Last week, I went to national coference in Mississippi. The conference center director told me that she is increasingly being asked about smoking laws by people who plan conferences. She commonly hears people tell her they won't schedule a conference in a place that can't promose clean air for attendees.
I met someone there from Kentucky, and she told me that Lexington had banned public smoking. If Kentucky, in the heart of tobacco country, can ban smoking in public places, why can't St Paul? >From April, 2004: (http://www.thelouisvillechannel.com/health/3031309/detail.html) "The Kentucky Supreme Court Thursday upheld the ban on smoking in bars, restaurants and many other public buildings in Lexington. "The ordinance drew national attention because of Kentucky's role as a tobacco producer and its reputation as a smoker's state. "A third of Kentucky adults smoke, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention." A few other facts about Kentucky: ( http://www.ca.uky.edu/agc/pubs/aec/aec83/aec83.htm ) � Kentucky farmers grow three types of tobacco: burley, dark fire-cured, and dark air-cured. Burley tobacco, comprising more than 90% of total production, is grown in 119 of Kentucky's 120 counties and is used primarily in cigarettes. Dark fire-cured and dark air-cured production is concentrated in 33 western Kentucky counties and is used primarily in smokeless tobacco products such as snuff, chewing and pipe tobacco. The value of tobacco production generally exceeds $1 million annually for more than 100 Kentucky counties. � Kentucky is the nation's largest producer of burley tobacco and dark fire- and air-cured tobaccos. Only North Carolina surpasses Kentucky in tobacco production. � Kentucky is the most tobacco-dependent state in the United States. Although North Carolina grows more tobacco than Kentucky, tobacco accounts for a larger percentage of Ken-tucky's agricultural income. -- Bob Treumann, Saint Paul Please Note: Replies to this email address all go to the trash except where the subject line contains a recognized mailing list identifier, such as [TCMETRO],[StPaul], MP-N ... _____________________________________________ NEW ADDRESS FOR LIST: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe, modify subscription, or get your password - visit: http://www.mnforum.org/mailman/listinfo/stpaul Archive Address: http://www.mnforum.org/mailman/private/stpaul/
