Hey! I agree with you! Makes too much sense to the dweebs. 
Posted on 03/11/2006 8:35:31 AM PST by SheLion
A statewide indoor smoking ban that exempts casinos is unfair and should never have been signed into law.
When they approved an indoor smoking ban for New Jersey in January, lawmakers all but admitted a double standard was being set by allowing Atlantic City's casinos to continue allowing smoking.
Now, a coalition of bars, restaurants and bowling alleys is rightly challenging the New Jersey Smoke-Free Air Act, set to go into effect April 15, asking a federal court to strike it down as unconstitutional. Hopefully, their challenge will lead to the law being scrapped.
It was shockingly hypocritical for state lawmakers, asserting they wanted to protect the health of workers across the state, to pass a smoking ban that left thousands of workers unprotected for no apparent reason other than politics. The Atlantic City casinos had pushed to not be barred from allowing smoking in the gambling halls.
"It (the casino industry) employs 50,000 people, has billions in public and private investment and just as importantly provides hundreds of millions of dollars to the state annually," Assembly Speaker Joe Roberts, D-Camden, said just after the bill was signed by former Gov. Richard J. Codey. "The view was that we have to look carefully at any industry that is that important and that fragile, given the competition all over the nation."
That flawed logic completely ignores the millions of dollars generated and thousands of people employed by bars, restaurants, bowling alleys and other businesses in the state. Apparently, the owners of these establishments don't deserve the right to make a choice that might affect their businesses -- a choice casino owners will continue to have.
"It's pathetic that these restaurant and bar owners have the gall to try and keep poisoning the bodies of their workers and customers," state Sen. John Adler, D-Cherry Hill, said in reacting to the federal lawsuit, filed Tuesday in federal court in Trenton.
What's pathetic is that Adler, a key proponent of the smoking ban, either doesn't see or is completely ignoring the double standard of this law and the unfairness of it.
There's absolutely nothing right or fair about giving casinos a choice that other New Jersey businesses won't have. It was unbelievable that so many lawmakers got behind the spineless measure.
Robert Gluck, a lawyer for the groups that filed the suit, said they'd be happy if the ban was extended to every business in the state's hospitality industry, including casinos.
That would be more fair, but it would still have the government going too far. Plain and simple, the decision should be made by individual businesses, not the government.
If New Jersey lawmakers, who bring in millions for the state by heavily taxing tobacco, aren't going to make smoking illegal, they shouldn't play nanny and unfairly tell certain business owners not to allow it.
The federal court should strike down this ban, and New Jersey lawmakers should give up their misguided quest to make health decisions for adults. Any New Jerseyan who is truly bothered by cigarette smoke in a bar or restaurant can decide for himself or herself not to go to the establishment or work there.
Hey! I agree with you! Makes too much sense to the dweebs.
There are many, many conservatives that support smoking bans. The evidence shows conservatives in Washington and Florida voted for smoking bans. Free people, freely voting. A lot of conservatives on FR support bans. We don't bother to express our views very often, but we're here.
You are totally on mark here. Take New Jersey. The anti's banned smoking in all restaurants and bars, BUT left smoking in the casino's. Pretty funny, isn't it?
They say "To protect the health of the workers." Well, what are the workers in a casino's? ROBOTS???
The damn New Jersey lawmakers want to protect all that greedy money flowing into the state FROM the casino. As long as the bans work for them, they are all good.
Florida passed with less than 20% of registered voters caring enough to show up to vote on the ban.
13% voted for and won.
80% of Floridians didn't care.
Actually, if people would start getting menu's from these restaurants before the bans, then get menu's after the bans are implemented, it would help.
In Florida prices increased 15-20% in many of the chain restaurants within a couple of weeks. I wouldn't have caught it if we hadn't had take out menus before and after to compare.
Our non smoking friends were furious. They boycotted them on principal. And continue to. We now just gather in each others homes.
Outback Steakhouse had probably the largest increase.
Seems odd, to jack prices like that, when all these people claim how much better business is after the bans.
The smaller places that only sell limited food to be able to cater to smokers, had no increases at all.
I think if more of the public really understood what the "clean air" that they didn't care about anyway is costing them, attitudes may change.
"What's the matter with you!"
What's the matter with me is that I don't want smoke sprayed on me any more than i want beer sprayed on me. If beer drinkers routinely got beer in my hair and on my clothes then I would want them to take their beer drinking private but they don't so I don't mind beer drinkers.
"A lot of conservatives on FR support bans. We don't bother to express our views very often, but we're here."
I would have said that I have never met a conservative who want smoking banned but then many of my conservative friends have a libertarian side.
Place of public accomodation is a legal term. When private property becomes a place of public accomodation certain obligations are incurred for the safety and welfare of the public.
Private owners who don't want that don't have to become places of public accomodation.
And people who don't want to smell smoke can avoid the private property of those who allow it with absolute ease.
Well, we are all about protecting the rights of private business owners. If you do not want to be around smokers, then you will have to stay home. There are 50-55 million of us in the United States and most of us aren't going anywhere.
And when you see smokers huddled together outside smoking, don't think it was their idea to do so. But the ANTI-smokers. All was working great before the anti's came alone.
And all businesses that allow smoking today should have the big smoke eaters in place. No more old smoky rooms.
Clean air for all.
Why don't we change things around and have small rooms for non-smokers and smokers can smoke anywhere they like.
Then watch as they start screaming discrimination. Then we turn a deaf ear to them like they have to smokers who want their rights.
Well much of it comes from the social branch of the conservative movement. Think about church groups for example. Social conservatives make up a segment of FR. Newt said the following
Civilization cannot survive with twelve-year-olds having babies, fifteen-year-olds shooting one another, seventeen-year-olds dying of AIDS, and eighteen-year-olds graduating with diplomas they cannot read.
I and other social conservatives (but not Newt) would add smoking to the above list of social ills.
Jerry, I just shake my head over this and the anti's in FR that support so much government intervention. I sure wasn't brought up thinking that this is how the Republican party works. Never!
Hear! Hear!
If you live in New Jersey, you bet!
Do you not live or work in New Jersey? Then make them extradite you.
Not too smart, are you.
Yes!
I completely support people's right to smoke. I'm not even sure it should be age limited. But they don't have any right to get their smoke on other people. They can smoke all they want in their homes but public spaces need to be smoke free.
This is neurosis writ large.
Why do you not smell like gasoline when you walk in traffic?
Why do you not smell like fish when you go to the market?
Are you suggesting now that transferring an unwanted odor is a crime? If I hate your perfume am I entitled to have you arrested?
This is really interesting! Thanks for posting this!
This is brilliant!
No, not the way this story is described, but the whole concept.
Are you aware if FOIA exists in all states? or just Illinois?
The wooden stake to drive through the bureaucracy has just been discovered. The silver bullet.
Awaiting your response with much excitement...
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