Another article is written in a more defiant tone, entitled 'How will one get around the smoking ban?' It describes low-key protests. Tobacco smoking can be conducted outdoors as generally happens in Europe but a line seems to have been crossed with the banning of hookah.
The cigarette problem can be solved this way in Lebanon too, but what about the hookah (water pipe) which has become part and parcel of Arab culture despite its Persian roots?
Does the government have the right to stop those who enjoy making bubbles in a bottle, listening to the sound they make, and savoring the taste in a glass-fronted cafe, whose titillating mixture of privacy and exposure would have kept Freud busy for years.
How will the creative Lebanese people deal with this new reality? Will we witness a new legal innovation in the same vein as the “Murr extra floor”? [A twist in the law, introduced by ex-minister Michel Murr, which allowed people to add a floor to their buildings against regulations.]
There are several ideas and designs being discussed by hookah smokers on the internet. But they are still in the design stage. So, stay tuned and we will bring you the latest news on this hot topic.Certainly worth seeing how this develops. There is a clear sense that the Lebanese will find ways of doing what they want to do.
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