Reason TV’s Nanny of the Month Honors Restaurant & Bar Owners’ Ban of Michigan Politicians for Their Business-Killing No Smoking Law (video)
Posted By Vicki McClure Davidson on September 1, 2011
This is a first — conservative Reason TV has been video-showcasing Nanny State government bans, overreaches, mandates, and hypocrisies for quite a while now, but this month’s winning top slot goes to bar and restaurant owners in Michigan who are now banning the state’s lawmakers.
The smoking ban in restaurants and bars that went into effect a year ago is killing business for their owners — many of whom are about to lose their businesses — so they’re fighting back.
The lawmaker ban brings to the forefront that it should be the property owners, not politicians, who are in control of their property. The law is also hypocritical because while it bans smoking in Michigan’s saloons and restaurants, the gambling floors of Detroit casinos are exempt.
ReasonTV’s summary of this month’s video:
They’re banning pet pigs in St. Charles, Missouri (even small, hypoallergenic ones like Pepper!) and Nice Cream in Illinois (even though it’s packed with natural ingredients and the owner says its bacterial levels are well below state-approved levels), but neither of those could claim the top slot because — well, this time Nanny of the Month is doing something different…
For the first time ever, Nanny of the Month is cheering a ban.
That’s right, starting September 1, more than 500 Michigan restaurant and bar owners are banning state lawmakers from their establishments. State Senator So-and-so wants a brew? Too bad. Politicians won’t be served until they revisit the state’s 2010 smoking ban, which, owners say, has devastated business, and left bars like Sporty O’Tooles on the verge of collapse.
Reason TV: Michigan Bar & Restaurant Owners Ban Lawmakers for Banning Smoking (Nanny of the Month, Aug 2011)
From WLNS News, Michigan Bars & Restaurants Start Lawmaker Ban:
Restaurant and bar owners across the state are sending a message to lawmakers Wednesday. Starting September 1, some Michigan business owners say they will ban state lawmakers from their property.
Members of the “protect private property rights in Michigan” say the state smoking ban has cost Michigan an estimated $200 million. They say businesses have been hurt and people have lost jobs as a result.
In addition the group says the state has lost tax and lottery revenue.
From Houston Chronicle, Bar owners may turn tables on Michigan lawmakers:
LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Bar and restaurant owners upset about Michigan’s workplace smoking ban have a ban of their own in the works.
An organization called Protect Private Property Rights in Michigan said Tuesday that roughly 500 bars statewide plan to ban state lawmakers from their premises. The ban would start Sept. 1.
The lawmaker ban is a way for critics to draw attention to what they say are the harmful effects of the smoking ban. Some bars say they have lost business because of the ban. Others say the ban is unfair because decisions about whether to allow smoking should be left to property owners.
The Legislature-approved smoking ban took effect in May 2010.
Critics of the ban want lawmakers to revisit the issue.
“This subject needs to be opened up in Lansing again, it needs to be discussed again,” said Steve Mace, executive director of the property rights group.
In an effort to highlight what they consider the hypocrisy of Michigan’s smoking ban — which exempts gambling floors of Detroit casinos — business owners said the lawmaker ban also would have exemptions. It would not cover the Republican or Democratic leaders in the House or Senate.
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