Wednesday, May 07, 2008

Black Hawk Cigar Bar and Casino gets personal "attention" from Colorado state lawmakers

.....that personal attention results in state legislation designed:

to pass a state law whose sole aim and purpose was to shaft (screw over) one, single small businessman.

Read the entire vindictive story here.

What he was operating, it turned out according to state law, was a cigar bar.

That his cigar bar just happened to have 216 slot machines in it, he realized, well, who was he to argue with legal definitions?

"Keep smoking," he told his patrons.

It worked.

The city attorney promptly studied Ed Smith's financial books and the $300,000 a year he was pulling in from tobacco sales, finishing up with an inspection of his humidors. Cigar bar, the city attorney ruled. The state Division of Gaming, soon enough, arrived at the same conclusion: cigar bar.

It all came crashing down on Friday afternoon when Senate Bill 225, sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Ken Gordon, D-Denver, which would outlaw gaming devices in cigar bars, sailed through a final House committee hearing ahead of deliberation on Monday before the full House.

Someone, Ed Smith believes, has it in for him, and gamed the system to get the legislature to do what it almost never does: target a single individual.

The lesson here is that you don't cross rent seeking legislation funded by the pharmaceutical nicotine (Nicoderm) interests. Namely, Nicoderm manufacturer Johnson & Johnson Company's Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF). When RWJF funds the pro-smoking ban, non-profit, activists to the tune of $446 million for personal marketing interests........liberal legislators mysteriously feel compelled to obey their rent seeking master.

Even though air quality test results by Johns Hopkins University, the American Cancer Society, a Minnesota Environmental Health Department, and various researchers whose testing and report was peer reviewed and published in the esteemed British Medical Journal......prove that secondhand smoke is 2.6 - 25,000 times SAFER than occupational (OSHA) workplace regulations:

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2007/11/johns-hopkins-air-quality-testing-of.html

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2007/04/bmj-published-air-quality-test-results.html

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2004/04/american-cancer-society-test-results.html

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2006/02/air-quality-testing-and-secondhand.html

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2008/03/british-medical-journal-who-conclude.html

All nullify the argument that secondhand smoke is a workplace health hazard.

posted by marcus aurelius @ 7:03 AM

Tuesday, April 29, 2008

J & J's RWJF and tobacco control groups create new problem. Report Finds: Cigarette Smugglers Funnel Money to Terror Groups

Tobacco control activists funded by Nicoderm manufacturer Johnson & Johnson (ALZA) Company's private foundation, RWJF, urged lawmakers to increase tobacco taxes. The result is a black market which apparently funnels profits back to Al Qaeda according to this story.

So it seems that Johnson & Johnson Company's Robert Wood Johnson Foundation funds policies which result in raising money for terrorist groups.....isn't that an interesting turn of events.

As a reminder, the reason Johnson & Johnson Company's RWJF fund anti-tobacco policies is to increase Nicoderm product sales.

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2007/02/smoking-bans-good-public-policy-or.html

And increasing Nicoderm sales is exactly what smoking bans and increased tobacco taxes have accomplished.

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2007/12/minnesota-smoking-ban-triples-demand-of.html

The other result of these policies is business closings and increased global unemployment.

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2007/01/100-bars-and-restaurants-put-out-of.html

http://www.smokersclub.com/banloss3.htm

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2008/01/global-unemployment-rate-expected-to.html

RWJF and tobacco control policies help fund Al Qaeda, perhaps that wasn't their intent; but that is the result of their draconian and rent seeking activism.

posted by marcus aurelius @ 7:52 AM

Saturday, April 26, 2008

"Global warming" update from Clearing the Air headquarters in Minneapolis, MN


video

It's not only arrogant to believe that mankind is to blame for the climate here on earth, but it's extremely costly to our economy to implement unnecessary "global warming solutions"

In much the same way smoking bans are implemented to combat the exaggerated scam that secondhand smoke is a health hazard....the result is that our local businesses, employees, and economy suffer .

Too many liberal politicians are implementing unnecessary laws for unnecessary reasons.

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2008/03/british-medical-journal-who-conclude.html

It's time for common sense and limited government to make a comeback.

posted by marcus aurelius @ 5:50 PM

Monday, April 21, 2008

Casino revenues in Colorado, Nevada and elsewhere are down due to smoking bans

Story found here:
http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/15938989/detail.html

February statistics show casino revenue dropping to $57.9 million, down 10.1 percent compared with the same month last year. In January, proceeds fell to $56.7 million, off 3.6 percent from a year ago. -(Colorado casinos)

In Nevada, home to the Las Vegas strip and other towns with far more gambling attractions than Colorado, business has suffered. Total revenues for Nevada's casinos fell almost 5 percent in January to $1.064 billion, according to the state's gaming division.

New Jersey and Illinois also reported significant declines in the same month compared with a year ago, according to data collected by the American Gaming Association.

"....smokers also acknowledge that when they're outside smoking, they're not pumping money into the slots....."

Just keep telling yourself "....smoking bans are good for business.....".

That's what Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the non-profits in their employ, and Nicoderm manufacturer Johnson & Johnson Company keep repeating.

posted by marcus aurelius @ 8:56 PM

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

J&J posts 40 percent jump in 1Q profit....WOW how do they do it?

This first quarter of '08 has seen some challenging financial times for individuals and various industries. However Johnson & Johnson Company has shown steroid strength performance enhancement. Is it magic? Or more likely, the result of some serious, rent seeking, legislative efforts?

Clearing the Air has demonstrated repeatedly how J & J's private foundation RWJF has led the nationwide smoking ban assault......by funding each and every effort. We've also demonstrated and proven that Johnson & Johnson's pharmaceutical nicotine (Nicoderm) product sales have increased three-fold in the wake of the smoking ban laws they funded thru non-profit lobbying activity.

Ahhh....ain't it a grand rent seeking, racketeering scam. Unless of course you're one of the tens of thousands unemployed by their hand.

See nationwide hospitality closings due to smoking bans here:

http://www.smokersclub.com/banloss3.htm

posted by marcus aurelius @ 1:11 PM

Tuesday, April 08, 2008

Governor Pawlenty and Minnesota legislators should take a lesson from Ohio...appropriate the state's tobacco settlement funds for our budget shortfall

http://toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080408/NEWS24/527500825

COLUMBUS — The Ohio House Tuesday threw the latest punch in the fight over the state’s tobacco prevention funds.

With Gov. Ted Strickland waiting to sign the emergency measure into law, the House voted 89-5 to immediately take control of $230 million in the trust overseen by Ohio Tobacco Prevention Foundation

Last week, Mr. Strickland and Republican legislative leaders stunned the foundation’s board when they announced plans to take all but the last $40 million still in the foundation’s coffers to help pay for a $1.57 billion economic stimulus package. The package would invest in everything from roads and bridges to medical and energy research.

The foundation’s board responded Friday by voting to transfer $190 million of its funds to three non-profit organizations out of the reach of the state. But the foundation did not immediately make the transfer, which left the General Assembly and Mr. Strickland time to thwart its plans with passage of today’s emergency law.

"They left us no choice but to act on this," said House Speaker Jon Husted (R., Kettering).

Hopefully this story will help Minnesota lawmakers take possession of OUR tobacco settlement funds away from the unnecessary and unethical ClearWay MN.

And then the right thing to do with those funds would be to compensate those of us in the hospitality industry who have paid for this deeply flawed legislation with our livelihoods, homes, and more.

posted by marcus aurelius @ 9:45 PM

Should the Department of Justice and Attorney Generals consider RICO charges against Johnson & Johnson Company / RWJF?

J & J has made news recently for all the wrong reasons:

ADMITTING PUBLICLY they made “improper payments” in violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

BEING SUED by the former head of their clinical trials in a whistleblowing lawsuit that alleges he was terminated because he raised safety concerns overdeaths and injuries caused by J & J products.

BEING FORCED to divulge internal emails over a less-than-forthright Internet-based marketing campaign undertaken to try to blunt negative talk about their products.

BEING ORDERED by a jury to pay $5 million in damages for the death of a one-year-old due to inadequate safety labeling on one of their most popular products.

FACING A CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT in Canada for negligent testing and marketing of their heartburn product which resulted in the death of a 15-year-old girl, among others.

BEING SUED by the Attorney General of Texas for fraudulent dealing and improperly influencing a state employee to purchase more than $100 million of their product.

HAVING A LABORATORY REPORT COME OUT that reportedly uncovers a relatively high amount of undisclosed carcinogenic chemicals in their company’s flagship products: baby and kids’ body washes and shampoo.

However there is a new looming issue that authorities have yet to investigate.

The role that Nicoderm manufacturer Johnson & Johnson company's private Robert Wood Johnson Foundation RWJF has played in eliminating jobs and increasing unemployment rates across the country.

RWJF is the political division of Nicoderm manufacturer J & J. As such RWJF's role is to lobby lawmakers thru non-profit groups to implement legislation that puts Johnson & Johnson products in a government mandated, rent seeking, advantageous position.

Smoking bans are one of the prominent issues that RWJF openingly funds to bring about "legislative change". And as RWJF owns between 60 - 80 million shares of J & J stock, was founded by J & J founder, and currently has board members who were former executives or board members of the Johnson & Johnson Company, RWJF; along with J & J; profits from improper and unethical rent seeking legislation we know as smoking bans.

By itself outsiders might claim that banning tobacco use is a good thing.......however when you take a closer look at the actual effects of these laws you'll notice that thousands of business closings and tens of thousands of unemployed workers is the result. All so that Johnson & Johnson Company and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation can turn a quick profit. And sure enough just as they'd hoped Nicoderm and other alternative nicotine product sales have increased. Current projections by industry insiders speculate sales will reach $4.6 billion annually.

And let's remember what the provisions of the RICO Act state:

"...the statute is sufficiently broad to encompass ......activities relating to any enterprise affecting interstate or foreign commerce. Section 1961(10) of Title 18 provides that the Attorney General may designate any department or agency to conduct investigations authorized by the RICO statute and such department or agency may use the investigative provisions of the statute or the investigative power of such department or agency otherwise conferred by law....."

Other law sites offer the following definition:

Racketeering is the act of operating a business or scheme in order to make a profit, perpetrated by a structured group. It includes .... fraud against businesses or individuals. Governments can be victimized by racketeering......Racketeering also takes place among legitimate businesses or labor unions, where it is sometimes referred to as white-collar crime.

So Clearing the Air welcomes a new investigation into Johnson & Johnson and RWJF....this time into the organized efforts and activities that directly lead to significant nationwide economic harm.

posted by marcus aurelius @ 7:22 AM

Sunday, April 06, 2008

American Lung Association of Minnesota sends letter of threat to bars and restaurants exploiting a loophole in the state's smoking ban


(click on image to enlarge)

This is of course a hollow threat since neither the ALAMN nor the MN Health Department have the authority to override an exemption for actors in a theatrical production written into the "Freedom to Breathe Act" by MN legislators.

The letter ends with the outrageous lie by former Surgeon General Carmona, which led to his eventual dismissal "...SG has "estimated" that secondhand smoke has killed.....3,000 non smokers from lung cancer...." The 3,000 deaths claim was thrown out of court due to seriously flawed research methodolgy, therefore the later claim that 46,000 people also died from secondhand smoke due to heart attacks had no basis in fact whatsoever. But let's give them the benefit of the doubt to prove a point.

Let's assume that the SG Carmona was right and that nationwide 3,000 people died from secondhand smoke, that breaks down to 60 per state (3,000 divided by 50 states). Ok now let's contrast that "false claim" against the actual results of the Nicoderm funded smoking ban laws here in the Twin Cities area, where 182+ small businesses have had to close their doors permanently, laying off approximately 10,000 hospitality workers. It is very likely (or to use Carmona's language) "estimated" of those 10,000 laid off workers, 10% have experinced a life threatening stress that prematurely led to the death or serious illness......not to mention loss of health insurance benefits.

So the smoking ban law was enacted to save 60 people in the state of Minnesota, yet the effect of that rent seeking legislation killed or caused life threatening stress to 1,000 unemployed hospitality owners and employees.....not an equitable trade off by any stretch of the imagination.

As a side note, Nicoderm manufacturer Johnson & Johnson's private foundation, RWJF, which has funded the smoking ban movement to the tune of $446 million, conducted a study which showed that involuntary job loss has a very significant effect on health......that's what I call eerily ironic.

http://www.rwjf.org/pr/product.jsp?ia=141&id=15004

posted by marcus aurelius @ 11:38 AM

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