Free Republic

PORNOGRAPHY, CIGARETTES, VOTING? PICK ONE This short video of young actress Hayden Panetierre extols the merits of voting over buying porn or butts: http://video.aol.com/video/vote-instead-of-buying-porn-and-cigarettes/2253872?icid=200100397×1209972655x1200615668. Hayden directs her words of wisdom to voting age teens and suggests that voting makes them more adult than, for example, buying pornography or indulging in a nicotene high. Considering most of what teen role models such as Lindsay, Britney, and Miley project to their audiences, voting sure beats the alternatives of drugs, booze, rehab, as well as porn and cigarettes, and she should be commended for her recommendation. The question I have is whether entering...

Cigarette sales have dropped by nearly 25 percent in Maryland since the state's tobacco tax doubled in January, as sticker shock apparently has curtailed some residents' smoking and sent others across the border for better deals. Maryland lawmakers voted last fall to raise the tax to $2 a pack to help bridge a budget shortfall and expand subsidized health care. Fiscal analysts predicted that the new rate, the sixth highest in the nation, would cause cigarette sales to drop off, following a pattern with past increases. But the decline during the first six months of the year significantly exceeded their...

About one in five adults in the US still smokes The US House of Representatives has voted to treat tobacco as a drug and have it regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The bill would tighten restrictions on advertising, impose new penalties for selling to children and require all new products to be approved by the FDA. But the White House threatened to veto the bill, saying it would put an enormous burden on the FDA. It also said having FDA approval could make people think cigarettes are safe. Industry funded The bill cleared the House with a...

I can hear it coming already: faux outrage, MSM feeding frenzy, Worst Person in the World designation, and a 24-hour cycle of cable TV teeth-gnashing over McCain’s off-handed joke about cigarette exports to Iran. Here we go. In 5, 4, 3, 2… “McCain jokes about killing Iranians with cigarettes” Presidential candidate John McCain, who once sang in jest about bombing Iran, on Tuesday reacted to a report of rising U.S. cigarette exports to the country by saying it may be “a way of killing ‘em.” McCain, known for acerbic comments and for sometimes firing verbally from the hip, was responding...

I know there are people out there who may disagree with me on this one. But here I go anyway. Mind you this is not an issue that affects me personally as I am not a smoker. First and foremost, because any article dealing with smoking must add in a few caveats I will take this opportunity to state what should already be obvious. I obviously believe that those addicted to smoking should try their harderst to quit. No doubt about that. You will not hear arguments from me disputing the dangers of cigarette addiction. Now that I got that...

Shop owners in Ontario, Quebec and a few other provinces must now hide tobacco products from their customers under rules that will cover most of Canada by year-end as the country tries to stamp out smoking by young people. The law has its critics, including those who point accusingly at Ontario's provincially owned liquor stores. But advocates say the seemingly draconian measure will eventually work, and is too important to get bogged down by morality.

In a bid to cut down on what the Canadian government claims leads to "nasty" smoking habits, stores who sell cigarettes must now "hide" them from customers. We wondered, once cigarettes are hidden from consumers, would this translate to "out of sight, out of mind"? We looked at the granddaddy of all "vice" measures, Prohibition, so "out of sight" that everything related to drinking was criminalized, whether it was effective in curbing the "vice" of drinking. According to Reuters it's known as "de-normalizing the presence of cigarettes". Shopkeepers must now relocate the stigmatized packages of cigarettes behind grey wall coverings...

Distinctive packaging for cigarettes may be replaced by plain black and white lettering under Government plans to reduce smoking, it has been announced. The Government has plans to ban brightly coloured packets, remove cigarettes from display and stop the cheap option of a pack of 10 A red packet of Marlboro or a gold Benson and Hedges wrapping could become a thing of the past after research showed children easily identify brands and link smoking to being "cool". Along with putting cigarettes under the counter in shops, banning packs of 10 and restricting vending machines, it is one of the...

Today's article on smoking restrictions and the "wellness" movement makes no mention of a politically incorrect truth: some people smoke because they find net positive benefits in it. Nicotine is not just an addictive drug, it is a powerful drug which affects the mind in ways that are often positive. Now let me add that I do note advocate people taking up smoking. I have no financial interest in tobacco, have never owned a tobacco stock, and if tobacco companies have advertised on American Thinker, I have not noticed it. (I would not get rid of their ads if they...

While it's politically popular to impose confiscatory taxes on America's 40 million tobacco smokers, there are a number of consequences one might consider, but let's start out with a quiz. If a carton of cigarettes sells for $160 in New York City, and $35 in North Carolina, what do you predict will happen? If you answered tons of cigarettes will be going up I-95 from North Carolina to New York City, go to the head of the class. Smuggling cigarettes is illegal; so the next quiz question is: Who is most likely to engage in cigarette smuggling? It's a mixed...

Cigarette smuggling is generating millions of dollars every year that can be reaching terrorist groups, including Hezbollah, Hamas and Al Qaeda, according to law enforcement sources. In a single case, $100,000 was sent to Hezbollah. A 15-page report congressional report includes intelligence from law enforcement as well as New York State’s Department of Taxation and Finance. Cigarette smuggling is generating millions of dollars every year that can be reaching terrorist groups, including Hezbollah, Hamas and Al Qaeda, according to law enforcement sources. In a single case, $100,000 was sent to Hezbollah. One of the key issues... is a potential flaw...

Politicians in an election year will do anything to not raise taxes in a form that they should be raised (i.e. raising a broad-based tax). That's why they frequently do what is happening in Albany: raise taxes on an arbitrary product consumed by a minority of citizens (i.e. cigarettes). Cigarette taxes should not be set at a given level for the sole purpose of raising revenue. If the elected officials want to justify a cigarette tax on the grounds that they impose negative costs on society, then so be it. Determine that level and tax it appropriately. But don't just...

London, March 30: Puffing kills. But a new study, led by an Indian-origin researcher, claims that mobiles phones are more dangerous than fags. "Though mobiles can save lives in emergencies, there is a significant and increasing body of evidence for a link between mobile phone usage and certain brain tumours (which can lead to cancer). "It is anticipated that this danger has far broader public health ramifications than asbestos and smoking," the study`s lead author Dr Vini Khurana was quoted by `the independent` newspaper as saying. Smoking kills some five million worldwide each year, according to the world health organisation....

Dr. Khurana says there may be broader health ramifications than asbestos or smoking. What? Now just think about that. Again, I foresee a huge higher tax on cell phone use and a higher health and life insurance premium. And maybe people (like me) that don't use cell phones unless its an emergency, would rather not be seated in bars and restaurants where cell phones are in use. Ah, can you say ban?

Smokers could be forced to pay £10 for a permit to buy tobacco if a government health advisory body gets its way. No one would be able to buy cigarettes without the permit, under the idea proposed by Health England. Its chairman, Professor Julian Le Grand, told BBC Radio 5 Live the scheme would make a big difference to the number of people giving up smoking. But smokers' rights group Forest described the idea as "outrageous", given how much tax smokers already pay. Professor Le Grand, a former adviser to ex-PM Tony Blair, said cash raised by the proposed scheme...

Smoking a joint is equivalent to 20 cigarettes in terms of lung cancer risk, scientists in New Zealand have found, as they warned of an "epidemic" of lung cancers linked to cannabis. Studies in the past have demonstrated that cannabis can cause cancer, but few have established a strong link between cannabis use and the actual incidence of lung cancer. In an article published in the European Respiratory Journal, the scientists said cannabis could be expected to harm the airways more than tobacco as its smoke contained twice the level of carcinogens, such as polyaromatic hydrocarbons, compared with tobacco cigarettes....

After several days of an Israeli border closure, Gazans blew up a wall in Rafah separating the Gaza Strip from Egypt. Thousands of Palestinians flooded into Egypt, returning with small quantities of fuel, cigarettes, and cash: Tens of thousands of Palestinians poured from the Gaza Strip into Egypt Wednesday after masked gunmen with explosives destroyed most of the seven-mile wall dividing the border town of Rafah. The Gazans crossed on foot, in cars or riding donkey carts to buy supplies made scarce by an Israeli blockade of their impoverished territory. Police from the militant group Hamas, which controls Gaza, directed...

PROGRESO — Winter Texans crossing the international bridge Friday returning from Nuevo Progreso clutched plastic bags filled with souvenirs, liquor, cigarettes and prescription medicine. Most were bothered more by the chilly blast of north wind than the impending requirement that starting Jan. 31 they must have a passport or birth certificate and photo ID card to return from Mexico. Ron and Alice Weeks, who live in central Missouri, already have their passports. “We got them last year at home,” Alice Weeks said. “It was difficult.” The start of the passport requirement “was supposed to take place last year,” she said....

France fears arrival of cigarette-smoking ban By William Langley in Paris  Last Updated: 12:35am GMT 23/12/2007     The authentic French bistro-dweller's look of perpetual anguish requires that the eyes be directed upwards, the corners of the mouth drawn downwards, and a crumpled cigarette balanced vaguely on the horizontal. A guide to Western cigarette-smoking bansFrom next month, the expression will feature more despair and fewer cigarettes.   Brigitte Bardot avec cigarette   The day of reckoning has arrived for Europe's most incorrigible smokers. On January 1, it will become illegal to light up in bars, restaurants or nightclubs, and as...

BURBANK - Six months into the city's tough anti-smoking ordinance - and more than 250 citations later - some downtown business owners are banding together to fight it. They say the smoking ban scares away customers, and that it's too harsh, forcing renegade smokers to appear in court. "It's ridiculous," said Jessica Ullo, manager of Picanha Brazilian Bar and Grill. "Everybody here smokes, and it's like where are we supposed to go for our breaks?" Barry Kessler, 48, owner of a downtown jewelry store bearing his family name, has led the charge against the anti-smoking ordinance. In the coming weeks...

I (cough) was a teenage smoker! BY DAVE BARRY (This classic Dave Barry column was originally published Sept. 17, 1995.) As a ranking national opinion-maker (currently in 1,539th place), I would like to do my part to get teenagers to stop smoking cigarettes. Ready? Here goes: You teenagers stop smoking right now!! There! Did that do the trick? I didn't think so. Your modern teenager is not about to listen to advice from an old person, defined as ``a person who remembers when there was no Velcro.'' I can understand this. I was a young person once, shortly after the...

All smokers have choices. Some are hard choices, like quitting. Some are no-brainers, like not blowing smoke in the face of a baby, or lighting up at a table where others are eating. As a long-time smoker, I have exercised choice. I have chosen, of my own free will, to allocate a portion of my budget to purchasing cigarettes. And despite increasing social pressure, I feel no guilt for not taking that money and buying instead something more socially acceptable like, say, carbon credits – or using it to contribute to some UN fund to cure poverty. Color me selfish....

Odor of Cigarette Smoke Causes School Employee to Lose Job The Denton Independent School District has removed an employee from her position because she smells like cigarette smoke. Suzanne Lidster was thrilled when she was recently hired to assist a student with disabilities at L.A. Nelson Elementary. "It's something that God sent me here to do with this child," Lidster told FOX 4. "It's like OK, this fell in my lap." But after less than two weeks on the job, Lidster said she received a voicemail informing her that she had lost her position. The school's principal left a message...

Another Lackawanna arrest -Businessman will be charged with sending at least $3 million to Yemen By MICHAEL BEEBE and DAN HERBECK News Staff Reporters 12/17/2002 Federal authorities today are expected to arrest a Lackawanna businessman with ties to the Lackawanna Six on charges that he illegally sent at least $3 million to Yemen over the last several years. The investigation was conducted by the Joint Terrorism Task Force of Western New York, but sources said investigators have been unable to trace any of the money to terrorist activities. "These transfers have been made illegally and (are) unreported," a law enforcement...

Queen City Cigarettes & Candy, a Clinton Street warehouse owned by food broker Mohamed T. Albanna, is one element of investigators' picture of a money-transmitting business that sent large sums to Yemen. A leader of Lackawanna's Yemeni-American community and two other men were in custody today on charges they operated an illegal money-transmitting business that sent funds from Western New York to Yemen. Mohamed T. Albanna, vice president of the American Muslim Council of Western New York and a frequent spokesman for the defendants known as the "Lackawanna Six," appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Hugh B. Scott on Tuesday after...

Man of the people - arrested By SANDRA TAN News Staff Reporter 12/18/2002 Mohamed T. Albanna, photographed in his Clinton Street store last July, is considered outspoken on issues crucial to Lackawanna. Business owner Andrea Haxton saw Mohamed T. Albanna several days a week. He was her main cigarette distributor and regularly dropped off boxes at her A&E Goods store on Ridge Road and Ingham Avenue on his way home from work. "He delivers them, we pay him, chit-chat, and he goes home," the Lackawanna business owner said. "We talk about politics all the time." Albanna came by Monday night...

A live UK music venue today dodged a fine after members of the Rolling Stones lit up cigarettes on stage in defiance of the smoking ban. The Stones are rounding off their two-year Bigger Bang world tour with a trio of dates at London's O2 Arena. On the first date, officials had to tell the band to stub out their cigarettes after the guitarists, Keith Richards and Ron Wood, performed while smoking.

Members of Congress seeking to expand the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) to cover children from wealthier families are exploring new ways to pay for it. The Senate Finance Committee generally has agreed to reauthorize SCHIP for five years with a $35 billion expansion funded by an increase in the federal tobacco tax by 61 cents per pack.[1]While a tobacco tax is a politically popular funding source, it has several significant shortcomings: A tobacco tax disproportionately burdens low-income Americans, lacks long-term stability, and ultimately results in significant shifting of health care costs onto others. With the number of...

Federal tobacco taxes would increase by 61 cents per pack to pay for a major expansion of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) under a bipartisan deal in Congress, USA Today reported July 10. Democrats and Republicans on the Senate Finance Committee endorsed a plan to raise the federal tobacco tax from 39 cents per pack to $1 to expand SCHIP to some of the more than 6 million children who are eligible for the program but currently have no coverage. The tax hike is expected to raise $35 billion for SCHIP over the next five years. "It really...

CONCORD --This could hurt worse than even the largest of the textile layoffs. The parent company of Philip Morris USA -- Cabarrus County's biggest taxpayer, a top charitable supporter and one of the highest-paying manufacturers in the Charlotte region -- said Tuesday that it would close its Concord cigarette plant, where about 2,500 people work. It's the latest old-line industry to desert a region of North Carolina that already has been pummeled by several years of textile and furniture plant shutdowns. The pain from the latest closing will be felt for years, Concord Mayor Scott Padgett said. Philip Morris represents...

<p>The wonder drug could be prescribed in time for the nationwide smoking ban from July 1.</p> <p>Champix — developed by Pfizer which makes anti-impotence drug Viagra — blocks cravings, lessens withdrawal symptoms and even reduces the pleasure from ciggies.</p> <p>In trials nearly half of smokers — 44 per cent — kicked the habit after a 12-week course as opposed to 30 per cent using other NHS anti-smoking medication.</p>

SANTA FE— Rene Nicole was high on cocaine and weighed just 5 pounds when she came into this world. Her mother admitted to taking crack cocaine two days before the baby's birth in 2003. Now, it's up to the New Mexico Supreme Court to decide whether Rene Nicole's mother committed child abuse. Attorneys representing the mother contend New Mexico's child abuse laws don't apply to unborn children and argue that the state's highest court would be setting a "radical" precedent if it interpreted them as such. "This would be an unprecedented expansion of the law," Joseph Goldberg told the court...

New York’s attorney general has closed another loophole that local Indian tobacco merchants have been using to ship tax-free cigarettes over the Internet. Andrew Cuomo says a Long Island firm that had been processing checks and electronic payments for at least 10 Indian tobacco merchants will no longer provide those services to anyone who sells tax-free cigarettes over the Internet. 6 of the 10 merchants affected are in Salamanca.

When it comes to Sheryl Crow's touring requirements, if it's Tuesday, this must be Bombay. Gin that is. The rock star's performance contract includes specific day-to-day instructions on what kind of booze Sheryl needs in her dressing room (TSG has never seen such attention to detail in any other concert rider we've posted). For each show, Crow requires 12 bottles of Grolsch beer, 6 bottles of "local" beer, and a bottle each of "good Australian Cabernet" and "good Merlot." As for the harder stuff, promoters are directed to purchase specific booze depending on what day of the week the concert...

It's not surprising that Democrats Ted Kennedy and Henry Waxman are promoting something called "The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act." But you'll never guess who else is thrilled by their proposal: the Marlboro Man himself, says the Wall Street Journal. So why does Philip Morris, maker of the famous Marlboro brand, and other major cigarette manufacturers like the bill? Many analysts believe the regulation will actually help tobacco industry leaders by entrenching their position further, allowing them to maintain market share or increase it, says the Journal. For instance: * The bill specifically prohibits the Food and Drug...

At least two more daily newspapers -- The Oakland Press of Michigan and The Mountain Press of Sevierville, Tenn. -- have dropped Ann Coulter's column. A daily in Pennsylvania had dropped the column two days ago. Oakland Press Editorial Page Editor Allan Adler, when reached this morning by E&P, said Coulter's use of the word "faggot" in a Friday speech was "definitely a factor" in the decision. He also read a statement from his paper that went as follows: "When we picked up Ann Coulter, it was because we felt we needed a conservative columnist .. and we knew she...

SEOUL, Jan. 25 (Yonhap) -- A South Korean court Thursday ruled in favor of a local cigarette maker in the longstanding suits filed by ailing smokers and their families against the company, saying there was no evidence to prove smoking caused their illnesses. They are the first anti-tobacco lawsuits involving individuals in South Korean legal history. The court said the plaintiffs failed to prove a connection between smoking and cancer they or their family members contracted. "There is no evidence to prove cigarettes produced and sold by the company had problems in terms of manufacture, design and labeling, and that...

Gov. Jim Doyle today announced a "broad attack on tobacco in this state," ranging from a statewide smoking ban to a $1.25-per-pack increase in cigarette taxes, all aimed at getting Wisconsin smokers to quit and youths not to start. The smoking ban would be similar to a controversial law enacted in Madison last year and would ban smoking in all public places - including workplaces, bars, and restaurants. "We're taking it all on," Doyle said during a press conference at the Executive Residence this morning. "We know which direction history is going on this issue. The real issue for me...

HONOLULU - Hawaii, known for its fresh ocean air and pristine beauty, has implemented one of the nation's strictest no-smoking laws. State officials say the new law will protect people from secondhand smoke, but some fear it may deter cigarette-puffing tourists from coming to the islands, especially high-spending visitors from Japan. The Smoke-Free Hawaii Law went into effect Nov. 16, banning smoking in all public places such as restaurants, bowling alleys, and malls, as well as airports. Many of the islands already had county laws limiting smoking, but lighting up now in partially enclosed areas, bars and less than 20...

CHICAGO, Dec 13 - Philip Morris USA said on Wednesday it was raising prices on all its cigarette brands by 10 cents per pack as of Dec. 18, a move that had been expected by analysts.The price increase was accomplished by lowering promotional discounts the company offers on its Marlboro, Virginia Slims, Parliament and Basic brands, while raising list prices on other brands, a spokesman for the unit of Altria Group Inc. <MO.N> said.Since changes in promotional discounts are typically passed on to consumers, the move could raise the average price a smoker pays for a pack of top-selling Marlboro...

RUSH: As we left you yesterday, ladies and gentlemen, we were teasing you with this story from Tempe, Arizona. "The Heart Attack Grill, a theme restaurant. Specialties include the quadruple bypass burger and flatliner fries which are cooked in pure lard, making health care professionals' blood pressure rise and not because of the menu. It's because of the waitresses. The waitresses are dressed as naughty nurses." The waitresses are dressed up "as scantily clad nurses. They wear skimpy cleavage-bearing outfits, high heels, thigh-high stocking," which it says here "is a male fantasy that some nursing organizations say is an insult...

Marijuana is not a "gateway" drug that predicts or eventually leads to substance abuse, suggests a 12-year University of Pittsburgh study. Moreover, the study's findings call into question the long-held belief that has shaped prevention efforts and governmental policy for six decades and caused many a parent to panic upon discovering a bag of pot in their child's bedroom. The Pitt researchers tracked 214 boys beginning at ages 10-12, all of whom eventually used either legal or illegal drugs. When the boys reached age 22, they were categorized into three groups: those who used only alcohol or tobacco, those who...

ALARM - Tobacco prohibited in public places at February 1, 2007 PARIS - the tobacco will be interdict in all the public places in France as from February 1, 2007, except for the coffees, tobaccos, restaurants and discotheques which will have until January 1, 2008 to adapt, announced to Sunday the Dominique de Villepin Prime Minister.

(English-language translation) FBI agents yesterday arrested three individuals accused of armed robbery of a shipment of approximately 900 packs of Winston cigarettes valued at $1.6 million. According to a press release, Arturo Cosme Morales, Felipe Rivera Crespo, and Manuel Prado Charriez were accused by a federal grand jury of conspiracy to commit theft, interfering with interstate commerce by means of threats or violence, and using and carrying weapons during the commission of a crime. Rivera was arrested at his residence in Cidra, as well as Prado in Toa Alta. Cosme had been arrested previously at his house in Comerío. It...

GRAND RAPIDS -- Spectrum Health and Saint Mary's Health Care will require all their employees to not use tobacco at any time during their work shift beginning January 1. The staffs of both hospitals will need to arrive without smelling of smoke, and they can't use any tobacco products until they leave hospital property after their shift. Metro Health is also joining in the Smoke-Free Work Day Every Day campaign. In 2003, the Grand Rapids hospitals became the first in the country to jointly declare their hospital campuses smoke-free. Today, more than 30 Michigan hospitals have smoke-free campuses. This...

SEATTLE -- Non-tribal casinos have already lost tens of millions of dollars because of Washington’s new indoor smoking ban. A new financial study, conducted by our own KIRO Team 7 Investigators, discovers taxpayers could loose millions as well. Card-rooms, charity bingo halls, and some bars and restaurants are required to report financial information to the state every year. The state hasn't had a chance to look at the figures since the smoking ban took effect. I have. It looks like "no smoking" means economic devastation for the non-tribal gaming industry. If there was ever any doubt that gamblers are also...

Following are actual statistics reflecting examples of the negative impact upon individual businesses following the recently instituted smoking ban ordinances, effective in Springfield, Illinois and surrounding unincorporated Sangamon County this September 15, 2006 (less than two weeks ago). When small businesses account for about two-thirds of our country's economic growth and new jobs, it is difficult to comprehend elected officials' reasoning in voting to implement an intrusive ordinance which will hurt those same business owners. A restaurant owner who does not permit smoking will see it as a violation of his property rights if a coalition uses the political...

Delaware County's ban on smoking in most work places has become a problem for some nursing homes, which are both work places for employees and homes for the residents. The smoking ordinance does not prevent people from smoking in their homes, but it does ban smoking in most public buildings and work spaces. If a nursing home bans smoking, they could lose federal funding for failing to comply with regulations, but if they allow smoking they could face fines or a lawsuit from the county health department, officials said. Federal regulations state that if a nursing home changes its...

Churchill Downs could be hurt financially if it is forced to go completely smoke free, a company official said Wednesday. Kevin Flanery, Churchill Downs Inc.’s vice president for national public affairs, told a Louisville Metro Council committee considering a new, tougher smoking ban, that the race track is already facing heavy competition from Indiana and from computer and telephone betting services.And he said the company’s experience at a Florida track shows some people will stop betting when a smoking ban takes effect. But the former head of the Greater Louisville Medical Society testified that his group favors a complete...

A private smokers club in Smiths Falls challenged Ontario's indoor smoking ban with its grand opening Friday — and Ontario officials did not brave the fumes to attend. Instead, the club's founder was charged under the province's Smoke-Free Ontario act the day before it opened. Since Ontario's indoor workplace and public smoking ban went into effect, ashtrays and cigars have been illegal in bars. The grand opening of Do' Little's pub as a club for members of a private smokers association took place at noon at the Comfort Inn on Centre Street in Smiths Falls, about 65 kilometres south of...