Mike writes: >"What do to now? Is it worth trying to unseat a council member (or two) in > order to undo the ban? > > I would say no. There are more important issues than the smoking ban. > > But, it might be fun to try....."
Mike you are in a ward (the Tenth) that will be changing anyway, but some of us might still try to unseat a couple of more for other even "more important issues". I wonder if the bar and restaurant business community will seek to contribute to the defeat of a couple of the people who might show they are the enemy of the food and entertainment industry? It has been a while since an industry such as the City workers in the Fire Department and Police Department sought to use politics to advance the interests of their membership. In the past they were quite effective at doing just that. An interesting concept, since clearly the "banners" are using political lobbying and threats against them. So rise up Bar Owners! Rise up and use your dollars and influence to protect yourself before they decide to kill you all together. Still Mike, you are very correct, it is inconceivable that the few who might, and I repeat MIGHT, want to go to a smoke free bar are given an ordinance over the interests of the owner and those who specifically DO want to go to such a bar. It is ridiculous. You have a business whereby a businessperson sells a legal product, and allows customers to consume another legal product, now being outlawed because someone else who disagrees with those products MIGHT come into that establishment. Take my word, the same logic allows for making Minneapolis a "Dry" city, without bars being able to sell alcohol drinks. Same "police" powers rest with a Council and Mayor who may (and seem to be) willing to exercise them. Loud rock music is bad for a person's hearing. Will there be a law against loud music in bars because it might damage the hearing of a person who MIGHT wish to come to that bar otherwise? Damaging to the person's hearing who needs a job and might want to work there if they only played Lawrence Welk? How about allowing the use of peanuts products? Will there be an ordinance outlawing peanut products from all restaurants? Someone with a deathly allergy to such might want to work as a waiter or cook in that restaurant. Seems to me we will end up with places where a lot of people really don't want to go out to. Except the few times one of the "mights" just might want to go out. Clearly data seems to indicate these "mights" do not REALLY want to go out or spend enough money to support alcohol related businesses that are smoke free. Else there would be economic pressure to have more of them. Looks like places like Hudson, Wisconsin will have an economic windfall for its bars and restaurants again. Yes, the self-righteous dogs do not just want the manger free of hay and the hay eating cows that offend them, they want the politicos who are supposed to represent all the farmyard animals to outlaw hay and cows in the whole damn barn. They say if the cows want to eat hay they should do it outside in the pasture not where they "Might" want to be. Despite what the farmer might want! Of course they say it is just to protect the cows from the hay, or the poor dogs who "MIGHT" want to work at being cows. Remember the dogs are protecting us from the hay. And the "banners" are protecting the smokers from the evils of tobacco. Can we get an ordinance against the self righteous? Nah, I guess not. Jim Graham, Ventura Village, Phillips Community Planning District, Sixth Ward, of Saintapolis. >"Why is it the Mongols of this world always tell us they're defending us against the Mongols?" REMINDERS: 1. Think a member has violated the rules? Email the list manager at [EMAIL PROTECTED] before continuing it on the list. 2. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. For state and national discussions see: http://e-democracy.org/discuss.html For external forums, see: http://e-democracy.org/mninteract ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
