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JR Hoeft

Conservative to the core; liberal with his opinion! J.R. has been involved in politics for over a decade and has worked on several campaigns in Hampton Roads. He has served on the Executive Committee of the Republican Party of Chesapeake and the Central Committee of the Republican Party of Virginia. He is also the director of “Blogs United” in Virginia. E-mail J.R.. Follow J.R. on Twitter.

Comments

6 Responses to "Del. John Cosgrove on the smoking ban"

1. 

   John Harvie February 20, 2009 10:42 am

   He’s right when he said:

   “But I also talked to many of my constituents over a few years, and the overwhelming feeling of the people I represent is that there should be some kind of restriction on smoking in public places…especially restaurants”.

   Otherwise he shouldn’t have been elected.

2. 

   Grozet February 20, 2009 13:31 pm

   thanks for posting the explanation. I still disagree, but at least there is a clear line of motivation.

3. 

   Britt Howard February 20, 2009 13:38 pm

   *sigh*
   Yes, you should represent the will of the people. Assuming you have vaerifiable and trustworthy numbers, you still have to deal with one huge issue. The US Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

   We have property rights in this country. That is the cornerstone of the “Free Market System”. Individual rights to include property rights supercede tyranny of the majority/mob rule democracy. It is unconstitutional for everyone to vote to do horrible things to other individuals. Consent of the majority is how this country has had to deal with a plethora of societal ills that took too long to correct.

   Additionally this is a waste of time. More and more restaurants are going smoke free. Smoking sections are shrinking and disappearing on their own. Stomping on property rights simply to speed up what is happening without legislation anyway is a big mistake!

4. 

   Darrell February 20, 2009 17:19 pm

   So who is going to be the first bar owner to construct a small non-smoking area in the front, with a few tables for food service, and wall off the entire rest of the bar for smoking patrons? The law doesn’t say both areas must have equal access to entertainment.

5. 

   Chad P February 21, 2009 10:18 am

   The Constitution was designed to protect the rights of the minority against a tyrannical majority. The will of the majority isn’t always the correct, ethical, or just position to hold.

   The arrogance and abrogation of duties is not in his refusal to support the ban… it is in his capitulating to the demands of a wrongheaded, evil bit of legislation to garner a few extra votes next election cycle.

6. 

   Watchdog February 21, 2009 16:08 pm

   I don’t know Cosgrove’s record on other issues, but if “following the will of the people” is the reason to craft legislation we would have a quite different country.

   * An overwhelming majority consider themselves to be environmentally concerned…yet the environmental laws and enforcement and penalties get weaker and weaker.
   * A majority oppose the so-called “war” in Iraq etc…yet on it all goes.
   * A majority want the private health insurance industry OUT of the way of a public paid and public administered health system…yet private insurers still take about a third of patrons’ health care money for non health things, and about 40 million are excluded entirely.
   * A majority, at least in many states, want an end to the criminalization of marijuana and hemp…yet this part of the “drug war” rages on, filling prisons and ruining lives.
   * A majority of voters voted for Gore…but look who we got for 8 years..

   IF The People were properly informed, and were asked proper questions, we’d have a quite different “smoking” situation too.

   Let’s ask “Do you believe that government officials ought continue to allow known toxic, carcinogenic, and fire-starting and kid-attracting non-tobacco industrial substances in smoking products?”

   Also, “Do you believe that officials responsible for that, and who continue to do nothing, ought enjoy praise for enacting restrictions and penalties on the unwitting victims of those products?”

   Let’s see what the majority says about all that….and let’s see if the Cosgroves of the land will leave office in shame…if not in handcuffs for failing their sworn duties to protect the public from precisely such industrial product contamination.