Movies like Fellini's 1960 film 'La Dolce Vita' created an image of Italy as a smokers' paradise. Cigarettes were the ubiquitous props of glamorous socialites, jaded reporters and just about anyone seated at a cafe. Those days are long gone. A series of laws gradually banned smoking at shared indoor spaces like movie theatres and restaurants.
Now, Milan's centre-left govt has taken the crackdown one step further, becoming the first major Italian city to ban smoking outside unless the smoker is pretty far from other people. No more huddling around the doors of office buildings. And no more grabbing an after-dinner smoke at the outdoor tables at restaurants.
Under the new rules, which went into effect Jan 1, smoking is banned everywhere except for "isolated areas where it's possible to respect a distance of at least 33 feet from others."
"People will smoke a little less, which is good for their health and everybody's health, and those who don't smoke will be less exposed to secondhand smoke," Milan's deputy mayor, Anna Scavuzzo, said recently.

For detractors, the new rules are an assault on more than just smoking, but on a cherished way of life. "The real problem is not the cigarette, but the loss of freedom of choice," Vittorio Feltri, editor in chief of Il Giornale, a conservative newspaper, bristled in an editorial.
Smoking in public indoor spaces has been forbidden since 2005. At the time, many questioned how effective the ban would be in Italy, where cigarettes after meals were as common as coffee. But Italians complied, if grudgingly, and the number of smokers fell from 22% to 19% of the population over 14 years. Officials defend the new rules as possibly providing a further benefit. Milan is one of Italy's most polluted cities and there are hopes the ban will improve air quality. For now, police are holding back on fines - ranging from 40 to 240 euros - with only 16 issued so far.
Anna Mondino, of a cancer research foundation, has high hopes. "Milan is a good test city, as it is used to changes." "If Milan implements it, maybe the rest of Italy will listen." nyt