Nein smoking, perhaps

Germany's states have reached an agreement on banning smoking in public places. Bars and restaurants will soon be smoke-free. But possibly not all bars. Or not all parts of bars. Maybe.

A great wind of fresh air is blowing through Europe as one country after another imposes bans on smoking in public. Now Germany has hopped on the non-smoking bandwagon -- but in its own inimitable half-hearted federal fashion.

Germany has agreed on a ban on smoking in public places -- but with exceptions. Small pubs might still be allowed to allow smoking, or there may be separate rooms for smokers. Perhaps.

The governors of Germany's 16 federal states met in Berlin Thursday to discuss a smoking ban. Contrary to expectations, they managed to hammer out a wide-ranging agreement on a smoking ban in public places. The individual states will be responsible for putting the ban into law -- most say they plan to do so by the end of this year or early in 2008 -- and may decide to include certain exceptions that the agreed ban allows.