When is a casino really a cigar bar? And what does it matter, anyway?

More on that in a moment on the Face The State Radio Minute.

When voters approved limited-stakes casino gambling for mountain communities, pretty much everyone came out a winner. The state gets tax money, casino operators cash in on peoples’ willingness to throw their money away, and everyone does it out of free will. Last I checked the State Patrol wasn’t rounding folks up, forcing them to play five dollar blackjack.

And for the social conservatives who disapprove of gambling, they’re free to stay far away from Black Hawk and Central City.

Which brings me to the state’s smoking ban, revised this year to cover casinos which were previously exempted. But you’re still free to light up in gambling halls which call themselves “cigar bars,” a status they reach by selling $50,000 worth of tobacco products every year.

Lawmakers and other nannyists are busy railing against this alleged “loophole.” These casinos are compliant with the law – and if you don’t like to smell smoke when you’re playing the slots, just play somewhere else. Simple enough.

For FaceTheState.com, I’m Brad Jones.