Filed under: Defiance, Dissent, Free Will, Heroes, anti insanity | Tagged: Velvet glove iron fist book launch
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I’m wondering if anyone noticed that the smoking ban passed by the Democrats and signed by Jim Doyle purports to prohibit indoor smoking in private club facilities, defined as those used by an organization that limits its membership and is organized for a recreational, fraternal, social, patriotic, political, benevolent, or athletic purpose.
Theoretically, this could cover ANY indoor space–even a private residence that is otherwise exempt from the ban–if it is used as a private club facility. Thus, for example, if you light up a cigarette in your living room, you’re exempt from the ban. But if you invite a friend over for “social” purposes and light up a cigarette in your living room, you have a private club facility and you have just violated the Wisconsin smoking ban.
Since when is it legal for the government to trigger a legal prohibition based solely on citizens exercising their First Amendment right to peaceably assemble? If you smoke alone, you’re not breaking the law. But if two or more people get together to smoke, it violates the smoking ban! The provisions of the Wisconsin smoking ban dealing with private clubs are blatantly unconstitutional.
I also have constitutional objections to prohibiting smoking in any facility that simply has a Class B liquor license. Certainly, someone can operate a small bar without any employees and as a private club, barring entry to the general public and limiting access only to club members. With respect to such a bar, who is the state protecting when it insists that this non-public, non-workplace must go smoke-free just because it has a liquor license? There are no workers, and the general public cannot get in. Perhaps the governments objection is that the bar will encourage too many smokers to peaceably assemble?
This shows you what the Antis are up to. They’re NOT out to protect nonsmokers from secondhand smoke. Their real goal is to eliminate any and all venues for social smoking, in order to inconvenience, humiliate, and demonize smokers into quitting.
I expect the smoking ban in Wisconsin to be a dismal failure, I have worked in several parts of the state and in talking to bar owners I have been told that since it was left to local law enforcement there is little incentive to enforce the ban. Most places when put to a vote, like Rhinelander and Kenosha. Add to the fact that businesses can only get $100.00 in fines per day, so businesses that have a high enough voulume will have little incentive to comply. The demand for a smoking ban was never as high as the antis claim. Like the so called science they had to rig the polls. Not to mention they would have a harder time with enforcement in private clubs or homes. A bar they can just walk into. A home or private club you can refuse them entrance forcing them to get a judge to order a search, and for that they must show probable cause.
Can an exemption for bars be put on the ballot? I’ll bet it would pass.
Wisconsin doesn’t have referendum votes. Our best bet is to get rid of the politicians who put it in.
I’m betting Wisconsin’s ban will just be like Illinois’ ban, if one looks hard enough, they can find places that look the other way on the ban. Hell, I even once found a diner within Chicago where I saw employees looking the other way on the ban(after the Chicago city smoking ban took effect), and dunno how this place is post-statewide ban, wouldn’t be surprised if it was still the same way today!