At 12:21 PM -0400 6/3/04, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
Being on the left, I'll gladly answer Paul/Peggy's question. The logic is simple the Left believes that your freedom to swing your fist stops when it reaches the tip of my nose. The Right believes that since they have a personal relationship with their God who speaks to them on a daily basis they are required to restrict others from offending their God and being cast to Hell. Their fear is that if they don't stop these offenders from upsetting their deity, their lack of action might damn them to Hell as well. (and of course the law of God is higher than the law of man etc...)
Chuck, as much as we may not totally agree about a TOTAL ban on smoking in bars or resturaunts your points are most elequently put, and are pretty much along the lines what I was thinking when I read the quote... This is so full of holes you can drive a Barge through it.
As much as I dislike a ban on things, there are times when the health and safety of not only the people around you but most certainly the workers has to be taken into consideration. I have no real stake in the smoking debate, we are in a no smoking building, (we heavily considered when opening our current coffeeshop cold weather + hot coffee + place warm to have a smoke = $$$$ ), but when we looked into coming into compliance with the already on the books and requirement of the Minnesota Indoor Clean Air Act, we decided against it as being cost prohibitive.
I do wonder about other places, and what they do or are they monitored to make sure they are incomliance? Maybe other than someone just looking at the piece of paper for a application see's "we will be incompliance with the MICAA" that they make sure they are. That would certainly be a place to start first. Make sure the current laws on the books are enforced before adding even more.
You also, with or without an intention, brought out something that is not only facing the country but also the State and Certainly the city. A heavy polorization of the public and especially the electorate that participate in the vast majority of elections, which in St Paul is an annual event (who is up for election besides the House members in St Paul this year?? :-) ).
You can look back and see a time when both the "Right" and the "Left" we more toward the center than they are now, able to come to consensus that meet everyone's needs and desires to some degree.
Unfortunately it seems that during the 80's this took a turn, and I believe partly because of religious beliefs being brought into the election process has polorized everyone, and if your in the middle of the road, seeking common ground we can all agree on, your considered wishy washy.
This is a problem that will continue to drive people away from the election process... How do you decide to vote, for your particular GOD's belief candidate... and how are you really certain that is what your particular GOD believes and how would you like it if we had someone who isn't part of the Christian Religion become a powerful leader and start to impose their will on you? Think about it the pendulum swings one way it then goes back the other, eventually. What if we had a Buddist Hmong become the Mayor of the City, and wanted something his religious beliefs require?
I have rambled enough.
--
Sincerely,
John Birrenbach
W 7th Neighborhood, St Paul MN
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"Six years on the council has trained me to feign interest for long periods of time"
Chris Coleman Jan 21, 2004
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