Sometimes, I wonder if left-wing politicians really have so much free time on their hands that they can afford to sit around and think up ways to target Christians for their faith.
Other times, I think they’re genuinely just that hateful.
Whatever the reason, New York Democrats are channeling their inner Grinch this Christmas and targeting the one fast-food chain that dares to give their employees off one day a week to worship: Chick-fil-a.
A group of disgruntled New York State Assembly officials have proposed a bill mandating that all restaurants that operate in the government-regulated rest stops alongside the high way be open seven days a week or risk getting booted from their contracts to operate within the service center buildings. While the bill does’t single out Chick-fl-a by name, the chain is the only fast-food restaurant operating within the rest stops that is closed one day a week.
And even though Chick-fil-a is the only one standing to lose money by remaining closed on Sundays, and even though there are plenty of other food options available to customers traveling the highway on Sundays, New York lawmakers are still inexplicably irritated enough to actually spend time and taxpayer money tackling this non-problem.
“While there is nothing objectionable about a fast food restaurant closing on a particular day of the week, service areas dedicated to travelers is an inappropriate location for such a restaurant,” legislators said about their proposed bill, per the Hill. “Publicly owned service areas should use their space to maximally benefit the public. Allowing for retail space to go unused one seventh of the week or more is a disservice and unnecessary inconvenience to travelers who rely on these service areas.”
Assemblyman Tony Simone, the Democrat who sponsored the bill, said it’s “in the public good” to mandate that every restaurant be open every day of the week for passengers who “may not like” their family’s cooking. And yes, that’s literally what he said.
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“You know, we get hungry when we’re traveling. We may not like our brother-in-law or sister-in-law’s cooking and wanna get a snack on Christmas Eve,” Simone said. “To find one of the restaurants closed on the Thruway is just not in the public good.”
In that case, why not mandate that every rest stop store stay open 24/7? After all, a quick look at the rest stop schedule provided by the New York Thruway Authority shows many of the fast food chains located within New York rest stops are closed after midnight, with many not opening until mid-morning or even later in the day. Aunt Annie's, for example, is only open from 11 a.m. until 7 p.m., meaning it's closed two-thirds of the total week.
In fact, other than being closed on Sunday, Chick-fil-a boasts some of the most generous hours of any chain within the rest stop lineup, remaining open from 7 a.m. until 11 p.m. most days of the week and outpaced only by Burger King, which is open until midnight.
As someone who travels through New York multiple times a year, I can tell you, there's a good amount of traffic on the highway before 10 a.m., and plenty more in the middle of the night. Why not force Auntie Anne's to open at 6 a.m., or tell Panera they have to stay open until the wee hours of the morning? Nothing like that in this bill.
Which means that Simone’s excuse that travelers deserve on-demand food choices whenever they might need them is weak at best, and exposes the simple fact that these legislators are clearly targeting Chick-fil-a for one reason only: their purpose behind being closed on Sundays. Interesting that the party of unions and "worker protections" has such a problem with a major corporation allowing employees a day off for rest, worship, and family.
Unfortunately for Simone and his crew of butthurt liberals, Chick-fil-a has already signed a 33-year contract with the New York Thruway Authority to remain in the convenience centers, meaning that any bill targeting store hours could only impose such a mandate on future contracts and wouldn’t impact current arrangements. Still, Simone says it’s “ridiculous” that New York currently allows a business to maintain their own hours.
“Well, the Thruways are meant to serve New York travelers first,” Simone said. “And I think it’s ridiculous that you’re able to close on Sunday — one of the busiest travel days of the week.”
It’s called the free market, jackhole. Don’t like it? I hear Venezuela’s nice this time of year.
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