Posted on 11/10/2005 6:41:15 AM PST by TheForceOfOne
Exactly. The lefties love the "righttochooserighttochooserighttochoose" mantra to get the stupid public to support their extreme abortion positions--but they hate choice in any other context than killing your baby.
The worse case of food poisoning in my life came from eating at a Tampa Chili's when I was fifteen. Since then, I have avodied that chain no matter where I go. If there was one in New Zealand (and I've been to New Zealand), I would have avoided it there too.
A local community set a standard, whats the big deal? This isn't unusual, lots of communities keep certain businesses out of areas. Giuliani cleaned up Times Square by pushing adult businesses out. Many old town historic neighborhoods across the country force strict standards on businesses, sometimes barring operations and chain franchises. I'm not saying I agree with it, but I wouldn't call it socialism. Now if they were subsidizing mom and pop businesses by taxing others, then I'd call it socialism.
Today restaurants, tomorrow banks, gas stations, video outlets, retail of all kinds, Amway, Mary Kay....
I do understand what they are saying. Every place is becoming just like every other place. They want to maintain some individuality. I just went to the Fashion Mall in a resort town and found 75% of the stores in that mall, I have within a 10 minute drive of my home.
Looks like you still don't. Go into a Boston neighborhood bar at 1 p.m. and see what happened to the afternoon crowd. The chic yuppies can't replace the retirees in that time block. Notice how many bars don't open until late in the afternoon.
Try this: casino revenues fell 30 percent in Delaware after the ban.
This isn't a theoretical discussion that you "get" or "don't get," it's economic reality.
And, be wary of the conflicting information out of NYC, where bar tax revenues are up since the ban. There, the ban followed both the Clinton stock-market crash and 9/11 while at the same time the tax rate was raised and bars responded by raising the price of drinks. Fewer drinkers paying more.
A better measure would be how well bars in Hoboken have done since the NY smoking ban. Very well, indeed.
Maybe, after they toss out Ben and Jerry's?
Ben and Jerry's in Ogunquit
My wife and I visited Germany for the first time this summer. Not knowing the language well, we decided to get adventurous and try one of the little taverns out in the countryside for dinner. One small place we drove by had a parking lot completely full of cars about 5:30 p.m. Wow, we thought, look at that place! It's popular with locals so the food must be great.
Well, the food was very good, and we were congratulating ourselves on our great find after leaving the restaurant when I noticed a sign by our parked car. The parking lot was a "park and ride" location for commuters. Most of the cars there were not patrons of the restaurant!
Sometimes you just get lucky.
"How is that socialism if they had a democratic vote?"
Well, socialists can legally be elected into office. Didn't it happen in Germany in '32? The National Socialist German Workers Party:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nazi_party#Reborn_Nazi_Party
Never had bad food in Germany ("on the economy"), from Die Post in Fulda, to the little base "food hut" in Bad Kissingen to Gasthouses in Rotenburge on the Taube, Munich, Wurzburg, and Nurnberg. Except for sauerkraut, I love German food.
Had bad food in Paris, but it was my sister's fault. Never go to a "Greek" restaurant in Paris. Really disappointed, since the food in Paris is supposed to be exceptional. Even the specials at McDonalds (we didn't eat there - it was packed!) looked better.
You're assuming that only corporate interests are at work here.
Well: I am sure local businesses were happy to support this move out of pure self-interest. But they couldn't have gotten away with it without public support.
Some people may simply object to chain restuarants for principled or aesthetic reasons. There has to be somne of that going on here. I'm not saying I agree with it. I agree with the suggestion someone made above that it would have been better to simply zone them away from the historic district.
Even if the measure was approved by the public, you would find challenges to any law that banned abortion clinics in town.
You probably would - but not from me!
How about a ban on Wal-Marts? Or foreign owned newspapers?
I think local communities would be within their rights to ban - or heavily zone - either.
LOL, you need to get out more.
There's a group of us who tour a lot on motorcycles. One of our trip rules is that we never eat in a "chain" restaurant. Instead, we enter "no-name" restaurants and ask the waitress, "What's good?" Whatever she says is what we order. We are particularly attracted to restaurants with a neon "Good Food" signs in the window. (Selecting restaurants this way increases the antibodies in one's blood and helps ward off disease.)
I can't speak for anyone else, but when Maine went smoke free in January 2003, I do not go to restaurants and/or bars any longer. I refuse to pay for that personal abuse of not being able to smoke a cigarette. I smoke. I enjoy it with my meals and beverage. If I can't enjoy a cigarette, I don't go. I order take-out now and home delivery.
There is documented proof that the bans are choking the economy across the Country.
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