Smoke-Free Starbucks: Safety Harbor Readers Sound Off

Starbucks' decision to ban smoking at its coffee shops nationwide has produced a steaming debate locally on the Safety Harbor Patch.

(See Safety Harbor Starbucks Bans Smoking for the complete story.)

The popular coffee chain's smoking ban, which went into effect June 1, drew more than 6,000 Facebook users to look at the post on the Safety Harbor Patch Facebook page.

That's more than any other single post on the Safety Harbor Patch Facebook Page. Just what are folks saying – in 74 comments and counting on Facebook, plus 18 comments on the Safety Harbor Patch article?

To Sharon Kennedy Armitage, the decision makes sense. "Love it!" she declared on Facebook. "Thank you Starbucks!"

Brad Powers agreed. "No sympathy here."

But Erin E. Hegenberger declared: "Boo! Coffee and cigarettes together have a strange artistc appeal."

Sharon Lutkin said: "Do you seriously think that the air outside where there is car exhaust is going to be better for you than cigarettes?"

The debate has zigzagged into other topics that include Second Amenment rights and the Obama administration; local coffee shops versus the Starbucks chain; the price of a Starbucks cup of coffee, and the stench of "coffee breath."

What do you think? Are the reactions an over-reaction?

Grab a cup of coffee and let's talk about it. Just add your comments below.

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