Tobacco.org

State: New Mexico adults smoking less 

The New Mexico Department of Health announced Oct. 16 that the adult smoking rate for New Mexico has dropped to 19.3 percent, making it the lowest rate of adult smokers since 2001, when the rate was 23.8 percent of the adult population. According to a recent Department of Health survey, in 2001, there were an estimated 352,600 smokers, and this year there are 66,600 fewer smokers.

“It’s a tremendous accomplishment for anyone to quit smoking, and this significant drop in the number of New Mexicans who smoke means that more people will have the chance to live longer and healthier lives,” said Health Secretary Alfredo Vigil, M.D. “Quitting smoking can have a very positive impact on a person’s overall health. I encourage anyone who is interested in quitting to use all the resources at their disposal to help with their success.

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Don't smoke 'em ... in city parks 

If you got ‘em, don’t smoke ‘em – in city parks that is.

Although the Savage City Council hasn’t formally updated the city’s tobacco use policy in parks, the consensus at Monday night’s (Oct. 12) work session was to extend the policy to ban smoking in the city’s 20 parks.

The City Council is scheduled to formally update the policy at its next meeting on Monday, Oct. 19.

The policy shift was initiated by members of the Savage Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Commission, who listened to a presentation about extending the no smoking policy by Tobacco-Free Youth Recreation in April and approved the change in July.

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STIER: Council votes to boost butts 

THE City Council this week voted 46-1 to ban many flavorings in a variety of tobacco products, and Mayor Bloomberg is likely to sign it into law. Speaker Christine Quinn justified it as an effort to protect children -- but the main effect will be to make it harder for adult smokers to quit.

The ban also covers many flavors of snus -- a smokeless, and thus far less harmful, tobacco. . . .

But sales of all tobacco products to minors are already illegal. The city should enforce the law on the books rather than stymie adults' switch to a less harmful product.

Ironically, the city ban exempts flavored hookah tobacco and menthol -- both of which are popular among younger tobacco users and which, unlike the banned flavored snus, have no redeeming public-health value. They certainly don't help people quit cigarettes.

New York City is not alone in banning the wrong products. Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal recently called for a ban on e-cigarettes. . . .

The federal government is getting into the act as well. The Food and Drug Administration, now tasked with regulating tobacco, in July warned about tiny levels of carcinogens in e-cigarettes, telling smokers to stay away -- in effect telling them to stick with deadly cigarettes.

These government actions will do nothing to protect kids. The only effect is to promote the most dangerous form of tobacco use, smoking cigarettes.

If the advocates get their way, the only thing addicted smokers will be able to buy are mostly ineffective nicotine gums and patches -- and, of course, cigarettes.

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Mayfair smoking ban nothing to do with CRD: officials 

A property-wide smoking ban at Mayfair Shopping Centre is well-intentioned, officials say, but not sparked by Capital Regional District bylaws.

The shopping centre has sandwich boards at mall entrances saying that under a CRD bylaw, smoking is not permitted anywhere on the shopping centre's property.

But neither the CRD bylaw nor provincial regulations prohibit tobacco smoking in parking lots, says Dianne Stevenson, Vancouver Island Health Authority regional manager of tobacco.

"The CRD bylaw itself doesn't have any restrictions as to outdoor areas other than where people are eating or drinking," she said.

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Community for Understanding and Hope 

Community Forum

CFUH wants to be an organization in our community fostering dialogue among our citizens. We will be holding forums in the future where topics of interest to all are discussed in a respectful and forthright manner. These discussions are sponsored by the CFUH Community Relations Committee.

The first of these community forums will be held on October 21, 2009 from 7:00 pm to 8:00 pm at the Reim Theater (Kwd. Community Center/Geyer Road.) The topic of this forum will be the Kirkwood Smoking Ban which will be on the November 3 ballot. We will have a speaker from each side of the issue who have agreed to having a moderated, respectful discussion. CFUH takes no position on this issue. Our goal is to make sure citizens are informed about the issue.

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Smoking Ban Forum 

An educational forum to discuss the city of Kirkwood's and St. Louis County's Nov. 3 ballot propositions concerning a ban on the smoking of tobacco indoors will be held on Wednesday, Oct. 21, at the Kirkwood Community Center, 111 S. Geyer Road, in the Robert Reim Theater. Spokespersons with opposing viewpoints have agreed to moderate respectful discussion.

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Smoking, food ban for mother 

A MOTHER has failed in her bid to quash court orders relating to access visits with her daughter, including that she not smoke around the girl and refrain from giving her too much junk food.

The orders were among several imposed by the Children's Court last year after the woman's daughter, then aged four, was removed from her care in 2007.

For legal reasons the girl can be known only as Allegra. Her parents cannot be identified.

In January last year the girl was placed in the care of the Department of Community Services, with her father to assume sole responsibility for her care after 12 months. At the time the mother gave undertakings that, until Allegra turned 18, she would not see the girl while under the influence of alcohol or illicit drugs, allow her to be exposed to domestic violence, or denigrate or criticise Allegra's father or his family in her daughter's presence.

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Road rage features tobacco chew 

An Augusta man said he had chewing tobacco thrown in his face after he blew his horn at a driver on Wrightsboro Road Thursday night.

The 51-year-old victim said he honked at a woman who was blocking the intersection of Wrightsboro Road and Marks Church Road so that she would move and turn, a Richmond County Sheriff's report said.

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Increasing cigarette tax has had mixed results 

The decline in cigarette purchase is evidence that heavy taxing does work -- but it hasn't led to a decline in smoking, according to a 2008 research study by the Harvard School of Public Health.

The study found that "price increases have proven to be the single most effective form of curbing tobacco use in the U.S. population," but that smokers are replacing cigarettes with small cigars, snuff and roll-your-own products, which are subject to 1/10th the federal tax of cigarettes.

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Cigarette tax hikes have smokers fuming  

Frank Williams owns Smokey's Discount Tobacco Store in Gulfport. Ever since the new tobacco taxes went into effect six months ago, his customers are letting him know how they feel.

"The customers aren't very happy about it, of course. That's money that can be better well spent in their own home," Williams said. "They have to support state budgets and federal budgets."

John Ruble smokes, but the high cost of lighting up is starting to impact his wallet.

"It makes me think when I light a cigarette how much I'm paying per cigarette," Ruble said. "It breaks it down by almost the cigarette itself."

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Man jailed for getting three-year-old to smoke  

A man who encouraged a three-year-old girl to smoke a cigarette has been jailed for 18 months.

Graeme Conroy, 31, lit a cigarette and handed it to the child while being filmed by a 14-year-old girl.

Another teenager told police officers how Conroy asked the young girl to perform for her.

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Chain smoking girl...aged just 3 

A GIRL of three was filmed smoking a cigarette as the man who had given it to her roared with laughter.

Graeme Conroy joked as he lit the cigarette before carefully handing it to the child at her home.

After smoking it the toddler who, a court heard yesterday, inhaled like a seasoned smoker, asked for and was given another.

She had already smoked two cigarettes before Conroy arrived, Newcastle Crown court was told.

When she begged for a third smoke, Conroy initially refused but relented when she started to cry. She had smoked five cigarettes in total.

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Kirkwood voters to decide whether to snuff out smoking in public 

Kirkwood voters will decide Nov. 3 whether to approve a proposed ban on indoor smoking in public places citywide.

Called Proposition 1, the ballot issue asks whether smoking in enclosed places of employment and public places should be prohibited.

It includes some exemptions, such as tobacco stores, taxes, 20 percent of the rooms in any hotel and any private membership organizations that existed before March 1.

A simple majority would be needed for passage.

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Decatur puts off votes on smoking ban, NARCOG 

City Council President Greg Reeves has delayed votes on repealing portions of Decatur’s smoking ordinance and withdrawing from the North-central Alabama Regional Council of Governments until 7 p.m. on Nov. 2.

He said Friday he is pushing back the votes to allow for public comments.

Initially, the council was scheduled to consider changes to the city’s smoking ordinance during its 10 a.m. meeting Monday. Reeves said the council will introduce the changes during that meeting, but public comments will not be heard then. Public comments will be allowed Nov. 2, he said, prior to the council’s vote.

If approved, the changes would repeal portions of the ordinance that prohibit smoking in bars and restaurants, and a provision that prevents hotel operators from designating more than 25 percent of their rooms for smokers.

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EDITORIAL: Tobacco companies are marketing new products to minors 

Tobacco companies are creating smokeless products for the market and utilizing social networks such as Twitter and Facebook to reach a younger audience.

They are mainly trying to market their products to children and teenagers so they will start smoking younger. They should not be doing that. . . .

It may be impossible to stop tobacco companies from using social networks, where millions of kids and teenagers will see tobacco products. In the end, it is up to the person to decide whether to use tobacco products.

But these strategies are on the verge of manipulating children and teenagers against the will of their parents. Educating the young on the dangers of tobacco only goes so far.

Tobacco companies should be careful when going young in their marketing. We understand you have businesses to run, but children’s well beings are at stake.

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