http://www.tobacco.org/newsfeed/state/CT.rss Latest top tobacco news headlines en-us http://www.wtnh.com/dpp/news/fairfield_cty/fire-chief-lit-cig-caused-condo-fire http://tobacco.org/news/333457.html Investigators have pinpointed the cause of a fire that destroyed eight units at a condo complex in Norwalk Sunday. The fire took place at the Silver Ridge Condominiums, located on Oakwood Avenue. The fire that tore through the complex has left 16 people without a home and fire officials say it's all because of careless cigarette smoking. Norwalk's fire chief tells News 8 a resident fell asleep with his smoldering cigarette in hand. It then fell onto a chair, and that's what sparked the blaze which sent residents racing out of their homes around 5:45 a.m. Sunday. "It's a devastating loss and it's preventable," said Chief Denis McCarthy. "It's a careless habit and I think that you really have to be accountable if you're a smoker and a lot of our owners step outside as opposed to smoking in their units," said resident Maxine James-Stewart, "and I understand this had happened like little things before." WTNH-DT Channel 8 Mon, 06 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.norwichbulletin.com/newsnow/x458336279/Plainfield-students-wins-500-for-anti-smoking-video http://tobacco.org/news/333327.html A club of 20 Plainfield Central School students earned $500 for their school by winning the Northeast Communities Against Substance Abuse video project. The school's health and wellness club created a five-minute anti-smoking video to beat out three other entries from the organization's 21-town area. Bob Brex, executive director of the organization, also known as NECASA, presented the students with a $500 check Thursday at a club meeting. Club adviser Pamela Bartok, the school's health teacher, said the money will be used for the life skills and drug education curriculum for the entire school. . . . A team of doctors, played by students, listed the health dangers of smoking while pretending to examine Aaron. They listed dangerous chemicals found in cigarettes, as well as the side effects of smoking, such as tar buildup in the lungs and yellowing of the teeth and fingers. Norwich Bulletin jkonrad@norwichbulletin.com (EMILY GROVES The Bulletin) Sun, 05 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.thehour.com/story/519031/fire-marshal-smoking-in-bed-caused-fatal-fire http://tobacco.org/news/333275.html NORWALK-- The 62-year-old victim of a fatal blaze at a Maple Street apartment accidentally set the fire when she was smoking in bed, according to Norwalk Fire Marshal Glenn Iannacone. Judy O'Brien, who succumbed to her injuries Wednesday, lit her bed on fire while smoking, and the flames quickly spread, as the tubes to her oxygen tank melted, and the oxygen accelerated the fire, Iannacone said. O'Brien's 92-year-old mother, Marjorie Johnson, was also injured when their apartment in the Sheffield Ridge condominium apartment complex caught fire Tuesday at 4:19 a.m. The fourth floor of the 40-unit apartment complex was heavily damaged with smoke. Norwalk Hour news@thehour.com (STEVE KOBAK hour staff writer) Thu, 02 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://blogs.thehour.com/copsandrobbers/?p=226 http://tobacco.org/news/332973.html New Canaan Fire Marshal Fred Baker says discarded cigarette ashes ignited the Jan. 15 blaze that tore through a house on Fawn Lane and left a family of three homeless. The four-bedroom, 2,300-square-foot home at 43 Fawn Lane was completely destroyed in the blaze, and two firefighters with New Canaan Fire Company No. 1 suffered minor injuries. Baker said the fire started after the homeowner disposed of an ashtray full of ciggarette butts into a plastic container on the rear deck, which was positioned adjacent to patio cushions made from foam rubber. "One of the nifty characteristics of foam rubber is it burns really, really, really quickly," he said. Norwalk Hour Mon, 30 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.aldrichart.org/exhibitions/Xu.php http://tobacco.org/news/332831.html Xu Bing, one of China's most acclaimed contemporary artists, is known especially for his exploration of language. In Tobacco Project he furthers that interest, presenting the culture of tobacco as a far-reaching system of signs and symbols. Using tobacco as both subject and object, the exhibition includes Xu Bing's adaptations of historical texts and graphics: a book made of whole tobacco leaves and printed with an early-seventeenth-century account of Jamestown, Virginia; a poem composed from historical tobacco brand names and printed on cigarette paper; and Chinese cigarettes printed with selections from Quotations from Chairman Mao Tse-Tung (the "Little Red Book"). Tobacco engages Xu Bing on many levels simultaneously, allowing him to raise questions, make new discoveries, and expand the viewers' awareness. Above all, he sees it as a medium of cross-cultural exchange—one that first linked Virginia and the American colonies to Europe and other parts of the world in the age of discovery and which continues to provide a connective thread in the age of globalism. Tobacco engages Xu Bing on many levels simultaneously, allowing him to raise questions, make new discoveries, and expand the viewers' awareness. Above all, he sees it as a medium of cross-cultural exchange—one that first linked Virginia and the American colonies to Europe and other parts of the world in the age of discovery and which continues to provide a connective thread in the age of globalism. In addition, he appreciates tobacco's unique formal properties. Tobacco Project appeals to the sense of smell as well as sight, and Xu Bing is conscious of permeating the gallery with the rich, sweet odor of tobacco. . . . Tobacco Project contains elements of sociology, history, politics, and personal narrative, but ultimately it is an artist's take on tobacco—a subject that fascinates Xu Bing for its history of innovation as much as for its exploitation and self-contradiction. The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum Sun, 29 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://artinfo.com/news/story/758068/xu-bing-on-his-plans-to-light-a-giant-cigarette-at-the-aldrich-museum-even-though-he-doesnt-smoke http://tobacco.org/news/332830.html At the Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum in Ridgefield, Connecticut, Chinese artist Xu Bing is showing some highly addictive work. His installation, called “Tobacco Project,” uses the eponymous poisonous leaf as its muse and medium, turning the material into maps, books, and printed poems that confront the omnipresent ills of a nicotine-dependent culture. At the exhibition’s opening this coming Sunday, January 29, Xu will light a 42-foot-long cigarette for his piece “Traveling Down the River.” The sculpture will slowly burn on top of a replica of a famous Chinese scroll painting by Song dynasty artist Zhang Zeduan, commenting on the relentless spread of smoking across China: studies have shown that the country has the largest number of smoking-related deaths in the world, yet two thirds of Chinese people think smoking does little or no harm to their health. In this Q&A, BLOUIN ARTINFO asked Xu Bing what made him choose tobacco as a medium, and what cigarettes mean to him. He also explained his own personal history with tobacco. . . . l issues. Why did you choose cigarettes as the dominant medium for the show? In 1999 I visited Duke University to give a lecture. When I entered Durham I was immediately aware of the scent of tobacco in the air. Friends explained to me that the Duke family was built on a tobacco fortune, and thus Durham had come to be called “Tobacco City.” Moreover, because the Duke University School of Medicine excelled in treating cancer, Durham has also come to be known as the “City of Medicine.” A multifaceted connection exists there between tobacco and cultural history. . . . Since the initial show at Duke, I went on to expand the show to the Shanghai Gallery of Art in 2004 — there is a deep historical connection between Shanghai and Durham as a result of the tobacco trade that flourished at the beginning of the 20th century — and then to the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in Richmond in 2011, where collectors Carolyn Hsu-Balcer — whose family has a long-standing connection to tobacco — and her husband, René Balcer, encouraged me to pursue the history of tobacco in Richmond. The Aldrich contemporary art museum in Ridgefield will be the project’s only venue in the New York area. . . . When I treat tobacco as a material and come into close contact with it, I realize that it should not be the object of further subjective judgment. It has already taken on the burden of too much social significance. I don't want my work to function as little more than a contribution to the body of tobacco-related propaganda. There is no reason for me to spend my energy saying something that everyone already knows. By viewing tobacco as something neutral, by returning to its innate qualities, I am simply engaging the material in a discussion, in an exchange. If the material is approached with a sense of moral or ethical judgment, then its true aspect will never be visible. ArtInfo China Sun, 29 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.courant.com/business/connecticut-insurance/hc-crop-insurance-20120129,0,3833354.story http://tobacco.org/news/332791.html Connecticut, however, is a highly unusual market for farm insurance because it's dominated by a single, high-end crop, which accounts for over half of premiums and claims in a typical year. In 2009, insurance claims on ruined tobacco fields totaled $12.3 million, compared with only $2.5 million in tobacco claims so far for 2011. Farmers will continue to receive insurance payments this winter as tobacco sales are finalized, but the total payout won't be near that of 2009, according to those in the business. "We had tobacco that year that was literally drowned out because the fields just got too wet in late June and early July . . . and then blue mold came in behind that because it's favored by wet, cold conditions," said James Putnam, executive vice president at the Enfield office of Farm Credit East, ACA, a provider of crop insurance in the Northeast. Some tobacco farmers in Massachusetts gave up and plowed their fields under in 2009. At the time, Enfield tobacco farmer Steve Jarmoc told The Courant it was more profitable for some farmers to plant potatoes that year. Connecticut grows two kinds. Shade tobacco is grown beneath cloth canopies and broadleaf grows in stalks. Hartford Courant msturdevant@courant.com (MATTHEW STURDEVANT) Sun, 29 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.rep-am.com/news/local/doc4f236a79aad9b622265951.txt http://tobacco.org/news/332790.html NAUGATUCK -- Acting Fire Marshal Robert Weaver determined a Thursday explosion in a recreational vehicle on Lines Hill Road Extension was an accident caused when the man inside incorrectly hooked up a propane heater and then lit a cigarette. Michael Engler, 53, who was living in the camper at 19 Lines Hill Road Extension, sustained second-degree burns to his face and second- and third-degree burns to his hands as he tried to beat out the fire, Weaver said. He is recovering in stable condition at Bridgeport Hospital. Waterbury Republican-American Sat, 28 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2091912/If-men-Young-GOP-women-cigars-spittoons-endless-rounds-poker-enjoy-low-key-smoker-doorstep-WWII.html?ITO=1490 http://tobacco.org/news/332689.html And so, the Young Women's Republican Club of Milford set to have a night like no other in May of 1941, indulging in traditionally male pastimes like cigar smoking, poker playing, and wrestling. The night confused the majority of Milford's male population. Formal entertainment for the night included a striptease, a wrestling match, and several Vaudeville musical numbers. The article, called Life Goes to a Women's Smoker, originally appeared in a June 1941 issue of LIFE magazine and examined the then unfamiliar concept of women exploring the carefree social gathering. Women donned flesh-coloured boxing suits that they stuffed comically with fabric to over-emphasise their muscles. Bushels of fake hair topped their heads, and the young fighting Republicans were also moustachioed. The women proved they were not tobacco shy - throughout the smoker, they consumed 20 cartons of cigarettes, four dozen tobacco pipes, and 30 cigars. The Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday Thu, 26 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.courant.com/health/connecticut/hc-connecticut-tobacco-0120-20120119,0,2627051.story?track=rss http://tobacco.org/news/332365.html Connecticut received an "F" for spending only a fraction of its $500 million tobacco revenues on smoking prevention and control and an "F" for minimal coverage of smoke cessation programs. But the average sales tax of $3.40 per cigarette pack earned the state an "A," and Connecticut laws restricting smoking in public places received a "C." Hartford Courant bweir@courant.com (WILLIAM WEIR The Hartford Courant) Thu, 19 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://fairfield.patch.com/articles/owner-of-fairfield-hookah-lounge-arrested http://tobacco.org/news/332338.html Casablanca Hookah Lounge on the Post Road was shut down Monday due to fire code violations, among other things. The owner was arrested on Wednesday after attempting to break in to the lounge, police said. Patch.org caitlin.mazzola@patch.com (Caitlin Mazzola) Thu, 19 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.wfsb.com/story/16480470/new-haven-considers-smoking-ban-in-hud-housing http://tobacco.org/news/331798.html New Haven health officials are looking into banning smoking in all Housing Authority buildings including inside the apartments. "If I choose to smoke in my own apartment, why not? I pay my bills there and I pay my rent there," Zultowski said. Health officials believe non-smoking apartments would prevent second hand smoke from making its way into non-smoking apartments and common areas. WFSB Mon, 09 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.yaledailynews.com/news/2012/jan/09/care-offers-smokers-500-to-quit/ http://tobacco.org/news/331726.html New Haven citizens who pledge not to smoke for a month may receive $500 from a new citywide campaign. The Yale School of Public Health’s Community Alliance for Research and Engagement (CARE) is organizing this year’s Quit and Win campaign ­— an anti-smoking program in which selected participants are awarded a prize for successfully quitting smoking. In its second year, the contest began Dec. 19 and will end the first week in February. “Although Quit and Win runs only for a month, the ultimate goal of the program is to make people stop smoking completely,” Naa Sackey, CARE neighborhood program assistant, said. “We hope that the financial incentive and health information provides them with self-empowerment and awareness, to motivate them to extend the time frame [of quitting] themselves.” Yale Daily News Mon, 09 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.newhavenindependent.org/index.php/archives/entry/despite_anti-smoking_trend_popeye_keeps_puffing/id_43160 http://tobacco.org/news/331610.html Amid a national movement towards smoke-free public housing, New Haven's health director is preparing to motivate landlords to ban butts. Renter Clarence "Popeye" Dixon said no one should be able tell him what to do in his own home. . . . Karen DuBois-Walton, head of New Haven's housing authority, said she's aware of the trend but hasn't begun to explore the notion of banning cigarettes in the authorities apartments throughout the city. "I want to promote healthy living and also protect people's individual rights," she said. She said she plans to "look at the issue" and that no policy change will be made without extensive input from housing authority tenants. Smoking is banned in public housing in Milford, according to Pat Checko, chairperson of Mobilize Against Tobacco for Children's Health. She said non-smoking plans are also in place in Bristol, Newington and Norwalk, and smoking is banned in public housing in Boston, Seattle, and all of Maine. Checko said MATCH is looking to work with New Haven's housing authority to create non-smoking policy here. . . . One of those benefits is cost reduction, Checko said. "It costs eight times more to turn over an apartment from someone who has been a heavy smoker than from someone who's never smoked," she said. "You may actually even see yellow walls from all the tars and nicotines." While it's important to look at private housing, public housing is the front line of the battle, Garcia said. "A lot of the hard-core smoking population lives in public housing." New Haven Independent Fri, 06 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.acorn-online.com/joomla15/eastoncourier/news/localnews/109953-connecticut-ranks-last-in-nation-for-smoking-prevention-programs-report.html http://tobacco.org/news/331106.html Connecticut is tied for last in the nation in funding programs to prevent kids from smoking and help smokers quit, according to a national report released recently by a coalition of public health organizations. Connecticut is one of five states that have budgeted zero state funds for tobacco prevention programs this year. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend that Connecticut spend $43.9 million a year on tobacco prevention. Other key findings for Connecticut include: • Connecticut this year will collect $509 million in revenue from the 1998 tobacco settlement and tobacco taxes, but will spend none of it on tobacco prevention programs. • Since 2009, Connecticut has cut state funding for tobacco prevention from $7.4 million to zero. • The tobacco companies spend $98.4 million a year to market their products in Connecticut. Acorn Press Wed, 14 Dec 2011 05:00:00 GMT