

PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Pennsylvania Restaurant Association has reversed its long-held position on smoking, saying it now favors a statewide ban in restaurants and other public places.
The group is pushing for an all-inclusive smoking ban for restaurants, bars, casinos and private clubs, said PRA Chief Executive Officer Patrick Conway.
“It should be done on a comprehensive, statewide basis,” Mr. Conway said. “In other states, certain groups have tried to have themselves unfairly carved out of legislation.”
The association changed its position out of concern for the health of employees in the restaurant business, Mr. Conway said.
The move had been debated for years, but a report from the U.S. surgeon general sparked the association to action, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported.
Surgeon General Richard Carmona last week confirmed that secondhand smoke is a health risk and suggested that it be banned in restaurants, bars, casinos, sports arenas and public transit.
Pennsylvania lawmakers repeatedly have proposed a statewide ban on smoking in public buildings but never have succeeded in passing it.
Seventeen states and more than 400 towns, cities and counties have approved strong no-smoking laws.
By H. Leighton Steward
Fantasy replaces reality in Obama's green economy

By Tom Howell Jr. - The Washington Times
A 29-year-old Moroccan man was arrested Friday on accusations he planned to detonate a suicide ...

By David Hill - The Washington Times
The House voted Friday night to approve Gov. Martin O’Malley’s same-sex marriage bill, sending the ...

By Stephen Dinan - The Washington Times
Acting with striking bipartisanship, Congress on Friday passed a full-year extension of the payroll tax ...
Independent voices from the TWT Communities

A collection of Entertainment News and Reviews from Washington, D.C. to the beyond

Not your typical discussion, writer Conor Murphy writes about the cons, and pros, of politics

Children around the globe are too often silent. From victims of abuse - physical, mental, and sexual to those whose lives embrace joy, their stories are many and need to be heard.