" however it would seem that certain individuals are trying to make me and all other smokers social pariahs"
I don't think anybody is - you are being asked to smoke where it can't adversely harm anybody else.
Those who refuse to see the reasons for this and demand to be allowed to adversely affect all our healths are the ones who should be granted 'pariah' status
There are many other social ills we could address, but this particular one is within the realms of possibility of our doing something about it - and it is the subject of this thread.
The claim that passive smoking causes cancer is certainly open to challenge, but the fact that it is both offensive and unhealthy to all is not.
I do hope this issue is not dismissed in the interests of the few, as were the warnings of global warming
From the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
"When all the evidence, including the important new data reported in this issue of the Journal, is assessed, the inescapable scientific conclusion is that ETS is a low-level lung carcinogen. Thus, the reduction in risk of lung cancer following cessation of exposure to ETS in the IARC study is a hopeful sign and suggests that measures aimed at the reduction of smoking may benefit not only smokers but also persons with whom they live and work."
Jim Carroll