Posted on 08/02/2002 6:10:57 PM PDT by SheLion
Ottawa - Charities across Ottawa are hurting because of the city's smoking ban.
Groups that once got a $1000 per month from bingo are now getting less than $300.
Clubs are reporting a steep loss of revenue because smokers are staying away from bingo halls.
Some organizations are saying the city should compensate them for their losses. The Boys and Girls' isn't the only club hurting from bingo shortfalls.
In Blackburn, Arnold Dashney's junior hockey club is scrambling for cash. Dashney says he can't believe what's happened.
"Bingo players smoke. I thought they would have come back after they sat out for a while," says Dashney. "I thought they would have been back into the frame of mind to play bingo with no smoke but they didn't come back."
Charities say they have nowhere to turn for more cash. The high-tech meltdown has weakened corporate donations in the city and there's only so much local groups can expect from small business.
Where'd the 1.5 mil come from? I mean our government budgets have absolutely no fat in them, so how'd they come up with the extra dough? Wonder what expense account they'll book it under.
Of course they have. They could demand things return to the way things were. Only a fool insist on going forward with a bad change, and they're not fools, right? Right?
LOL, not on your life, Canada didn't count, but seeing the fat settlements in the US, Ontario tried going through the US courts, they were told to take a hike, proving once again, if the US governments didn't benefit..... forget it.
It was never about health.
to every action there is an equal and opposite reacion
hey, its [canada] a free country
they are voting with their pocket books <
This is Canada, our government cares even less about the taxpayer than yours.
The money came from property taxes.
Keeping mind our City government is heading for a deficit of 73 mill, but they have money for global positioning locaters in tree's, told them trees walk very slow, should they escape, they would be easy to catch.
My very sarcastic letter to the Mayor, actually provoked a call from his office, I told the PR man that I was telling everybody on the web, both in Canada and the US about all the silly things our City does, and that they are being laughed at.
Oh... did I tell you we now have a "WALKING COORDINATOR."
left? left?
EXCUSE me - I was under the impression that smoking bans were "for the children."
Here in Delaware, all but one fire company in the state is volunteer and most of them rely heavily on bingo revenues for their budgets. When the state granted the 3 race tracks the right to have slot machines bingo revenues tanked. Many of them cancelled bingo. Starting November 27 - the day before Thanksgiving - smoking will no longer be permitted.
So when the fire companies have no money and need more from the state I'm sure the easiest solution to increasing the annual grants to those organizations will be increased cigarette taxes.
They kick smokers out into the street and then expect us to happily pay more for the privilege.
Those bingo halls are probably lobbying like mad to keep the restrictions. They're happy; the bingo players are probably happy enough; the anti-smoke folk are probably happy.
The malcontents are the taxpayers who have to fork over the money to the bingo halls that are never going to get their clientele back.
BTW, I live in the county that was going to ban smoking in your own home if the smoke drifted to where a neighbor might be offended. International attention of a highly negative sort got them to change their minds. But I think the anti-smoke folks are just lying low waiting for another opportunity. They're so zealous, they don't care who they hurt, or what has to be sacrificed to get their way.
I live in Florida, so The Shadow knows!
Leni
Hell YEA I smoke!!!!!! For about 40 YEARS! Why!!!
I think it was doo doo quicksand. Just as attendence has never recovered to pre-1994 levels since the Major League Baseball strike, a lot of these people are never going to return, even if Ottawa repeals the law. (Like they're ever going to do that anyway.) They've been screwed, they're pissed, and they're not going to come back like good little sheeple no matter what.
I have a better solution. Every volunteer FD in the state should issue an announcement that they'll be shutting down on November 27, unless the smoking ban is repealed and they are also given the right to have slot machines at their bingo functions. After all, they're volunteers. They have no obligation to continue working under impossible conditions. If they all banded together and made this demand, the state government would be powerless to fight them. They can't do without firemen.
...I'm sure the easiest solution to increasing the annual grants to those organizations will be increased cigarette taxes.
Which will lead to most Vermont smokers to cross a border to get their smokes or buy them over the web for less than half the price. Which will lead to even less tax revenue for the state.
I don't want to see the Volunteer companies shut down - my idea is that every legislator that voted for this ban and every lobbyists for the nanny organizations should be required to donate a portion of their legislative salary to the fire companies to cover the short falls that are going to be encountered when even more bingo games shut down.
I remember the good fences makes good neighbors thingy, unbelievable.
I think the anti smokers have gotten to the point where they don't even care about smoking..... at this point in time, all they care about, is their purpose of being, if it isn't smoking it would be something else, as we are seeing with the fast food cases, it is the feeling of self-importance and the money...... the money.... the money.
I think you have a point. This is really a coalition between anti-smokes (who are really zealots). people who think they know best how the rest of us should live (anti-smoking, anti-fast food, anti-cell phones, etc.) and the lawyers, who are the ones who get the money.
I think the only group that has been "ringing the bell" for freedom lately is the group that is pushing to keep our Second Amendment rights.
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