• 

  VIDEO: Orlando shootout tied to Boston bomb suspect

  The FBI says it was involved in a fatal shooting near Universal Studios in Orlando, Fla. CBS News senior correspondent John Miller reports that the victim was a friend of Tamerlan Tsarnaev, the older brother suspected in the Boston Marathon bombing.

• 

  Slideshow: Aftermath of massive tornado

  Storm victims were pulled from the rubble and residents began surveying the damage late Monday and early Tuesday in the Oklahoma City suburb of Moore, where a powerful tornado destroyed entire neighborhoods and left dozens dead.
• 

  Group wants to connect downtown Terre Haute with the Wabash River

  Fairbanks Park is underutilized.
  The Wabash River is peaceful and inviting, but there is some concern about its cleanliness as well as pollution levels. Also, people can’t get on the river unless they have a boat.

• 

  UK PM: Brutal London attack appears to be terror

  LONDON — A brutal attack in broad daylight near a military barracks in London left one man dead and two suspects hospitalized Wednesday after a shootout with police. British Prime Minister David Cameron said the attack appeared to be terror related.

Mark Bennett Opinion

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January 23, 2010

MARK BENNETT: If the heart of tobacco country can enact a statewide smoking ban, then why not Indiana?

By Mark Bennett The Tribune Star Sat Jan 23, 2010, 11:12 PM EST

TERRE HAUTE — Imagine the spread of change being plotted on a roadmap, and two guys unfolding it outside a desolate gas station.

(Yes, ladies, we do seek directions, occasionally. Then we choose whether to follow them.)

The guys can’t find Indiana on the roadmap of change, so they go inside to ask the attendant.

“Indiana?” he says. “You can’t get there from here.”

Sometimes, it seems as if change comes to Indiana last. Thus, if our unyielding history rules our thinking, anyone looking at another attempt by an Indiana lawmaker to get a statewide smoking ban through the General Assembly would have to honestly say, “I’ll believe it when I see it.”

This time, it could happen. And it should happen.

Why? Well, if North Carolina — the heart of tobacco country — can enact a statewide smoking ban, then it’s even possible right here in Indiana.

This month, public places in North Carolina went smokefree. The ban includes restaurants, bars and other hospitality businesses. We’re not talking California, Massachusetts or New York. North Carolina — the land that produced Dale Earnhardt, Richard Petty, Jesse Helms and nearly half of the tobacco Americans consume each year.

When North Carolina’s governor, Bev Perdue, signed the law last May, she said, “This is a historic day for North Carolina. By banning smoking in our restaurants and bars, we greatly reduce the dangers of secondhand smoke and lower health care costs for families.”

The Tar Heel State has joined 26 others with smokefree laws that cover bars and restaurants, along with the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. (The laws in Michigan and Wisconsin go into effect in July, according to the Indiana Tobacco Prevention and Cessation agency.) All of Indiana’s neighboring states, except Kentucky — the No. 2 tobacco producer — have statewide public smoking laws. Florida, Idaho, Louisiana and Nevada ban smoking in restaurants, but exempt stand-alone bars. In November, South Dakotans will vote on a referendum to prohibit smoking in all workplaces.

That leaves Indiana in a dwindling group of 18 states without a statewide clean-air law. Also resisting are Idaho, Wyoming, Nevada, North and South Dakota, Missouri, Kansas, Pennsylvania, Oklahoma, Texas and most of the South.

The pace of change, state by state, increased in the summer of 2006. That’s when U.S. Surgeon General Richard H. Carmona issued a report called, “The Health Consequences of Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke.” That comprehensive, scientific study concluded that nonsmokers exposed to secondhand smoke, at home or work, increase their risk of heart disease by 25 to 30 percent, and lung cancer by 20 to 30 percent. Secondhand smoke can cause sudden infant death syndrome, respiratory problems, ear infections and asthma attacks in kids.

In 2006, nearly half of all nonsmoking Americans were routinely exposed to secondhand smoke, the report concluded.

States began to concede that those unwanted risks posed to nonsmokers outweighed the rights of people to smoke in places open to the public. In October 2006, Vigo County commissioners passed a limited ordinance, banning smoking in some public places. Several types of establishments were given exemptions, such as restaurants and bars with separate smoking rooms, civic organizations and clubs, private rooms and tobacco shops.

The proposed statewide ban, initiated by Rep. Charlie Brown, D-Gary, would trump local ordinances, such as Vigo County’s. House Bill 1131 would ban smoking in almost all public places, except casinos and pari-mutuel horse racing venues. Those exemptions are purely political — casino and gambling lobbyists have successfully squashed past attempts at smokefree laws in Indiana.

Brown’s 2010 try hasn’t died yet. It was approved 7-5 by the House Public Policy Committee on Wednesday. The proposal likely will go to the full Indiana House of Representatives next week. If it’s approved, the next step is the Senate. Last year, a similar bill by Brown passed the House, but fizzled in the Senate.

Statistics rarely sway Hoosier opponents of smoking laws. But, for those interested, secondhand smoke exposure leads to an average of 1,240 deaths of nonsmoking adults in Indiana each year, according to the Tobacco Prevention and Cessation agency. The health-care costs for victims of secondhand smoke total $390.3 million annually. That’s $62 per Hoosier.

Sometimes, Indiana looks noble as the last holdout in America. Our single-class high school basketball tournament was a good example. Our avoidance of daylight saving time, not so much. Our resistance to a law ensuring smokefree public places, not at all.



Mark Bennett can be reached at (812) 231-4377 or mark.bennett@tribstar.com.

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Mark Bennett Opinion

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  May 12, 2013  

• MARK BENNETT: Should I stay or should I go?

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• MARK BENNETT: Littered with irony: Why do people callously discard their trash, and who are they?

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• MARK BENNETT: Performing under the radar: Toiling for years behind the scenes, Terre Haute native J.T. Corenflos finally earned a splash of musical recognition

  People who diligently work to make others shine are a rare breed.

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  The image jars the viewer. On its own, the old photograph appears ordinary. Three smiling kids.

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• MARK BENNETT: A century later, ‘On the Banks of the Wabash’ still rises above Indiana politics

  Music and politics share one commonality — people who like a style different from yours are nuts.

  March 17, 2013 4 Photos  

• MARK BENNETT: Digit dialing a thing of the past, but telephoning is still a numbers game

  You’ve heard of child prodigies who can play Mozart on piano or perform calculus at the age of 5.
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  March 10, 2013  

• MARK BENNETT: After years of preparation, 60 immigrants will gather in Terre Haute on March 14 to pledge their allegiance to the United States of America

  It will have been a long and difficult road, but it will be an emotional moment when they raise their right hands and begin the oath of citizenship

  March 3, 2013  

• MARK BENNETT: The fall and rise of a ‘Young Titan’

  Broken. Humiliated. Discarded. Finished.
  Few of us think of Winston Churchill in such bleak terms.

  February 24, 2013  

• MARK BENNETT: Trying to keep momentum of acceptance within the community a key part of Jeff Lorick’s job

  Second-graders’ eyes and minds function differently.
  They see the future unjaded. Their possibilities stand tall, not yet choked by the adult weeds of prejudice and bitterness.

  February 17, 2013  

• MARK BENNETT: For Glenda Ritz, being educator, ‘not a politician’ still makes good political sense

  Educator, not a politician.
  Glenda Ritz emphasizes that distinction about herself.

  February 10, 2013  

• MARK BENNETT: Falling short of the big prize will produce lessons nonetheless

  This is a day for Roman numerals.
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  February 3, 2013 1 Photo  

• MARK BENNETT: Forgotten Message: Advice from ‘The Mick’ should be remembered in wake of Lance Armstrong’s troubles

  The two comments were almost identical.

  January 27, 2013  

• MARK BENNETT: A sense of Americana constant passenger as iconic Corvette motors through milestone birthday

  On my last ride at the wheel of a ’Vette, I was a wide-eyed teenager, guiding my brother’s almost-new, orange 1976 model.

  January 20, 2013  

• MARK BENNETT: Sculptor from North Carolina to capture image of Indiana’s first black state legislator

  Well-meaning parents try to instill strong character in their kids.
  “Don’t be afraid to stand up for your beliefs,” moms and dads will insist, “even if you stand alone.”

  January 13, 2013  

• MARK BENNETT: Heart ailments, avoidable health issues affect high numbers of Vigo residents

  Many folks in Vigo County will analyze digits on their bathroom scales this month. After all, January and fitness resolutions are traditional partners.

  January 6, 2013  

• MARK BENNETT: For some people in the Wabash Valley, happy holidays require a little help

  Picture yourself as a kid, not yet 5 years old, growing up in a small house in Terre Haute.

  December 16, 2012  

• MARK BENNETT: Beware Ignorance and Want and reap the benefits of early education

  Pretend that Charles Dickens is about to become Indiana’s next governor.

  December 13, 2012  

• MARK BENNETT: In spirit of season, calculate your fiscal cliff impact, then argue

  Envision “chestnuts roasting on an open fire.”

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• MARK BENNETT: Members of Congress should be free to consider all sides of an issue

  Attempting to trump the U.S. Constitution requires some nerve.

  December 2, 2012  

• MARK BENNETT: An unbudging Congress standing on opposing sides accomplishes little

  Sausage patties, hugging a scoop of scrambled eggs and a couple slices of toast on a plate, and chased with nearby steaming black coffee.

  November 29, 2012  

• MARK BENNETT: Hoosier voters issue mandate on Bennett’s school reforms

  Mike Pence, Mitch Daniels and Indiana legislators should respect the votes of 1,315,026 Hoosiers.

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• MARK BENNETT: Elections, governing would look a lot different if everybody voted

  A raffle ticket purchase usually comes with a disclaimer — “you must be present to win.”

  November 4, 2012  

• MARK BENNETT: On Election Day, as Vigo County goes, so goes the United States

  Hempstead sounds like a fine place.

  October 14, 2012  

• MARK BENNETT: Upcoming PBS documentary focuses on nation’s voting irregularities, through Hoosier eyes

  As America prepares to choose its governmental leaders, voters are being relentlessly asked how much they trust elected officials.

  October 7, 2012  

• MARK BENNETT: Quest for knowledge keeps going as Elliott Gould prepares to speak in Terre Haute

  As our conversation began, Elliott Gould was in the midst of learning. He was reading a book.

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• More Mark Bennett Opinion Headlines

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