Fred Thompson: Al Qaeda smoking ban pushed Iraqis to U.S. .

September 8, 2007 - Fred Thompson: Al Qaeda smoking ban pushed Iraqis to U.S. - In Sioux City, Iowa recently announced (September 5, 2007) presidential hopeful Fred Thompson puzzled Iowans by insisting an Al Qaeda smoking ban was one reason freedom-loving Iraqis bolted the to the U.S. side. "They said, 'You gotta quit smoking.'" Thompson explained to a questioner asking about the progress in Iraq during a town hall-style meeting. Thompson said the smoking ban and terror tactics Al Qaeda used to oppress women and intimidate local leaders pushed tribes in western Anbar Province to support U.S. troops. But Thompson's tale of a smokers' revolt baffled some in the audience of about 150 who came to decide whether the former Tennessee senator is ready for prime time. (by Richrad Sisk, NY Daily News - Washington Bureau) Click on image to enlarge..
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NO Camel SNUS ad appeared in the What's Up Section of the Raleigh News & Observer. .

September 7, 2007 - NO Camel SNUS ad appeared in the What's Up Section of the Raleigh News & Observer. We're sure it's because of pressure applied by anti-tobacco groups and individuals. However, just about every week a Kool XL ad appears. See related Kool XL Newsbriefs: July 8, 2007. Camel Snus related Newsbriefs: August 31, 2007 August 24, 2007August 17, 2007, August 14, 2007, August 10, 2007, August 3, 2007, July 27, 2007, July 23, 2007, July 13, 2007, July 12, 2007and July 2, 2007. Click on image to enlarge.. (TobaccoWatch.org) 

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PM USA Raises Cigarette Prices..

September 7, 2007 - PM USA Raises Cigarette Prices All brands see increases, promotional reductions; other manufacturers likely to follow suit... RICHMOND, Va. -- Calling it strictly an effort to achieve its business objectives, Altria Group Inc.’s Philip Morris USA announced price increases or reductions in its wholesale off-invoice promotions for all its cigarette brands. PM USA is taking a 5-cent-per-pack or more price increase on all of its brands. “We’re trying to achieve our business objectives and we’re always analyzing the market place…to help us determine the appropriate level of promotional spending,” Bill Phelps, Richmond, Va.-based PM USA’s manager of media affairs. The increases, which go into effect Monday, September 10, and continue through Sunday, October 28. “This price increase comes as a bit of a surprise considering a FET [Federal Excise tax] increase is likely, but could be a precautionary measure by the company,” tobacco analyst Bonnie Herzog of Citigroup said in a research note Wednesday (9/5/07). (PM USA Raises Cigarette Prices by Steve Holtz, CSP Daily News) 

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Ireland - reduction in admissions for acute coronary syndrome..

September 7, 2007 - In the 12 months following implementation of a nationwide smoking ban in Ireland, the number of hospital admissions for acute coronary syndrome decreased by 11%. While the decrease was impressive, Edward Cronin, M.D., of Cork University Hospital in Wilton, said the report was based on hospital records in just two counties -- Cork and Kerry. Moreover, he said "this is an observational study so we cannot prove an association between the smoking ban and the decline in [acute coronary syndrome] admissions."

Nonetheless, Dr. Cronin said that these results follow a similar pattern reported in other nations and regions where smoking bans have been enacted. Dr. Cronin presented his findings at the European Society of Cardiology meeting here.

Ireland, which banned smoking in workplaces including restaurants and pubs on March 29, 2004, was the first European Union nation to enact a smoking ban. That action was particularly compelling given the fact that Ireland had the second highest rate of cardiovascular deaths among western European nations-only Finland posted higher cardiovascular mortality.

Dr. Cronin's study follows one published in April that reported an 83% reduction in indoor air pollution and an 80% drop in airborne carcinogens in Dublin restaurants and pubs in the 12 months following the ban. That reduction in secondhand smoke exposure was accompanied by significant reductions in respiratory illness among bar and restaurant workers.

Reference: ESC: Heart Attacks Decline Following Irish Smoking Ban by Peggy Peck, MedPage Today, 9/5/2007.

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Husky Smokeless Tobacco..

September 6, 2007 - A quick check of the local c-store today found that U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Company (UST) the leading producer of smokeless tobacco has further discounted their deep discount brand (in the price-value segment) Husky to 49 cents per can for a limited time. Maybe they have the same motto as the new deeply discounted smokeless tobacco productBobcat: "Price gets em, quality keeps em." But where could the quality be at this price. UST's Skoal Dry - moist snuff was selling for an introductory price of 99 cents at the Austin, TX marketing test site while Camel SNUS was selling fro $4.69. Reported on August 30, 2007 Swisher International has introduced a very inexpensive little cigar in 5-varieties called Santa Fe. Cost on these cigars is 49 cents for a 20-pack and retails for 89 cents a pack. Click on image to enlarge..(TobaccoWatch.org) 

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Smokefree NZ within 10 years ..

September 5, 2007 - Smokefree NZ within 10 years - ASH At the Oceania Tobacco Control Conference in Auckland today anti-smoking campaigners are calling for New Zealand to be cigarette free within 10 years. The priority was to get rid of cigarettes and smoked tobacco. Among steps they advocated were the removal of retail displays, plain packaged cigarettes, increased tax on tobacco products, more support for people quitting, more alternatives to cigarettes and the staged removal of cigarettes from sale. ASH NZ director Ben Youdan said their priority was getting rid of cigarettes and smoked tobacco by looking for alternatives, especially for those most addicted. Mr. Youdan is making a unfortunate public health mistake - the goal should be to remove all tobacco products. Most likely, public health officials in New Zealand when discussing tobacco avoidance speak in terms of smoking tobacco (e.g. in children) since by law, oral snuff cannot be sold in New Zealand and can be imported only for personal use. (See related Newsbrief: March 29, 2007.) Some public health officials are telling people how safe this smokeless tobacco alternative is and you can still get the same amounts of nicotine (perhaps even more) and much lesser chance of developing a disease. The populations these officials are targeting are inveterate (hard-nosed, long established, deep-rooted) cigarette smokers that refuse to consider trying to quit smoking tobacco. For example, Dr. Brad Rodu and William T. Godshall, M.P.H. paper in the December 2006 issue of the Harm Reduction Journal entitled, "Tobacco Harm Reduction: An Alternate Cessation Strategy for Inveterate Smokers," or Dr. Carol Gartner and colleagues paper in the June 16, 2007 issue of The Lancet concluded that SNUS could produce a net health benefit in inveterate smokers. We have no problem trying to convince inveterate smokers to use SNUS. But it would be impossible to limit distribution of smokeless tobacco products to these inveterate tobacco smokers. Tobacco companies have an entirely different goal in mind – they are already targeting a much younger crowd of young adults and any kids they can entice along the way - witness the tagline for Camel SNUS: "Pleasure for wherever." Another example: Cathryn Cushing, a specialist with the Oregon's Tobacco Prevention and Education Program, "I see it as a young adult marketing strategy, and we have a lot of hip young adults in this city," Cushing said. And "if it appeals to a 22-year-old, I think you can assume it will appeal to a 16-year-old. Because what do 16-year-olds want to be? Twenty-two" (The Oregonian, 1/7/2007) Or a comment from Mitch Zeller, health policy consultant who was director of the Office of Tobacco Programs at the FDA during the Clinton Administration, said the web site for Camel Snus "seems aimed at young adult males to get them to start using products." The site says Reynolds found Snus in Sweden, "home of the world's best meatballs, massage and blondes." Public health leaders in New Zealand have good intentions but if they don't avoid the use of smokeless tobacco products they'll end with a generation of nicotine addicts - never able to reach their full potential. Never, never introduce another tobacco product that has already been banned for use in your country.(TobaccoWatch.org) 9-6-2007 - Three influential health organisations say Australia could be smoke-free in a decade with full government commitment. 

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U.S. Presidential Candidates Receiving Money from Tobacco Companies..

September 3, 2007 - U.S. Presidential Candidates Receiving Money from Tobacco Companies. Tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of death in the United States. Cigarette smoking causes an estimated 438,000 deaths, or about 1 of every 5 deaths, each year. This estimate includes approximately 38,000 deaths from secondhand smoke exposure. More deaths are caused each year by tobacco use than by all deaths from human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), illegal drug use, alcohol use, motor vehicle injuries, suicides, and murders combined. On average, adults who smoke cigarettes die 14 years earlier than nonsmokers. Based on current cigarette smoking patterns, an estimated 25 million Americans who are alive today will die prematurely from smoking-related illnesses, including 5 million people younger than 18. (U.S. DHHS Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) 

Presidential Candidates receiving tobacco money: Rudolph Giuliani - $69,500 , Christopher Dodd - $45,400 , Hillary Clinton - $32,300 , Mitt Romney - $31,400 , Barack Obama - $7,885 , and Joe Biden - $4,000 . (Derrick Z. Jackson, The Boston Globe, Raleigh News & Observer) Click on image to enlarge.. 

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