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RESEARCH ALERT-Merrill cuts UST, R.J. Reynolds ratings 

Merrill Lynch on Thursday said it lowered its rating on tobacco companies UST Inc. (NYSE:UST) and R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Holdings Inc. (NYSE:RJR) to "neutral" from "buy," citing UST's exposure to an upcoming trial and R.J. Reynolds' vulnerability to price competition.

Analyst Martin Feldman said in a research note that if the company were to lose the "McMullin" tobacco liability case, expected to go to trial in Florida this month, investors could decide that smokeless tobacco company UST is not less vulnerable to litigation risk than cigarette makers.

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Teen smokers face 70% higher breast-cancer risk  

On top of its many already well-publicized dangers, adolescent smoking has now been linked by Canadian researchers to a massively increased risk of breast cancer.

Writing in this week's issue of the medical journal Lancet, British Columbia doctor Pierre Band suggests that the immature breast tissue of teenage girls is especially susceptible to damage from the toxins present in cigarette smoke.

The news comes during the internationally recognized Breast Cancer Awareness month and was released only one day after publication of a massive study which suggested that breast self-examination does not reduce cancer mortality rates.

Writing in Lancet, Dr. Band notes that previous studies had shown that the increased sensitivity of female breasts between menarche (first menstruation) and first full-term pregnancy leaves women susceptible to environmental carcinogens.

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• CHR told to butt out of debate  

Misplaced zealotry on the part of the Calgary Health Region backfired on efforts to cement an earlier date for an all-out smoking ban, say some aldermen.

The aldermen and Mayor Dave Bronconnier have turned their guns on the CHR, saying they should butt out of the city's smoking debate and lobby the province to toughen anti-tobacco measures instead.

Ald. Barry Erskine said the CHR's push to protect adults from second-hand smoke, not just children as initially envisioned, galvanized resistance to that campaign.

"They kept moving the goalposts and it did them in," said Erskine, who called CHR officials "Machiavellian" in their attempts to widen the scope of the regulations.

"The ends justified the means and there was no ethical commitment to the original intentions."

Ald. Ric McIver said the CHR used provincial money from a government unwilling to legislate against smoking "to beat up on the city to further what should be a provincial initiative."

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• NYSE, NASD Name Geoffrey Bible to Head IPO Panel (Update1) 

New York, Oct. 3 (Bloomberg) -- The New York Stock Exchange and the National Association of Securities Dealers named former Philip Morris Cos. Chief Executive Officer Geoffrey Bible to head a panel of executives investigating how Wall Street allots initial public offerings to investors.

Bible, 65, who retired from Philip Morris in August, will lead an 11-member panel that will propose rules to the Big Board and the NASD aimed at bringing integrity to the sale of IPOs that are in demand. The House Financial Services Committee on Tuesday said Goldman Sachs Group, Credit Suisse First Boston and Citigroup Inc. handed IPO shares to executives of companies that gave them banking assignments.

``We've assembled a committee of leaders representing all of the interests in the IPO process, from investors to investment bankers, from issuers to venture capitalists,'' NASD Chairman and CEO Robert Glauber said in a statement.

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Exception to smoking ban sparks discussion 

A public hearing Wednesday on the proposed Washtenaw County regulation eliminating smoking in public places quickly focused on the new homeless shelter that could be exempt from the regulation.

Ellen R. Schulmeister, executive director of the Shelter Association of Washtenaw County, said the smoking rate was high among those who would occupy the shelter in downtown Ann Arbor. She asked the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners to grant a waiver that would allow the shelter "separate ventilated smoking areas which exhaust directly to the outside."

Smoking rooms would be part of a center "that operates safely and efficiently," she said.

Another speaker said maintaining smoking rooms inside the shelter would alleviate a lot of neighborhood concerns about smoking and "other activities" occurring outside the shelter.

But not everyone is convinced an exception is a good idea.

Roberta Asplund of Ann Arbor said smoking is an addiction and having a shelter that allows smoking only adds to their (residents') addiction. "It's against the law for a county agency to support smoking in that building; government should be an example."

"If you grant a waiver to the shelter, it should be fashioned in such a way that second-hand smoke is vented to the outside," said Cliff Douglas of Ann Arbor. He urged the board to not weaken the proposed regulation.

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EDITORIAL: Health should be bottom line in smoking debate 

Round Rock City Council members are expected to vote on a revised ordinance Oct. 10. Whatever compromise they craft should put the health and welfare of people first -- especially employees. Secondhand smoke can cause or exacerbate a number of illnesses, including cancer, respiratory infections, heart disease and asthma, according to the American Lung Association and the Environmental Protection Agency. Employees should not be made to chose between inhaling someone else's smoke or finding another job.

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Council delays smoking ban vote 

Smokers will have another two weeks to light up at their favorite establishments after the City Council referred a controversial proposal to its next meeting after nearly two hours of public input.

Dozens of Madison restaurant and bar owners arrived at the meeting to protest the ordinance, which would have banned smoking in such establishments altogether. Many said the first proposal was too cut and dry.

According to a new compromise proposal, smoking would be eliminated before 9 p.m. in establishments with 50 percent or less alcohol sales. . .

However, the new law would not resolve a big concern for anti-smoking advocates: how secondhand smoke affects bar and restaurant employees.

A coalition of health groups, including the University of Wisconsin Health Services, UW Hospital and Clinics and the UW Medical Foundation formed last week to show their support for the ban.

"Many UW-Madison students work in restaurants and bars," Kathy Poi, executive director of UW Health Services, said in an earlier statement. "Students exposed to secondhand smoke are more vulnerable to respiratory illnesses."

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EDITORIAL: Expanded ban infringes on smokers' rights 

The previous ordinance serves a legitimate public health purpose by blocking the consequences of second-hand smoke in restaurants, which are universally attended by both adults and minors, many of whom do not smoke. The enhanced ban, however, would infringe upon the rights of a consenting crowd that attends bars for a specific purpose.

As social smoking has become relegated to increasingly limited arenas, we encourage council members to leave smoking regulations in area bars to the inclination of business owners and the consumers affected.

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Canadian Cancer Society Mission Possible prevention program for teens more important than ever 

"Girls smoke to fit in" states high school student and cancer prevention activist Linsey Woo of Surrey. Woo is concerned about the high smoking rates among girls her age in light of new research showing a causal relationship between teen smoking and increased risk for breast cancer.

A report released this week in the Lancet indicates that girls who've being smoking within their first five years of menstruation are 70 per cent more likely to develop breast cancer compared to those who never smoke. The study, conducted by Dr. Pierre Band and Dr. Nhu Lee, was conducted by the Epidemiology Division of the BC Cancer Agency.

"We're very interested in the findings of this study", says Cheryl Ryll, Director of Communications for the BC & Yukon Division of the Canadian Cancer Society (CCS). "Most young people associate tobacco use with lung cancer alone. Research has confirmed that tobacco use is linked to 30% of all cancers. This study now links early tobacco use and breast cancer, an issue that is important to most women. We look forward to more research in understanding this specific breast cancer risk factor." . .

"In addition to providing a prevention support program for BC teens, the Canadian Cancer Society has been a long time advocate for tobacco control - especially on tobacco advertising that makes smoking appear 'cool' to young audiences,"

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Council to face smoking ban 

City Council members will vote tonight on a controversial ordinance that would ban smoking in many popular Madison hangouts.

While a 1992 law already prohibits smoking in restaurants, the proposal would redefine a restaurant as a place that receives more than 50 percent of its income from food sales, as opposed to the current 66 percent level. The measure would also eliminate exceptions for separately ventilated smoking rooms and smoking at full-service bars.

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November race for mayor, council set 

EP Chamber comes out against smoke-free law 

The Eden Prairie Chamber of Commerce has officially come out against the city enacting a smoke-free workplace ordinance.

In a Friday press release, the chamber stated the proposed smoking ordinance is “bad for business.” The decision was made during a Thursday chamber board of directors meeting.

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LETTERS 

LUSE: Smoking ban compromise OK with conditions 

I have several times asked the Council to gather more information on this issue, because I wanted to know as much as we could about where we’re going in this uncharted territory. I also don’t believe public opinion is as clear as some think. Many advocates of a ban seem to assume that the great majority of residents would support a smoking ban. I don’t know if that’s true, and I’ve heard from many non-smokers who don’t think the city should be intruding on personal choice like this. I proposed that we find out, through scientific public opinion research, where the residents truly stand. My colleagues did not agree with the proposal, however, and the law doesn’t allow us to bring the issue to a vote by referendum. . .

I will support a compromise with the elements I’ve laid out here. It’s not perfect, and many will not be pleased with it – that’s the nature of compromise. But this gives us a fair balance among the factors of public health and personal choice. . .

My hope is that we will complete our deliberations on the smoking issue before my appointed term is up. I think it’s important that I, along with my colleagues, bring closure to this proposed ordinance, and it would be unfair to reinvent the wheel with a new council come January.

The best part of this whole debate has been that we’ve heard from a lot of residents on this issue, and I think it’s great that people are so engaged and will to speak up. That’s what local government is all about.

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LETTERS: Tax unfair burden on minority