August 22, 2008 - Smoking among Democratic People's Republic of Korea (South Korea) adult males continues to fall amid cigarette tax hikes and anti-smoking campaigns. South Korea's smoking rate for adult males stood at 40.4 percent in the first half of this year, down 1.4 percentage points from last year, according to a survey of 2,000 adult males conducted by Gallup Korea on behalf of the Health Ministry. (The smoking rate peaked at 79.3 percent in 1980, fell to the 50-percent mark for the first time in March 2007 and slid to 45.9 percent in September the same year. Health officials predict it will drop to the upper-30-percent range by the end of 2008.)
The rate for females, which rose to 4.6 percent last year, dropped to 3.7 percent in the first half of the year.
The tapering of male adult smoking was attributed largely to an increase in cigarette prices. In December 2004, the government slapped an additional 500 won tax ($0.53) per cigarette pack. Currently, most cigarettes in South Korea cost between 2,000 won ($1.87) and 3,000 won ($2.82) per pack.
The ministry added that its continued anti-smoking ad campaign and counseling programs have contributed to raising public awareness about smoking's negative effects on health.
Reference: Smoking Rate Among Male Adults Falls to 40%, The Korea Times, 8/21/2008.
WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) - the global anti-tobacco treaty.
1 comments:
August 24, 2008 at 9:29 AM
Sam, in the United States, Federal and State Law make it ILLEGAL to sell, distribute or otherwise make available to minors ANY tobacco products.
So why do you say no to snus: "it's the kids"?
Snus is a legal product, as are cigarettes, cigars and pipe tobacco in the US for legal adult consumers. So is alcohol and there are more alcohol related deaths in the US than tobacco...many of them "kids".
Teen drinking is an issue. What about "the kids" here?
Why is OK to criminalize alcohol for minors but allow the sale and use by adults but when it comes to snus, the SAME policy is not acceptable?
Alcohol comes in many flavored varieties...some taste like juice or soda. So the flavored snus argument doesn't hold up either.
Snus has NO deleterious side affects to any bystander...there is no "second hand snus". There is no odor. So what's the issue as it's already illegal to sell to minors?
Too many people, groups, and elected officials use the "if it saves the life of one child.." argument to justify their own personal opinions, tastes and agendas.
They spend billions of dollar/euros/yuan/yen on programs that accomplish little or nothing "for the kids".
Hey, at least they "took action", so they can feel better about themselves...and avoid the real issue of poor parenting.
Children should be prevented from doing a lot of things or using a lot of substances. They are children. Parents are supposed to be more concerned about teaching, setting guardrails, and generally "raising" their children than being their "friends" or being too busy to BE a parent.
You know, there is a big issue with childhood obesity in the US. Shall be ban all candy, fatty foods,junk food and fine parents if their child exceeds the "required weight?" Correction: we can't fine the PARENTS: they're Helpless. Lets file a class-action suite against MacDonald's...where these same parents buy high-fat, high calorie "Happy Meals" for their children instead of feeding them a proper meal. Where does this stop?
I good place to begin if you're going to use the "kids" as your justification is with the PARENTS.
Maybe if they paid more attention to raising their children than whining that their children are out of control, we'd have less problems. Worked in the past.
Now it's the teacher's fault, the communities fault, big businesses fault, big media's ...why is it never the PARENT's fault?
Who bought their child the Playstation or Xbox? Who lets their child sit playing games for hours upon hours?
Where are these kids getting their tobacco and alcohol? Out of mom's purse? Out of dad's liquor cabinet? It's illegal to sell it to them and the police do stings on convenience stores all the time.
You need to focus on the issue and if that issue is "kids", then you should be demanding the Government at all levels enforce EXISTING laws and mobilize parents to raise, monitor, and control their children. That's what PARENTS are supposed to do. Too many don't: Columbine Massacre: HOW does a parent NOT know their child has pipe-bombs, firearms, and bomb making equipment OPENLY DISLAYED in their bedrooms?
Maybe "for the kids", we should design laws, education and penalties to ensure Parent responsibility. No, that would mean parents would have to take Personal Responsibility in raising their children. Too much to ask.
Adults should have the right to use any legal product, including alcohol, tobacco, and especially reduced-harm tobacco products like snus whenever they like.
It's called Freedom of Choice, Liberty, and Personal Responsibility. In America at least, that USED to be guaranteed by the Constitution.
But now Activist Judges are legislating from the bench: a clear breach of the Constitution which gives that RIGHT ONLY to Congress.
I don't know if it's socialism or fascism America is slipping into, but as Ben Franklin said, "We have given you a representative republic....if you can keep it."
Apparently we can't.
Sorry for the long reply, but I am REALLY getting tired of this "it's for the kids" argument which is used over and over and over again; issue after issue after issue.
It's just a way for adults to avoid responsibility. If the existing laws were obeyed, most of these issues would go away. But parents don't TEACH respect for the law anymore to their children.
Enough. I think you get my point.
(I certainly wrote enough :-) )
I feel VERY sorry for the children too....but for a completely different reason than the politically correct one adopted by too many today.
I can only imagine what America in the 22nd century is going to be like.....
Sincerely,
Mr. Unloadingzone
Post a Comment