Your Opportunity To Be Heard - Thursday's City Council Meeting

Hello Folks,

I hope you will come to this Thursday's City Council Meeting (7pm at City Hall) and speak out against the rehashed smoking ban being proposed by the members of Healthy Air for Kirkwood (HAK). HAK can easily withdraw their petition and not put our community through another contentious battle over a smoking ban like they did in 2006.

I want to remind you of a few facts:

The core members of HAK are the same core members of Citizens for a Smoke Free Kirkwood (CSFK). CSFK was the surrogate citizen group for numerous state-wide, anti-smoking groups that tried to force a dictatorial smoking ban on our community in 2006 via the citizens' intitiative process. The voters of Kirkwood rejected that plan.

Here is what Pat Lindsey, the Director of Tobacco Free Missouri said in the Webster-Kirkwood Times Mailbag regarding the November 2006 smoking ban proposition. Keep in mind Ms. Lindsey's group spent thousands of dollars paying for FOUR different billboards supporting CSFKs smoke free agenda. Here is that letter (my bold added):

Smoke Free Is “No Brainer”

Citizens for a Smoke Free Kirkwood should be commended for doing what the St. Louis County Council failed to do. They are taking the issue of clean indoor air and smoke-free workplaces to the voters in November.

The St. Louis County Council could have helped these advocates and the residents of the other 92 municipalities by putting one smoke-free ordinance on the November ballot. Instead, concerned citizens in each municipality will have to duke it out with stubborn legislators and business people who have been convinced revenues will decrease if businesses are smoke free.

Why are people fighting for the right to pollute the air? This issue is a no-brainer. Everyone has the right to breathe clean air and legislators have the duty to insure that right. The solution is simple. Smokers can take their toxic pollutants outside and everyone will be able to breathe a lot easier inside.

Pat Lindsey
Florissant
August 24, 2006

Link to Mailbag letter: http://www.websterkirkwoodtimes.com/Letters-2669.113117_Smoke_Free_Is_No_Brainer.html

Two things Ms. Lindsey forgot to tell you in her letter was that she wasted your tax dollars paying for a vote so she could "duke it out" with you and your community over her issue. The members of CSFK-HAK tried to run roughshod over our community with outside support like this and more.

Now they are back to rehash their wasteful and pointless political battle. It is time for the members of CSFK-HAK to quit pushing their outside agenda on our community. It is time for them to sit down along with our City Council and other interested parties to work out a proposal that works for our entire community.

I hope you will urge the members of CSFK-HAK to with work with our entire community on Thursday night at the City Council meeting. The meeting starts at 7pm, so arrive early to get a seat and fill out a comment card.

Have a great day!
Joe