Jump to full article: Wausau (WI) Daily Herald, 2008-04-10
Intro: The din from almost three-quarters of Wisconsin's population must be getting so loud that it penetrates even the insulating walls of the state Capitol.
A new poll -- arguably the most objective and comprehensive of any done so far on this subject -- found that 69 percent of Wisconsin residents favor a statewide smoking ban. . . .
About the only groups that don't seem to favor a statewide ban are lawmakers, particularly Senate Majority Leader Russ Decker of Weston, and the state Tavern League. . . .
What tavern owners need to realize is that they're killing themselves with their own stalling tactics. As the Legislature drags its feet on a statewide law, municipalities are creating a patchwork of different rules across the state.
Voters in Marshfield just joined the list of cities that have banned smoking in workplaces, and barkeeps in Spencer, Stratford and Hewitt couldn't be happier. . . .
Marshfield tavern owners should be howling -- not over the legitimately adopted local ordinance, but at the state Tavern League. Until the Tavern League relents, bars in places like Marshfield will suffer from the uneven field on which they must play.
Meanwhile, it's up to the 69 percent of state voters who support a ban to make their views known.
Keep screaming. Sooner or later, your voices will get so loud that even Decker, sitting in the bowels of the statehouse, will hear them.
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