Beverly Hills Bans the Sale of All Tobacco - Sort Of

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litup

Part of the Furniture Now
Oct 16, 2015
722
2,206
Sacramento, CA
LA Times Article about the Ban
I'm sure this comes as a shock to exactly no one. What I'm most conflicted about is the exemption for the Grand Havana Room. On the one hand, any time a pipe and cigar lounge is left alone to operate as they see fit is a victory. But given the exclusivity of the club and the draconian restrictions enforced everywhere else in the city, it's hard not to interpret this as a brazen act of classism.

 

litup

Part of the Furniture Now
Oct 16, 2015
722
2,206
Sacramento, CA
For those that don't feel like reading the whole article, here are a few choice snippets:
The city of Beverly Hills cleared the last hurdle to enact what officials say is the most stringent tobacco ban in the country Tuesday night, eliminating the sale of virtually all recreational nicotine products — with one very Beverly Hills exception. For an elite group of aficionados, hundreds of whom swamped committee meetings and wrote the city in protest, cigars will be spared — as long as they’re smoked inside one of three dedicated lounges.
“The Grand Havana Room, which I have been a member of since its inception, provides a treasured home away from home,” wrote Schwarzenegger, whose letter was among those the city received in support of the club. “It is unthinkable that the city might adopt a policy that would intentionally or unintentionally cause the closure of this character-defining institution.”
Schwarzenegger made clear he supported the ban, which passed its first reading in a unanimous vote Tuesday night. “I am right there with you,” he wrote. “I agree with your battle to protect people from the dangers of tobacco smoke.”
But when it came to his club, Schwarzenegger wrote, the city should back off.
“I trust that [the city] will recognize the fundamental difference" between clubs like the Grand Havana Room and a gas station selling nicotine pods for e-cigarettes, he wrote.

 

JimInks

Sultan of Smoke
Aug 31, 2012
60,846
553,685
Translation of Schwarzenegger's statement: As long as I get to do what I want do, and have my fun doing it, others shouldn't.

 

Chasing Embers

Captain of the Black Frigate
Nov 12, 2014
43,248
108,337
edb5883c4af6c6a32c2baf4605486732.jpg


 

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,433
I guess it is the polar classist stereotype, but my immediate reaction was, Beverly Hills, what would you expect? Consult your gilded menu of approved vices for the metropolis. There's plenty on the menu, just not pipes and cigars. Sort of an unexpected quote from Thoreau:
"Do not be too moral. You may cheat yourself of much of life so." Odd syntax with a sharp point, I say.

 

brian64

Lifer
Jan 31, 2011
9,602
14,666
Everyone knows that laws, regulations, taxes, etc., are only for the little people.
And occasionally for those above law, only when they step too far out of line or piss off the wrong person.
But those above the law get there by making a deal with the devil...so they'll get their just reward eventually.

 

georged

Lifer
Mar 7, 2013
5,491
13,919
The term is "virtue signaling".
Objective fact matters not at all, only being seen by others as having a certain allegiance/opinion/belief system does.
After years of individual people increasingly doing it, now entire organizations/groups of people are doing it.
Human Tribal Behavior 101 x "social media" = Hell on Earth

 

sablebrush52

The Bard Of Barlings
Jun 15, 2013
19,621
44,831
Southern Oregon
jrs457.wixsite.com
Beverly Hills classicist? Heaven forefend. I read about the proposed ban several weeks ago and even then it included an exemption for the cigar lounges. Look, deals can't be made without cigars, and everyone knows it. So the lounges get spared because they have the support of the city's leading deal makers, who may also have a financial stake in them. It's another example of money talks, bullshit walks.

 

brian64

Lifer
Jan 31, 2011
9,602
14,666
money talks, bullshit walks.
Which is really just another way of saying organized crime.
Which is always a key aspect of how all forms of government operate on this planet.

 

brian64

Lifer
Jan 31, 2011
9,602
14,666
Look, deals can't be made without cigars, and everyone knows it. So the lounges get spared because they have the support of the city's leading deal makers, who may also have a financial stake in them.
This immediately brought to mind some of my favorite Steely Dan lyrics:
I detect the El Supremo

From the room at the top of the stairs
Show Biz Kids making movies of themselves

You know they don't give a fuck about anybody else


 

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,433
Looking at the brighter side, there's no way I'd ever be living in Beverly Hills, nor even visit. So it's another unpleasant place to avoid.

 

cigrmaster

Lifer
May 26, 2012
20,249
57,280
66
Sarasota Florida
85% wholesale tax on pipe tobacco, Zero on cigars. Florida is just as hypocritical as Arnold and his buddies.
Arnold, if you read this, you are major douche bag. What.......... he might read this.

 

JimInks

Sultan of Smoke
Aug 31, 2012
60,846
553,685
I heard the Clampetts moved out of Beverly Hills so Granny could smoke her rabbit tobacco.

 
Jan 28, 2018
12,952
134,576
66
Sarasota, FL
I guess I can cross Beverly Hills of my vacation spot list. I don't get the big deal. It's a struggle to find anywhere to smoke in most areas of the country. I'm in Raleigh, NC at the moment, the heart of tobacco country. There are two places you can smoke inside in the city. One is a cigar shop, the other a cigar bar. I may need to buy a nice RV and hire a driver in order to travel.

 

mrenglish

Lifer
Dec 25, 2010
2,220
72
Columbus, Ohio
Until they pass a law stating you cannot smoke in your vehicle. Time to start looking for a place in the middle of nowhere, I guess. With no one around to complain; you can at least have your pipe/cigar in peace.

 

dmcmtk

Lifer
Aug 23, 2013
3,672
1,685
California, tumbles into the sea... Steely Dan. :)
"The revolt of the Elites against the Commoners"

 

brian64

Lifer
Jan 31, 2011
9,602
14,666
Arnold talking about cigars
Yes, that puts things in perspective alright.
So does this:
My relationship to power and authority is that I'm all for it. People need somebody to watch over them. Ninety-five percent of the people in the world need to be told what to do and how to behave. -- Arnold Schwarzenegger
https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/arnold_schwarzenegger_168120

 

64alex

Part of the Furniture Now
May 10, 2016
566
339
Very seriously I hope it will be banned also every Marjuana smoking recreational product, but I am afraid it won't be the case.

 
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