...and the land of the free...

http://news.yahoo.com/video/us-15749625/new-year-new-laws-17406295

Ok, coupla comments.
1st, about the poparazzi. Good. Get a freaking life people!
2nd (comment made about the fried chicken oil) I love how freaks from CA say they are more health-conscious. How can you be health-conscious, have you seen your air lately? That's kinda the point. If your air is nasty enough to be seen, it aint healthy! IF you really were 1/2 as health conscious as other folks, you wouldn't have to chew your air before you swallow!!!
3rd, teenagers getting tanned have to be accompanied by a parent, good. Maybe the parents will actually get to know their own kids?

and here in NC the smoking ban in bars and restaurants ... fine with me... 'cept it probably won't bring me back to going out on a regular basis ... $3.50 for a Miller Lite ? I can buy the whole 6 pack for that and take it home and there's no risk of a DWI... ftw

No estate tax this year?

Sorry CA NYC started the No Trans Fat thing a while ago...

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16051436/

And good Job NH....

skruffy wrote: No estate tax this year?

it is expected that congress will bring that one back, and more than likely make it retroactive

Georgia was running PSA's by the govoner before the first of the year letting we serfs know how the legislature is going to save our lives in the new year. $200.00 additional fine for speeding 85MPH on interstates and 75MPH on surface streets.

Some of those things are good. However telling restuarants what they have to use to cook food, and whether or not you can smoke in a privately owned business is complete E36 M3! And yet very few people are making any noise about this. Because they sell this crap as being "healthy" instead of government control.

Drewsifer wrote: Some of those things are good. However telling restuarants what they have to use to cook food, and whether or not you can smoke in a privately owned business is complete E36 M3! And yet very few people are making any noise about this. Because they sell this crap as being "healthy" instead of government control.

I won't patronize a restaurant that allows smoking. No one in my family will either. We used to drive to another city, that banned smoking in bars/restaurants, to go out to dinner to get away from smokers.

I think you'll find that statistically business goes up in restaruants after a smoking ban.. Businesss people should like that...

http://www.boston.com/ae/food/restaurants/articles/2005/04/04/restaurants_bars_gain_business_under_smoke_ban/

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/03/29/nyregion/bars-and-restaurants-thrive-amid-smoking-ban-study-says.html?pagewanted=1

AS for this wacky site.. http://www.davehitt.com/facts/badforbiz.html <--- My Reaction to each one of those businesses that was put out of commission by a smoking ban is....
1. You didn't react to changing market conditions quick enough 2. Your business model was so skewed to one side that you could not adjust 3. Basically your management was poo and your company was barely hanging on as it was... Tough nuts....

(I got asthma, smoke in your basement... Alone.)

Ignorant, if you don't like to environment, don't go. The Government has no right to tell a small business owner how to run their business. Some people enjoy smoking during or after eating. I personally don't like smoke, so I avoid places that have a lot of smokers. What gives you the right to push your opinions on other people? My wife is allergic to MSG, so therefore you shouldn't be allowed to eat any food that has MSG in it. If fact no one should even be allowed to serve MSG. So goodbye chinese food. Perfumes aggravate my allergies, so no one should be allowed to wear it outside of their houses. Where does it it end? If we let the Government start deciding whats "best" for us, who decides where it ends?

Let the free market decide. The government shouldn't have any say in the matter.

skruffy wrote: No estate tax this year?

Noooo, gramma... I don't think you want the 'resuscitate' option. Think of the quality of MY life!

Drewsifer wrote: Ignorant, if you don't like to environment, don't go. The Government has no right to tell a small business owner how to run their business. Some people enjoy smoking during or after eating. I personally don't like smoke, so I avoid places that have a lot of smokers. What gives you the right to push your opinions on other people? My wife is allergic to MSG, so therefore you shouldn't be allowed to eat any food that has MSG in it. If fact no one should even be allowed to serve MSG. So goodbye chinese food. Perfumes aggravate my allergies, so no one should be allowed to wear it outside of their houses. Where does it it end? If we let the Government start deciding whats "best" for us, who decides where it ends? Let the free market decide. The government shouldn't have any say in the matter.

agreed and agreed

btw the video no longer works

DirtyBird222 wrote:

Drewsifer wrote: Ignorant, if you don't like to environment, don't go. The Government has no right to tell a small business owner how to run their business. Some people enjoy smoking during or after eating. I personally don't like smoke, so I avoid places that have a lot of smokers. What gives you the right to push your opinions on other people? My wife is allergic to MSG, so therefore you shouldn't be allowed to eat any food that has MSG in it. If fact no one should even be allowed to serve MSG. So goodbye chinese food. Perfumes aggravate my allergies, so no one should be allowed to wear it outside of their houses. Where does it it end? If we let the Government start deciding whats "best" for us, who decides where it ends? Let the free market decide. The government shouldn't have any say in the matter.

agreed and agreed btw the video no longer works

Like eating food that doesn't contain poison?
Like 8 hour work days? Like 5 day work weeks? Like childrens toys that are not covered in lead?

hmm..

It's a no win argument man... You'll say that none of these controls work effectively and drive waste. And I'll say look at all the problems in the past with poor food quality and working conditions... If you don't like laws move to place that effectively has none.. Like Yemen or another 3rd world country...

Drewsifer wrote: Ignorant, if you don't like to environment, don't go. The Government has no right to tell a small business owner how to run their business. Some people enjoy smoking during or after eating. I personally don't like smoke, so I avoid places that have a lot of smokers. What gives you the right to push your opinions on other people? My wife is allergic to MSG, so therefore you shouldn't be allowed to eat any food that has MSG in it. If fact no one should even be allowed to serve MSG. So goodbye chinese food. Perfumes aggravate my allergies, so no one should be allowed to wear it outside of their houses. Where does it it end? If we let the Government start deciding whats "best" for us, who decides where it ends? Let the free market decide. The government shouldn't have any say in the matter.

How does MSG affect the people at the next table, how is that even a comparison. Smoking affects everybody in the same room, I believe that any business place that sells food or allows children to be present should be banned from smoking.

If we let the smokers be courteous and voluntarily decline to smoke when other people are present, well we all know what happens then. Look at all the kids locked into cars with Mom and Dad puffing away when the facts tell us that second hand smoke is worse than actual smoking.

To say that the market should decide is ignorant, the market has had that choice for many years, and smokers have abused the right.

I have the right of the soldiers who fell to give freedom, to have my own opinion and I will fight to the death to keep that right.

One more quick point. The quality of the air inside my plant is closely regulated by OSHA to protect the workers inside that establishment. Who protects the lungs of bartenders?

Well as long as we both keep jumping to hyperbole this is going to be a pretty ridiculous argument. It's also a little common sense. I don't think you could find an intilligent healthy person who wanted to eat poison. So laws that prevent people from using it in food is good. However there are people who enjoy smoking. Some controls are good, and needed. But some are not. So are you saying you like the government telling people how to run their businesses? And how to live? How long before the government says you can't eat fast food because it isn't healthy enough? You can't have a fast car because you might get hurt.

Aussie, seriously what gives you the right to decide how a business you don't own is run? You seem to think you have that right. No smoking in public places, absolutely. On the street, in the park, things like that I 100% understand and agree. But if I own my own business, and I want to attract customers who enjoy smoking with whatever else I'm selling that is my right. If you don't like eating places that allow smokers, THEN DON'T GO. It really is that simple.

Ignorant, no one is forcing them to work there. If you don't like working at a bar that has smokers, go work somewhere else. If there's such a huge market for people who want to eat and not work in smoke, than a clever businessperson should leap on it.

I think the main difference between smoking/poison is it is illegal to poison someone, but smoking is still legal. If you don't like smoke, don't go there. If enough people do this the restaraunt will go out of business.

I hate tvs in restauaunts, so I don't go to places with tvs. Easy.

Joey

aussiesmg wrote: I have the right of the soldiers who fell to give freedom, to have my own opinion and I will fight to the death to keep that right.

You have only the "rights" the current government allows you to have. Everything else is illusion. I'd like to keep them as far from control over everyone's life as is reasonably as possible.

Telling businesses that people can't do something there that is perfectly legal for the owner himself to do in his own home is ridiculous. Make it a controlled substance and illegal for sale or use everywhere if they are sooo worried about health. DOH! How many tax dollars would that lose again? F**k that - just make it sorta inconvenient and we can "tax" the business too when they fail to comply!

Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote: Telling businesses that people can't do something there that is perfectly legal for the owner himself to do in his own home is ridiculous. Make it a controlled substance and illegal for sale or use everywhere if they are sooo worried about health. DOH! How many tax dollars would that lose again? F**k that - just make it sorta inconvenient and we can "tax" the business too when they fail to comply!

If I had a machine in my factory that would put the same chemicals cigarette smoke contains into the air at large and factory environment, the EPA and OSHA would shut my ass down...

Figure that out.

DrBoost wrote: 2nd (comment made about the fried chicken oil) I love how freaks from CA say they are more health-conscious. How can you be health-conscious, have you seen your air lately? That's kinda the point. If your air is nasty enough to be seen, it aint healthy! IF you really were 1/2 as health conscious as other folks, you wouldn't have to chew your air before you swallow!!!

Did you think about this before you typed it?

aussiesmg wrote:

Drewsifer wrote: Ignorant, if you don't like to environment, don't go. The Government has no right to tell a small business owner how to run their business. Some people enjoy smoking during or after eating. I personally don't like smoke, so I avoid places that have a lot of smokers. What gives you the right to push your opinions on other people? My wife is allergic to MSG, so therefore you shouldn't be allowed to eat any food that has MSG in it. If fact no one should even be allowed to serve MSG. So goodbye chinese food. Perfumes aggravate my allergies, so no one should be allowed to wear it outside of their houses. Where does it it end? If we let the Government start deciding whats "best" for us, who decides where it ends? Let the free market decide. The government shouldn't have any say in the matter.

How does MSG affect the people at the next table, how is that even a comparison. Smoking affects everybody in the same room, I believe that any business place that sells food or allows children to be present should be banned from smoking. If we let the smokers be courteous and voluntarily decline to smoke when other people are present, well we all know what happens then. Look at all the kids locked into cars with Mom and Dad puffing away when the facts tell us that second hand smoke is worse than actual smoking. To say that the market should decide is ignorant, the market has had that choice for many years, and smokers have abused the right. I have the right of the soldiers who fell to give freedom, to have my own opinion and I will fight to the death to keep that right.

No one is telling you to breathe in that air

DirtyBird222 wrote: No one is telling you to breathe in that air

Ya, go breathe air somewhere else if you don't like it! GOSH!

This really fell off topic, however I will add my $0.02. I don't mind the smoking ban in restaurants, but banning smoking in bars is ridiculous. The owner of the bar should have the final say in whether or not people can smoke. If you don't want to smoke, you can frequent bars where the owner feels the same way.

Anyone ever read excerpts from Upton Sinclair's novel, "The Jungle"?

Yeah... the FDA and most health regulations aren't necessarily bad things.

The jungle was a DAMN good book. A real eye opener