I mentioned a few weeks ago a study by our visitor Francesca Cornaglia (with Jerome Adda), which found that banning smoking in bars increased the amount of smoke that kids inhale at home, since parents switch from smoking in bars to smoking at home. Turns out the study has now gotten quite a bit of publicity in the UK, largely because the Commons are this week voting on the issue of smoking bans.
Interestingly, quite a few British anti-smoking advocates have attacked the findings of Adda and Cornaglia, suggesting that they care more about getting their favourite policy implemented than reducing the amount of smoke that children inhale. Of course, that wouldn’t make them the only interest group that mixes up means and ends.
The paper will be out as an ANU working paper in a day or two, so I’ll link to it then.
Andrew Leigh's Archived Blog 2004-2010 
Maybe the anti-smoking lobby are mixing up means and ends, but I’d want a bit more information about this and other studies before I came to that conclusion. Why couldn’t Adda et al be wrong, or interpreted their results incorrectly, or influenced in some other way? To me, it all doesn’t pass the smell test just yet.
Of course, my olfactory receptors may have been dulled by breathing in too much of my mum’s cigarette smoke in the kitchen after she locked herself in the house because she couldn’t go out to smoke in bars.
Lester, I’m influenced by having seen Francesca present the paper, which I found pretty damn solid.
On the other hand, my senses might have been dulled by the smoke I inhaled while nightclubbing in my youth. Oh well, at least I was saving some poor kiddie from having to breathe it in at home….
i reconthats the best thin they did getting rid of smoking in bars n clubs now i can go to as any second hand smoke from any taylormade smoke gave me a headache and my kids and wife are all able to have a nite out at our local club without getting a wif of smoke from any where wich would destroy our meal although there should be a room outback for the smokers so they dont duck outside and do it on the street