Smoke-Free Casinos

Jacob Sullum | December 21, 2006

The Atlantic City Council plans to vote next week on an ordinance prohibiting smoking on casino floors, which are exempt from New Jersey's smoking ban. State Sen. Joseph Vitale (D-Middlesex), who co-sponsored the state ban, urged the council to close the loophole, likening secondhand smoke to other workplace conditions regulated by the government. "If radon and asbestos were found in Steve Wynn's or Donald Trump's offices, they would quickly fix that problem," he said, conflating hidden hazards with a conspicuous, well-known nuisance that people can choose to avoid if they consider it unacceptable. Who was the intrepid investigator who "found" tobacco smoke in casinos, and how long did it take him? (And yes, if a casino wanted to open a radon room or an asbestos alcove, and people were willing to work and gamble there despite the risk, that would be none of the government's business either.)

But this is the best paragraph in the article:

In other business, City Councilman Gene Robinson attended the meeting, wearing a pro-smoking ban T-shirt, but not addressing the issues surrounding the video that recently surfaced of him receiving oral sex. He and attorney Joe Levin have claimed no laws were broken and blamed Robinson's political enemies for the video's recording and distribution.