Despite ‘Windfall,’ Consumers Need Recourse, Reader Says
Yes, get tough with big businesses that use deceptive practices, says Philip J. Mulligan of Spokane. But he says he would be “mortified” to get $2 million over a paint touch-up that an auto dealer had hidden from him.
That is what a BMW owner in Alabama will receive unless the Supreme Court says otherwise.
Meanwhile, Mulligan cautions against overreacting. “I think a blanket rush to limit consumer protection would be just as wrong and abusive as the BMW windfall noted above,” he said. “Courts are supposed to make wise judgments on a case-by-case basis, after all, and not take a one-size-fits-all stance.”
Gary Garrison, Kettle Falls, Wash., said the Alabama case provides “a good lesson for us to finally maybe learn that there ought to be a cap on punitive damages.”
Where there’s smoke, there’s ire
When the Spokane County Health District talked about an all-out ban on smoking in restaurants and bars, “Bagpipes” asked, again, if there’s a way to accommodate both smokers and non-smokers.
Well, it doesn’t hurt to ask.
Don Moore of Spokane says he favors separate smoking areas but only in bars and only if they are separately ventilated and licensed by the county.
“You’re not keeping smokers from smoking; you’re giving them a separate area,” he said. “Anyplace where there’s going to be children, then I object.”
Other reactions:
Jean Janke, Spokane: “A third of the population still smokes, and why should restaurants and bars, etc., be deprived of their business? And what about the rights of smokers? Why shouldn’t they be allowed to go out to dinner or spend time in a lounge?”
Don Wallace, Spokane: “Since 60 percent of Spokane’s population is in favor of smoke-free dining, I say the majority should rule. Unless the owner provides a separate room with its own ventilation system, smoking should be confined to consenting adults in private.”
June Stevens, Spokane: “I think you should leave the smoking areas the way they are because you already almost kicked us out of the county.”
Arnold Barnes, Spokane: “Let them have separate smoking and non-smoking. That’s it. It’s not complicated.”
Dian Kiser, field director for the Spokane office of Project ASSIST: “It may interest you to know that over 400 American cities now have (all) smoke-free restaurants. This is not a ‘cutting-edge’ issue.”
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