On April 24, 2018, the Mesquite Clean Indoor Air Initiative Petition Committee submitted an initiative petition for an ordinance to regulate the quality of indoor air by banning smoking in a variety of spaces.
Members of the Mesquite Clean Indoor Air Initiative Petition Committee have misrepresented themselves for months. While conducting business, testifying before the City Council, and petitioning the residents of Mesquite, this committee failed to file with the state of Nevada until just days ago (June 1, 2018). Their actions appear to have been in direct violation of Nevada’s Election laws.
This petition committee has flagrantly sought to subvert Nevada’s Election laws and usurp the duly elected officials serving on Mesquite’s City Council with this ballot measure. This violation raises serious concerns and questions as to how they may have represented themselves to Mesquite residents and businesses. The fact that the petition committee has failed to operate in a compliant and legal manner should be cause for concern to anyone who signed the petition and expressed support for this ordinance.
Smoking is already regulated by the Nevada Clean Indoor Air Act (NCIAA), which sets standards for clean, filtered air in commercial environments. As such, restaurants, showrooms, meeting rooms, and convention spaces are all smoke-free leaving gaming areas one of the few places where smoking is not prohibited under the NCIAA. It is doubtful that the Committee is sharing the reality of their proposed over-regulation with those who they solicit for signature support.
Residents of our city should decline to sign this petition or, for those who have been misled into already signing the petition, ask to remove your name.
Christopher Lazzara
Vice President Marketing & Advertising
MESQUITE GAMING
Christopher, how do you sleep at night? Casino’s are the sleaziest business in the country. Your whole business model is to take money from people who can least afford to lose it. You build a building, put in a bunch of machines and sit back waiting for people to throw money in, knowing full well that you will win every time. On top of that, you treat your employees like slave labor. You have no problem sacrificing your employee’s health and well being so you and your owners can sit back and watch the money roll in. You are taking advantage of your employees because Mesquite has no alternative means of employment. You know full well that you would have to pay much more in wages and benefits if you moved to Las Vegas. That is because there are many high paying jobs there where people can work without the fear of contracting cancer. You threaten to leave Mesquite but where are you going to go? The answer is that there is no better place than Mesquite.
I was at the City Council meeting tonight and watched the casino managers in the back of the room. They were laughing and mocking the speakers who spoke on behalf of the initiative. I find that kind of behavior disgusting. I can understand why you lose so many employees and are having trouble hiring people. Who would want to work for a person like you. How do you sleep at night?
Why does this issue have to be all or nothing? Why can’t certain areas of casinos be designated as non- smoking? It’s being done in other gambling towns. Why does this proposal also dictate what a person can or cannot do in their own home? Setting up private citizens to rat on their neighbors is despicable. I’m 68 years old. I think I can make my own decisions about my lifestyle. I moved here from Utah specifically to escape the nanny state that exists there. I thought I was making a good choice. Now I’m not so sure..
Dave, go live somewhere else, please. Obviously, a beautiful, well-run town like Mesquite is not too your liking.
David Petrillo, you continue to amaze me with how ignorant you really are. Casino’s are the sleaziest businesses in the country? There is no place better for Mesquite gaming to go? Are you not aware of their holdings in Las Vegas? Do you not know that they agreed to bail Mesquite out when Black gaming went belly up? Do you have any idea of how anything in this world really works, especially in gaming towns? You need to go back to wherever you came from and let the adults handle the big boy stuff.
Is it possible that we can work on other things in the city,like cleaning up mesquite Blvd,enticing more business in to the city,keeping some business from closing their doors,etc,instead of being smoking police for the casinos.Leave the decisions to the owners of the casinos,and the for the patrons to make their CHOICE to enter a casino.Why is it that a few get to make business owners decisions for their benefit.
I personally dont care for the smoke,but I enter KNOWING it is my personal choice to do so.Now if the business makes the decision to not allow smoking,then I will abide by that rule.that is the business speaking,not anti-smoking control group
I get absolutely enraged with anger when I hear people like you say NON SMOKERS MAKE A DAMN CHOICE to enter! Did it ever occur to any of the murderers (smokers) that there just might be people that love to gamble that aren’t Smokers, drinkers or druggies! Seems as if us non smokers are just supposed to give up gambling in order to stay healthy or have same rights to ENTER a gaming establishment! I call your statement Discrimination against Non Smokers! We (healthy-minded) people have a right as tax payers to enjoy same facilities as people that smoke and rudely don’t give a damn if you kill others. If you want to kill yourself then smoke at home but don’t come in and kill everyone else. Public Smokers are murderers! Stay in your home and kill yourself and your own pets! If you have kids, social services should remove them from your home! I am sick and tired of being miserable every time I want to enjoy myself only to be angered every day. Wake up smokers and stop being so hateful and selfish not to respect rights of all people to enjoy casinos without feeling like we are entering the DANGER ZONE!
If you’re so concerned about second hand smoke and the wear and tear smokers bodies go through, why don’t you stay home? It is not disrespectful or hateful to perform a legal act. You and all your paranoid, friends could get together in your homes instead of making rude comments to law abiding citizens who happen to smoke. It’s happened to me a lot when all I’m doing is minding my own business. Go to Wedgie’s or another non- smoking business and leave me alone.
MURDERERS? Seriously? Calm down. Maybe you can help convince this group to accept the compromise at least one casino was willing to do–establish a non-smoking gaming area, which they rejected out of hand.
Where do these anti-business folks, disguised as “clean air warriors” get their money for those full page ads in all the newspapers? Look into the “freebies” available to them from the federal government. They don’t even need George Soros to pay for this. No, I am not a smoker or gambler, but I DO understand how business works. If you want the casinos to move to Las Vegas (or even Bunkerville or anywhere outside Mesquite city limits) then vote for this nonsense or sign this misrepresented petition. Read Mayor Litman’s Op-Eds for what this ordinance would REALLY do, such as ban smoking in apartments and parks, not just casinos.
I am not anti-Business! I truly believe Mesquite has more NON-Smokers than Smokers. Why can’t we all get along and stop this bickering? I don’t drink but drinkers are only hurting themselves but smokers affect us all. If I had a choice, I would reach a fairer settlement with smokers and say ATLEAST no smoking within Interior walls of any business open to entire public. Outside air, I prefer no smoke but it isn’t as INVASIVE as INDOOR SPACE! Seriously, some people cannot breathe properly with smoke filled rooms! I suggest a COMPROMISE!
There is no valid proof that second hand smoke has injured anyone. Those studies that were done have been proven to be faulty and have been retracted by the medical community. So, if I’m only hurting myself my drinking too much, getting behind the wheel and killing someone, I guess that’s better than smoking. Because, as you stated, drinkers only hurt themselves. Check your logic, please.
I really like you a lot Sylvia, and your husband who passed a few years back. He was a great guy and a great pool player. I am toldthe clean air people were offered a compromise of a large smoke free area in one casino, and they turned it down flat. It was all or nothing, so they got their wish, nothing. And this was even though several casinos in Vegas tried this 30 years ago and you could have set off a bomb in the non smoking areas and no one would have noticed.
Never forget, I am 100% in favor of non smoking casino’s. But I don’t want to close down the city of Mesquite by making us the guinea pigs. I believe you will see this initiative on the 2020 Nevada state ballot and I believe it will pass making all Nevada casinos smoke free. When people don’t have the option of staying in their car for another hour to go to Vegas, it will not have a huge impact on Mesquite. Love you.
Sorry Pam, but the clean air people have not, and will not disclose where they got the money for full page ads, billboards, T-shirts and 1000 other expenses they had. Apparently it’s none of our business.
Here in Las Vegas they tried opening a casino where there was no smoking allowed in the gaming area. It failed miserably. If your average customer is mostly locals then fine but if you want to attract tourism your average tourist will probably go to another town to gamble where they allow smoking.
A few thoughts I work for Mesquite Gaming. And on the casino floor to tell you the truth the smoke isn’t bad on the casino floor I seen one guy say the company treats you like slave labor ? Hmm well let’s see for one yes pay could be A little better But that’s pretty much anywhere you go. But as far as slave labor lmao to be honest it’s a pretty good gig I mean you get breaks they provide free food and pay you on your lunch break they give you full 40 hours a week and man I have never ever had a late check. My supervisors are wicked cool and all the higher ups have always said high stoped and talked with me to be quite honest Mesquite Gaming has treated me pretty well. Now the smoking part what non smokers don’t understand is that smoking and gambling go hand and hand I would say 90% of the people I see in the casino smoke and gamble it just wouldn’t be logical to have no smoking in A casino.
Smoke pollutes the air we breath