Jewelry Stores

I've been very interested by this story out of Ketchikan:

A Ketchikan citizens' group can begin collecting signatures for a proposed initiative seeking to limit jewelry stores in the Southeast town. Sponsors say proliferation of downtown jewelry stores area has resulted in a monotonous retail atmosphere. They want to see a broader array of retail choices.

When I was in Juneau, I was amazed at the number of (seasonal) jewelry stores it was able to support, though I later realized they - like much else in Juneau - was tied to the cruise ships.

Two thoughts I have on this:

First, I'm not sure how successful I think they'll be. All the businesses wouldn't be there if the market couldn't support them. The key to getting rid of jewelry stores is getting rid of cruise ships.

Second, what would a similar petition look like to you? In Nome, it's as if someone decided to protest the number of bars on Front St. That's practically what Front St. is for.

Third, why don't more people in Nome take advantage of the petition process? I think there's a huge group of people in Nome who would be interested in having bars go smoke free. The issue would never make it through the Common Council but I'd give it fair odds of passing a vote in the city. But no one ever seems to organize it.

And that's three thoughts and why I wasn't a math major.