Sometimes, when I see the word "compromise" thrown around, I'm not exactly clear on what is meant. This is one of those cases:
Proponents of banning smoking in Indianapolis bars are trying to revive a City-County Council debate over the issue by showing city leaders that voters support the cause.
So far, it's unclear whether council members, who last year put a hold on expanding the city's current smoking restrictions, will again take up the discussion
But there's at least one promising sign: Advisers to Mayor Greg Ballard, who last fall opposed and at one point threatened to veto the stronger ordinance, have been in discussions with ban supporters. They say Ballard is open to finding a compromise.
The proponents of a stronger ban make it more than plain what their goal is -- a "smoke free" Indianapolis when it comes to anything remotely defined as public. The ban is either total or it isn't -- a "partial total ban" is getting into "a little bit pregnant" and "a little bit what possible compromise could there be?
