Legislature sends mixed smoke signals

The 2011 session of the Texas Legislature is shaping up to be an example of what is good and bad about the state Republican Party as the GOP supermajority advances its agenda in Austin.

Many things could have and should have been expected – cuts to social programs, a bill that tries to discourage abortions, a possible increase in the speed limit, new restrictions on the use of eminent domain to take private property for public use.

But then there is the current issue winding its way through the legislative sausage maker – a state ban on smoking in public places. The ban has been placed as a house amendment to a senate spending bill (SB 1811) and passed earlier this week, 73-66. It still has some hoops to jump through to become law though.

Proponents of the bill say banning smoking in bars and restaurants would save $31
million in Medicaid costs over the next two years. Rep. Myra Crownover (R-Lake Dallas) has been working on this issue for several years, and now, with the state in a budget crunch, she may have found an opening to push it through.

Americans for Prosperity State Director Peggy Venable said the following in a statement about the proposed ban: “Where does government stop regulating our behavior? One legislator said if we were truly focused on health, we should outlaw tobacco but because we count on over $1 billion in sales tax revenue to the state from the sale of tobacco, we do not consider a prohibition.”

Amen, sister!

Whether I allow smoking in my place of business is no one’s business but mine. I may lose customers, but that’s also my business. Likewise, if a restaurant allows smoking in its establishment, I can choose to go or not go based on the quality of their food, my concern for my health (ha ha ha), and how good their margaritas are among other factors. But it is certainly no business of the government – local, state, or federal – whether smoking is allowed in the establishment. As Venable notes, “No one holds a gun to your head and forces you to a pool hall or bar which allows smoking. It’s a choice.”

Where does this stop if we allow the state to infringe on private property rights and ban smoking? We see what’s going on in the national arena. Food is the new tobacco; obesity is the new cancer. The busybodies who were so adamant about going after the tobacco companies 15 years ago have now turned their sights to fast food companies and more recently have begun rattling their sabers about salt content in food, and they are employing the same tactics. First, they wag their fingers about marketing to – all together now – “the children,” and then they start running off at the mouth about how much government spends on smoking- or fat-related illnesses through Medicaid.

Will this Crownover gal next want to send Ronald McDonald and the Morton Salt girl to the marketing junkyard, or will she just try to ban salt shakers on restaurant tables as a method of saving Medicaid dollars?

If the GOP is truly about individual responsibility and protection of property rights, then its members need to step up right now and tell Crownover and her friends to butt out of other people’s business.

This nannyism has gone too far at both the state and federal levels, and the Party of Perry needs to drive a stake through this beast’s heart ASAP.

Meanwhile…
It’s that time of year again… time to clean out the garage and turn all that excess stuff into cash in your pocket. The sixth annual Trash To Treasures Citywide Garage Sale will be Saturday, June 4, and the more people who get involved the bigger success everyone will have.

The cost to get your garage sale listed in the Trash to Treasures event is just $20, and that gets you a 50-word classified, a spot on the garage sale map, yard signs, price stickers, and, most of all, regional advertising. We advertise Trash to Treasures in area newspapers, including Amarillo, and on radio in order to bring in folks from out of town.

The more sales we have, the more advertising we can do, and the better results everyone will have.

So get with your friends and family and clean out your closets, garages, basements, storage buildings, etc. Nearly everybody could stand to get rid of some “junk,” and everybody could certainly use some extra “green” this spring. Come on down to the Enterprise and get signed up by this Friday at 5 p.m. or call us at 874-2259 or 662-4689.

Now in the past we have had a few folks who have had sales but who chose not to participate in T2T. That is unfair to those who have helped pay for promoting the event. Trash To Treasures, like so many things in Clarendon and Donley County, works best when we all work together.

Thank you to those who are working and organizing your sales, and let’s look forward to a great success next weekend.