So, would you prefer to have your friend or family member die of cancer,
or have your local pub die because it relied on allowing cancer-causing
drugs?
Bars and restaurants have generally short lifespans, and often die
quickly. My friends should not.
Some bars and restaurants will go out of business during the ban. It's
easy to blame the ban. Did Molly Quinn's business drop off because
people wanted to check out the new digs, and there wasn't as much to
lure them back as in their old location? Or was it the ban?
With all respect, if second-hand smoke doesn't kill, I suppose the
holocaust wasn't real and heat isn't increasing globally. You can
always find an industry hack or fringe group to make the bogus
assertion for you. It doesn't mean its true.
Bob Spaulding
Moving Forward in St. Paul while Peter McLaughlin contemplates throwing
it in Reverse
On Dec 9, 2005, at 1:04 AM, Dan McGrath wrote:
Here's a letter to the editor penned by Sue Jeffers, owner of Stub and
Herb's in SE Mpls.
Hey Dan,
Here is my letter to the editor, doubt it will see the light of
day...post it with your excellent one on the forum!
Sue
Some call it spin, I call it just another lie to deceive the general
public. Smoking bans damage the hospitality industry especially bars,
bans cause lost revenues, lost jobs and closed businesses. Worse yet,
no one is any healthier including our cities, county and state
coffers.
It is easy to distort the numbers. By including liquor store sales,
the liquor sales become inflated. By including fast food, coffee shops
and convenience stores the food sales become inflated. Omitting
businesses that have already closed or were not open 3 consecutive
years, distort the numbers further, implying a healthy hospitality
industry.
The first three months of the smoking ban showed alcohol revenues in
Hennepin County grew .15%, much lower than prevous year and much lower
than all other counties in the entire 7 county metro area. These
numbers also included liquor stores, if those sales were removed, the
revenues would show a loss. We should be showing double digit
increases similar to other areas with out a smoking ban not the list
of over 50 closed businesses that keeps growing longer and longer. Now
add .08, a minimum wage increase and cold weather the numbers will be
even more depressed causing more closed businesses and more lost jobs.
The latest new study shows heart attacks rates have remained the same
or increased across the country after bans were implemented and in the
case of MA heart attacks increased 35%. Most people know the days of
the smoke filled "blue bars" are long gone. Owners have spent hundreds
of thousands of dollars on ventilation to make all our customers
comfortable and it works, just ask the airports or the hospitals.
Shame on the elected officials trying to gain a state wide ban on the
backs of the local businesses. Elected officials have forgotten
property rights should trump entitlement rights every time. Maybe like
NW Airlines or Ford, bars can become a "tax free zone" or get state or
local aid to for the thousands of lost jobs a smoking ban causes. Or
maybe the local councils and commissions don't really care about the
"little guy" after all.
Sue Jeffers
Stub and Herb's
612-384-4374
Dan McGrath
Longfellow
http://www.minnesotansagainstsmokingbans.com
REMINDERS:
1. Be civil! Please read the NEW RULES at
http://www.e-democracy.org/rules. If you think a member is in
violation, contact 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 Civil City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn
E-Democracy
Post messages to: mailto:mpls@mnforum.org
Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
REMINDERS:
1. Be civil! Please read the NEW RULES at http://www.e-democracy.org/rules. If
you think a member is in violation, contact 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 Civil City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn
E-Democracy
Post messages to: mailto:mpls@mnforum.org
Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
