Chicagoist: Smoking Ban Blamed For Casino Revenue Decrease

Bill Hannegan

Mon, 08 Dec 2008 22:18:48 -0600

Illinois could solve its casino smoking ban problem by instituting the Chicago air filtration exemption statewide: Any venue can allow smoking that through air filtration makes its air cleaner than the air outdoors. I think the Casino Queen could meet this standard right now. http://egov.cityofchicago.org/webportal/COCWebPortal/COC_ATTACH/MunicipalCode7-32_1.html#7_32_080

Spook

Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:46:31 -0600

Stealth, check out a dude named John Locke. He talks about society forminng social packs for a greater good. Its bigger than just 9 or 10 regulars and its not just about people being "offended". Its about the 200,000 people that died from Second hand Smoke before this law. Second hand smoke kills and costs the country money due to healthcare costs. If you don't belive me then do your own research. p.s actually maybe it was Thomas Hobbes?

Stealth

Fri, 05 Dec 2008 10:18:16 -0600

Sorry, one other point: It just doesn't seem fair that some dinky hole-in-the-wall far Northwest side bar that is surviving on its last 9 or 10 regular customers, all of whom either smoke or don't mind it, has to ban smoking and risk losing them just because there's a 0.2 percent chance you might walk in there one day and be offended by the smoking.

Stealth

Fri, 05 Dec 2008 10:13:36 -0600

Hi Stealth - What about the people that work there ie servers, cooks, bar-backs etc. Companies/offices don't allow smoking in the work place? If you know a place allows smoking, don't apply to work there. I might want to work for the Anti-Cruelty Society's shelter, but with my allergies to cats, forget about it. Like I said, there are 50 gazillion bars and restaurants in this city (give or take a gazillion). If the city would acknowledge this and allow smoking and non-smoking establishments, then those line cooks, etc. would have a choice of where they want to work. Hell, most of the cooks, etc. I know duck out for a smoke every few minutes anyway. But to me it's silly to act like there wasn't a workable solution to this that would please everybody. We're Chicago, for crying out loud, not Podunk with only one bar and one diner. For the record, I USED to smoke but quit about four years ago.

Ward Up

Fri, 05 Dec 2008 08:36:08 -0600

Fortunately, these casino crybabies won't get this bill passed.

jimbo

Thu, 04 Dec 2008 22:58:59 -0600

I love when people start talking about their rights

FuktBiDaMan

Thu, 04 Dec 2008 16:44:47 -0600

Hi Stealth - What about the people that work there ie servers, cooks, bar-backs etc. Companies/offices don't allow smoking in the work place? Why do smokers always feel like they have a right to take away other peoples right NOT to smoke. If not for yourself, don't you care about the fact that your smoking affects the people around you?

jmagic

Thu, 04 Dec 2008 16:41:23 -0600

Stealth for Gov/Mayor/Ideaman.

Stealth

Thu, 04 Dec 2008 16:16:34 -0600

God knows I love smelling like smoke when I come home from the bars/dinner/casino at night; There were/are enough bars in this city to satisfy both smokers and nonsmokers. Give tax incentives to bars to go non-smoking. Issue licenses on a smoking-nonsmoking-smoking type basis. If a businesses license comes up and they don't want the one being offered, make 'em wait or something. I mean there are 50 zillion bars on Clark street between Belmont and Addison alone. YOu mean they couldn't let one or two accomodate smokers? and there is nothing so tasty as kissing a smoker. I think there's a way to remedy this problem...

FuktBiDaMan

Thu, 04 Dec 2008 15:48:13 -0600

WTF. Does anybody know if restaurant/bar alchohol sales are down since the smoking ban went into effect? Are all the smokers with addictive personalities that used to smoke in the bars/restaurants/casinos now just eating and drinking at home? Maybe the IL smoking ban is why the Auto industry needs help or why Chicago home sales are down 20% plus and the value of homes are down 10%. Let's throw the Kennedy Assination on here too! Everybody start smoking so we can jump-start the economy again!!! God knows I love smelling like smoke when I come home from the bars/dinner/casino at night; and there is nothing so tasty as kissing a smoker. I used to love second-hand smoking two packs a day when I would go out anwywhere.

jmagic

Thu, 04 Dec 2008 15:38:31 -0600

smoking and gambling aren't "stupid." i don't think people walk into a casino hoping to get rich ... if they do, then they probably are stupid themselves. while i'm not a huge gambler, i do gamble from time to time because it's fun to do and if i win a little money doing it, even better. if i'm in Vegas i enjoy a smoke while i play cards. if i can't smoke, i'll go outside later. most casinos have great ventilation systems and are able to not only filter out the smoke, but they also pump in a shit ton of oxygen, so the air is probably better in there than it is outside.

Scooter Libbby

Thu, 04 Dec 2008 14:57:25 -0600

Only idiots smoke & only idiots go to casinos. Are the gamblers so stupid that they think they're going to beat the house? No casino can stay in business if the gamblers win more than they lose. And only Trump lost money running a casino in New Jersey, which tells you more about his lack of business acumen & his genius for self promotion, where there is an large percentage of the population that actually think he knows what he's doing.

BlueFairlane

Thu, 04 Dec 2008 14:11:46 -0600

Equally oppressive anti-smoking laws on the federal level solves the problem, as it removes any incentive for people to go to Indiana. (And there has to be a huge incentive to get people to go to Indiana.) I generally think governments look too much to casinos as a quick-fix solution for free money. Casino economics are unsustainable, especially as the casino market grows more and more saturated.

mss2400

Thu, 04 Dec 2008 14:03:05 -0600

So revenues are down 20 percent in Illinois, and only 0.75 percent in Indiana? Indiana allows smoking, and Illinois does not? This is not hard to figure out, folks. The problem here is that our state government decided to pass one of the most oppressive anti-smoking laws in the nation. Look, the state could have passed a law that allowed casinos to designate smoking and non-smoking rooms, and required casinos to accomodate employees that did not want to work in the smoking rooms. Of course, they did not, and now all of those tax dollars that could have been used to keep those state parks open are going to Indiana instead. Although it would seem to make sense to modify the law to recognize the reality of the situation, there is no way that the anti-smoking zealots in this state will permit that. I suspect that they will instead push for equally opressive anti-smoking laws on a federal level.

Slaphappy

Thu, 04 Dec 2008 13:41:54 -0600

Why is it stupid to go to a casino? I actually think there's some truth to the smoking ban theory.

ophmarketing

Thu, 04 Dec 2008 13:30:46 -0600

Swoik pointed to Indiana, where revenues are down only three-quarters of a percent, saying, "They have basically the same economy, the same weather...The only difference is the smoking ban." Maybe people in Indiana are just stupider.

magnus

Thu, 04 Dec 2008 13:06:10 -0600

Boo hoo.

Spook

Thu, 04 Dec 2008 12:45:57 -0600

yea nothing to do with foreclosures