Free Republic

AUGUSTA - A petition drive to snuff out the state's ban on smoking in bars has stalled and will fail to meet a Feb. 2 deadline for putting the issue on the November ballot, an organizer said.Instead, the Maine Freedom Committee will submit the signatures to the Legislature in 2005 in hopes lawmakers will amend the law or send it to voters, said Stavros Mendros of the Maine Freedom Committee. Mendros, a former Republican lawmaker from Lewiston, said the campaign didn't have funding to meet this year's deadline for petitions. "The money wasn't there," Mendros said. "It's hard to do...

** PROTEST ANNOUNCEMENT ** CHARGE OF THE CIGARETTE LIGHTER BRIGADE WEDNESDAY, DEC. 18TH AT 12 NOON CITY HALL (East Gate) (Time subject to change.  Please check back for confirmation ) The NYC Council will be voting on Mayor Bloomberg's sweeping smoking ban this date. Some council members can still be swayed NOT to vote for this bill (see latest news ) It's up to you to convince them once and for all that it's wrong, and not in their best political career interests, to support one man's personal war on smokers. Thousands of businesses and two million New Yorkers...