Julia Gillard Stands on Cigarette Plain Packaging

Prime Minister Julia Gillard says she won’t be intimidated by big tobacco after Philip Morris launched legal action to try to force the government to back down on introducing plain packaging for Salem cigarettes. Ms. Gillard said the government was confident it could deliver its reforms and that they would make a difference to the number of people who smoke. “We’re not going to be intimidated by big tobacco’s tactics, whether they’re political tactics, whether they’re public affairs kind of tactics out in the community or whether they’re legal tactics,” she told ABC radio. “We’re not taking a backward step. We’ve made the right decision...

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Merchants Learn Importance of Checking IDs for Beer, Cigarettes

The first line of defense to keep young people from becoming addicted to alcohol and drugs just might be the local grocery store. A “Merchant’s Roundtable” was held Tuesday at Moundsville’s Grand Vue park, presented by the Marshall County Anti-Drug Coalition and the Ohio County Substance Abuse Coalition. They are explaining how to make it clear to their customers that they won’t sell beer or cheap cigarettes to juveniles. To card every customer or only those whose age is questionable is up to each merchant to make the decision. Merchants know all too well that a 50-year-old buying a pack of cigarettes, who didn’t bring his driver’s license into the store, can become hostile when he’s told, “no ID, no sale.” But that same 50-year-old might be buying those cigarettes or that beer for...

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Reduced smoking saves state money

Ohio once had a model tobacco-prevention and cessation program that helped reduce smoking rates among adults and children in Ohio.Currently, more than one-fifth of Ohio adults smoke. About the same percentage of children smoke and 17 percent use other tobacco products.The new state budget will destroy Ohio’s program, since it does not fund prevention programs, enforcement of the Smoke Free Workplace Act, or Ohio’s successful Quit line.Ohio currently collects more than $800 million in cigarette taxes each year. None of that money is invested in tobacco prevention and cessation or enforcement of the Smoke Free Ohio law.Funding tobacco cessation...

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Barack Obama Smoking a Cigarette

You know that quitting smoking is difficult when even the most powerful man in the world can not stop himself from smoking cigarettes! Barack Obama Smoking a Cigarette To his credit, Mr. Obama has apparently not been seen smoking cigarettes for quite a while now, although he acknowledges that not smoking is a daily struggle. What is certain is that with young children at home and the entire world watching, he sets an example that millions will follow for good or ill. Quit smoking now, Mr. President!...

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Most support smoking ban in youth movies

Three-quarters of Ontarians support a ban on smoking in youth-targeted films, a new survey released Tuesday on World No Tobacco Days shows. “Research shows the more youth see smoking in movies, the more likely they are to start,” said Dr. Rosana Pellizzari, medical officer of health, Peterborough County-City Health Unit, one of the organizations endorsing policy recommendations to remove smoking from youth-rated movies.“The public agrees that smoking in movies is a serious public health issue, especially as it relates to youth. As tobacco use remains the leading cause of preventable disease and death in Ontario, this issue needs to be...

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Tobacco companies violate ad norms

In a clear violation of the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act 2003, (COPT), a non-governmental organisation, Salaam Bombay has exposed how tobacco brands are indulging in rampant surrogate advertising to promote their product under the guise of selling ‘pan masalas’. A recent survey conducted among 3,000 Mumbaikars revealed that majority of them associated ‘pan masala’ with gutka. The participants of the survey were shown flash cards consisting of pan masala advertisements that are usually seen on billboards and BEST buses across the city.“Gutka companies are promoting their tobacco products by advertising them as pan masalas. The end...

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