Non-smoker Action Steps, etc.

Wendi Thomas properly grouses about the harm to us all from smokers in public places. But if the state legislature won't deal with the problem, there are other steps possible. Employees in restaurants which allow smoking could file civil suits claiming they are harmed by second hand smoke. Folks upset by smoking places could picket outside them and at the homes of the owners and otherwise boycott such establishments. Smart merchants could build their business by being smoke-free, as some are already doing.

Individual bloggers can go to the website for the Institute on Money in State Politics and learn just which tobacco boosters gave money to which state legislators and blow the whistle on them -- loudly and often.

I was told "Visitors to the Institute web site can look up contributions given to state-level candidates by industry by using the search function on the right-hand site of the site. Just select a state, election cycle and a special interest (in this case probably tobacco companies and tobacco product sales) and click 'submit search' to find this data. The search will return a list of contributors in that industry. If you click on the contributor name, you can see details of the contributions."

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Here's an idea for tv or radio broadcasters: Put "broadcast bloggers" on the air by establishing a recording hotline so listeners who will prepare serious, well-written commentaries can submit them 24/7. Stations could set a 30 or 60 second time limit, to discipline the bloggers so they don't just ramble on forever. This could add gravitas to a station's efforts to let the public's views have expression.

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Speaking of commentaries, ever notice the piece of rolled up paper Channel 3's Norm Brewer holds as he delivers his commentary? Ever wonder what's in that rolled up paper? I'd love to know. If it's purely a prop to give him something to do with his hands, I'd say it's time to let it go. One more point: Brewer's thoughts are diminished each time when he's required to end with the station slogan, something like "News Channel 3 is the station on your side!" They ought to let that go too -- and let him end with some dignity, rather than as a shill.

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Questions for political writers to explore:
Who is raising the money for Harold Ford JR's senate campaign? Is Harold Ford SR? In what way? To what extent? What resources, like past contributor lists of Ford SR, are being used? How are they generating funds outside Tennessee? From whence cometh the bucks? From whom? What percent are outastate for JR, vs. his GOP opponents? Is that a legitimate concern? Why/whynot?