Anti-smoking Laws and Libertarians, Part 2

[From 5/23/08, in response to a letter opposing anti-smoking laws on libertarian grounds.]

To the editor:

I suppose John E. Simpson, Jr. (“Bars, restaurants are private places”) becomes angry when the Health Department inspects a restaurateur’s kitchen. That’s private property, after all. He probably thinks maximum occupancy laws and fire codes are onerous too. If customers want to patronize a fire trap, that should be their free choice. And he must really get enraged when the government forces businesses to serve people of all races. Why, a business should be able to do whatever it wants! Private property ownership! The paramount virtue!