suggesting people should smoke — the dire health consequences for such actions are well documented. The fact is that smoking and other tobacco use is a legal practice, and adults should be free to choose to smoke, or not smoke, without government interference.

However, there is a larger issue at stake here, and one that East seems to forget when discussing his opposition to the smoking ban. Should workers be forced into exposure to dangerous second-hand smoke while on the job? That, at least in part, is what the North Carolina bill is addressing — workplace safety.

Considered in that light, the smoking ban takes on an entirely different meaning. Should the employee who needs that paycheck to feed her family, or pay the mortgage, be forced to work in an environment that is potentially dangerous to her health?

Sure, one could say go work elsewhere, but in this era of double-digit unemployment rates and uncertainty in the job market, the answer isn’t as simple as that. Regardless of the job market, should an employee be forced to leave a job to avoid significant, and easily preventable, health problems?

Those are questions we’d like for Sen. East, and other legislators, to consider when looking at smoking bans and similar bills.