| Restaurant fights to switch
How can an 18-year-old go and buy a pack of cigarettes but can't come in here to eat? It should be a business owner's decision on what goes on in their business," said McKnight's husband, David. Charles Jetter, owner of Gus's Restaurant at 37 Market Square, immediately went 21 years and older after the ban went into effect. "It's working so far," Jetter said. With a pack of cigarettes in hand, West Haven patron Penny Howe was all smiles when she heard the news Thursday. "I'm elated," said Howe, who has only been to the restaurant three or four times since the ban. "I'm so proud of her. For people to tell her what to do isn't right." Janice Grasty, who was eating lunch with her 2-year-old son, said she probably won't be back because of her kids. "Smoke does travel, but I think the decision should be left to the business owner," said Grasty, a nonsmoker.
Officials: Tax solutions must not hurt classroom
Every two-year legislative term will see a "battle royale" over funding for school instructional costs, if the stable source of property taxes is taken away, state Rep. Scott Pelath, D-Michigan City, said."We've got to make sure there's dollars for education every two years," Pelath said.Democratic gubernatorial candidate Jill Long Thompson said property taxes provide a funding source for education that doesn't fluctuate, but they must be fair.Income and sales taxes are much more susceptible to economic downturns, several speakers said.State Sen. Karen Tallian, D-Ogden Dunes, sounded a caution about proposed amendments to the state constitution that would make some tax caps permanent, saying the constitution ought to be a stable document.Soliday, too, said tax solutions should not be specifically addressed in the constitution because of the potential for changing economic circumstances.Despite the focus on tax relief's effect on education, other educational issues should not be overlooked, Soliday said.
Nick Clegg interview transcript...
I would want to actually quite, quite the reverse, I'd want to dramatically change the list of spending priorities. JON SOPEL: No, no, I put the total NICK CLEGG: No. No well the, the total, what I'm trying to say to you is that I think the key thing is how do you re-order the priorities within the total amounts available at the moment. I for instance have set out an ambition that I want to see the party, the Liberal Democrats, reallocate about twenty billion pounds worth of spending, government spending, on to key priorities. So not wasted on ID cards, but spend it on the poorest children. Not waste it on the Euro Fighter, defence project, but spend it on better health services. That is the debate which I think we're going to have between now and the next General Election. JON SOPEL: But why not position yourself as the tax cutting party, because it would seem that there is a wide open opportunity there.
Options for winter fuel are put to the test at a fat fete
Fat, seductive animal fat, sets our hearts racing (and my cardiologist's blood pressure soaring, if he's reading this). The season seems right for a carnival of fat. Indeed, America's Mardi Gras city, New Orleans, indulges dietarily before Lent takes gumbo with duck and andouille off the table and replaces it with gumbo z'herbes. Salads are for spring; in winter, we want fuel. Local chefs seem to be doing their part. Pork belly, familiar from the last two or three winters, again cuts a prosperous figure on restaurant plates. We're seeing plenty of Berkshire pork - a deliberately less lean animal than the "other white meat" that commercial pork had become in order to appeal to lard-fearing Americans. The French Canadian treat poutine - french-fried potatoes, cheese curds, and gravy - is staining a number of white tablecloths.
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