Atlantic City: "Absolutely No Smoking! Oh, Never Mind."

Atlantic City's council consists of some very principled politicians. Citing health concerns, the council voted to ban smoking in the local casinos. Then, when business at the gambling palaces dropped through the floor — no more health concerns. The brave policy makers reversed themselves. Smoking's fine! Light up!

This guy really grinds my gears, by the way.

Arthur Kaler, a 25-year dealer at Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino, felt betrayed by the council's reversal. "If we are here next year to revisit the smoking ban and I have fallen victim to lung cancer, will each of you look my family in the eyes?" he asked council members at a recent meeting. "Tell them how brave I was to fight secondhand smoke every day to save the economy of New Jersey?"

How would you like to have someone like this on your payroll? I can only imagine the looks he shoots smoking patrons.

Kaler appears to be unfamiliar with concepts like choice and personal responsibility. I'm going to go out on a limb here and assume that he signed up for his casino job without Joe Pesci putting a loaded Glock to his head. Mr. Kaler would have been, and still is, welcome to search employment in any environment he deems fit, or even (gasp) to start his own business, creating precisely the kind of workplace he finds appealing.

To take a job at an Atlantic City casino and then publicly whine about the tobacco smoke is to take a job in a slaughterhouse and complain about the blood; or to take a job in a sewage plant and then picket the place because it doesn't smell like a rose garden.

I suspect there are rules that preclude the Trump casino from firing his ass, but if I worked in management or human resources there, I'd sure be itching to find ways to pinkslip him. As I'm always looking to make the world a better place, here's a hearty recommendation to all involved: A change of venue for Mr. Kaler would surely be in the best interest of his employer and the Atlantic City visitors who finance his salary — and most of all, it might very well benefit poor Mr. Kaler's long-term health. Everybody wins!

Comments

[bobl]

Unfortunately, there's more to this story:
Smoking is banned in EVERY OTHER WORKPLACE in NJ, in every other restaurant, cafe, place of business, etc. Only in the gang-operated casinos is it allowed.
I'm against government controls and coercion of most kinds, but, NJ is basing this smoking ban on "workplace and public safety", so, it either is hazardous, or it isn't, but only morons (read gummint) believe it can be both.

[Hunter]

Gang operated?

[bobl]

Gang: if you're from NJ, you'd understand "gang" to define southern NJ Democrats, as opposed to northern NJ Democrats, defined as "gang".

[Tatiana von Tauber]

"To take a job at an Atlantic City casino and then publicly whine about the tobacco smoke is to take a job in a slaughterhouse and complain about the blood..."

That is a fantastic comparison! Thank you.