Smoking restrictions a natural societal shift

Smokers kicked to the curb (News, Oct. 4)
About five years ago, I was in Port Angeles, Wash. While there, I observed many signs that said it is unlawful to smoke with 25 feet of a doorway.
My handy metric converter tells me that 25 feet is 7.62 metres.
So, it would seem that our neighbours just to the south of us have been living with much stricter restrictions then we have for quite some time. Although, I am an advocate for civil rights, I am surprised that the B.C. Civil Liberties Association has chosen to weigh in on this issue, as there are no “rights” involved here (human, natural, legal, or otherwise). Lucky Strike cigarettes.
One’s rights end at the end of their nose, i.e. one can not impinge on the rights of others without a very good reason such as traffic laws that prevent mass chaos on the roads, convicted criminals losing their right to freedom, etc.
Smoking is something that very much impinges on the rights of others, yet there is no good reason for smoking.
It is very much detrimental both to the smoker and to society at large, and has no redeeming qualities. Thus there can be no “right” to smoke. Thus restrictions on smoking can not be said to violate civil liberties.
You quote Dani Kong who asks why it is legal to smoke when it is such a problem. I suspect that it is legal because people have been smoking for hundreds of years, and it’s only in the last 50 years or so that we have known how detrimental it is.
It takes time to change society; however, I fully expect that smoking will be outlawed within my lifetime, and increasing restrictions are just a step along the way.
Also, I will point out that there are other things that are legal but which are restricted. You can’t walk down the street with an open bottle of alcohol, for instance.
One last thing, I must ask: why aren’t smokers fined for littering when they throw those dirty disgusting cigarette butts down on the ground?

Hospital works to stub out smoking

Maury Regional Medical Center is renewing efforts to educate the public about smoking hazards as cigarette use continues to be a problem on the hospital’s campus.
Hospital Chief Executive Officer Alan Watson said all properties owned by the hospital have been smoke-free since 2008 — but not all visitors have been obeying the smoking ban. He told county commissioners during the health and environment committee meeting Monday it has been “very difficult” to enforce the ban during the past five years.
“We are seeing some sign blindness among our visitors,” Watson said. “We actually have some visitors leaning up against ‘no smoking’ signs as they are smoking.”
As a result, Watson said the hospital intends to renew efforts to educate the public, volunteers, physicians, nurses, patients and employees about smoking hazards. He said additional signage will be put up on Maury Regional properties and extra efforts will be made to communicate the smoking ban to patients and visitors.
Additionally, Watson said the hospital will be asking security to help enforce the ban in a “non-confrontational manner” and educating the public through more signage and information about smoking. He said the hospital will also be doing more to pick up cigarettes left on the ground.
“It’s not a pretty picture when you come onto our campus and see cigarettes all over the grounds,” he said.
Rita Williams, a spokesperson for the hospital, said the ban will also include the use of e-cigarettes on the hospital’s campus.
“There are some unknowns with the e-cigs,” she said. “They do create a vapor, and it still isn’t certain what is in that vapor.”
Williams said the hospital has done several studies in the local community about the effects of smoking and lung cancer on residents.
“We found lung cancer is a huge problem in this area,” she said. “We see it in our cancer center every day. We are trying to be a leader in the community and to protect people from second-hand smoke.”
Watson said Maury County places “in the worst quartile among more than 2,800 U.S. counties” for lung cancer-related deaths. He said smoking is the largest contributing factor to diagnoses of lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, coronary heart disease, stroke and other cancers.
Watson said it is the hospital’s responsibility to keep all of its patients and visitors protected.
“Our goal is to ensure that everyone who visits one of our facilities is protected from the dangerous effects of tobacco products,” Watson said. “As the regional leader in health care, it is our responsibility to prohibit smoking on the grounds of our facilities in an effort to protect everyone from the dangerous effects of smoking.”
Tennessee’s “Non-Smoker’s Protection Act” went into effect on Oct. 1, 2007, which makes it illegal to smoke in most workplaces including health care facilities and “common-use areas” of buildings.

Cheaper brands keep smokers puffing, data show

Cigarette consumption in the country fell—but only marginally—in the second quarter from a year ago, with an increase in the production of cheap P1 per stick brands helping demand stay afloat despite a hike in sin taxes.
Industry data showed average cigarette consumption at 14.13 sticks a day in the second quarter compared to 14.84 sticks in the same period last year.
Daily consumption was an average 13.53 sticks in the first quarter of the year, but rose back to over 14 percent between April and June as some cigarette firms increased production of the cheaper brands.
Data showed the market share of brands costing P1 per stick rising from 5 percent last year to 30 percent in June this year.
Industry players said the market share of the cheap brands could rise further as the tax on cigarettes increases annually.
Brands selling for P1 a stick include those produced by Mighty Corp. and Philip Morris Fortune Tobacco Corp.
The sin tax reform law, which took effect in January, mandates an annual increase in the excise taxes on cigarette and alcohol products. The rates of increase are specified for this year up to 2017. Afterwards, cigarette tax rates shall rise 4 percent annually to cover inflation.
The new cigarette tax rates effective this year are: P12 per pack for brands with a net retail price of P11.50 and below, and P25 per pack for brands with a net retail price of more than P11.50 per pack.
The objectives of the law are to boost government revenues and to discourage smoking.
Some cigarette firms, however, are trying to prevent a substantial drop in demand by producing cheaper brands.
For 2013, the government projects a collection of P51.6 billion in excise taxes on cigarettes. This is on top of the P6.2 billion in value-added taxes and P6.7 billion in corporate income taxes that it aims to collect from cigarette firms this year.
The excise tax collection target for this year includes P33.9 billion in incremental revenues estimated to come from the tax rate hike.
The incremental revenues targeted for the succeeding years are P42.86 billion for next year, P50.63 billion in 2015, P56.86 billion in 2016, and P64.18 billion in 2017.
Some industry players have expressed concern the higher tax rates could result in a rise in smuggling of cheap foreign-made cigarettes into the country. They said the government would not achieve its revenue goals if smuggling became a problem.

Toronto Public Health recommends wider outdoor smoking ban

In an unguarded moment on Monday, President Barack Obama joked that he was able to successfully quit smoking “because I'm scared of my wife.”
Following a Civil Society Roundtable at the opening day of the United Nations General Assembly meeting, an open mic caught the president questioning U.N. Special Rapporteur Maina Kiai about his smoking habit.
“I hope you quit smoking,” Obama said as the two greeted each other after the event.
Kiai said he still enjoyed a smoke from time-to-time, and asked Obama if he had been able to kick the habit.
“I haven't had a cigarette in 6 years...that's because I'm scared of my wife," Obama told him with a grin.

The commander-in-chief’s nicotine habit has gotten plenty of attention since taking the White House. While pushing for passage of health care reform in 2009, he admitted that he still struggled with cigarettes and has continued to smoke on occasion as president “I've said before that as a former smoker I constantly struggle with it.  Have I fallen off the wagon sometimes?  Yes.  Am I a daily smoker, a constant smoker?  No,” he said at a press conference in 2009. “I don't do it in front of my kids.  I don't do it in front of my family. And, you know, I would say that I am 95 percent cured.  But there are times where...There are times where I mess up.”In an 2012 interview with iVillage, First Lady Michelle Obama said her husband had been motivated by their daughters to successfully quit for good."I know that his ability to ultimately kick the habit was because of the girls, because they're at the age now where you can't hide," Michelle Obama said. "I think that he didn't want to look his girls in the eye and tell them that they shouldn't do something that he was still doing.

Smoking drivers in grave danger

While travelling towards my house one evening recently, I was shocked to see a driver smoking in the car while driving, and throwing the cigarette on the road, totally unconcerned about the danger he was causing to other drivers.

Studies have shown that smoking while driving increases the probability of a crash. The authorities have also instituted a financial penalty of Dh500 and four black points for such careless drivers. Despite this, I was shocked to see drivers smoking at leisure and throwing cigarette butts out on the road. The cigarettes can ignite other flammable substances, which could be disastrous for other vehicles on the road and lead to a great calamity.

According to local news reports, the number of road accident deaths in the first eight months of this year is much higher than the total number of deaths in the previous year and such an alarming fact could also be attributed to the careless attitude of such drivers. Despite the number of campaigns held and punishments instituted, these drivers are adamant that they would not change. Such drivers need to be caught and punished in a way that they would never repeat this offense again.

As a concerned resident, I appeal to all drivers to drive safely without causing harm to yourself and others. Keep your belts buckled, phones at the side and cigarettes inside. After all, everybody aims to reach their destination safe and sound!

UK scientists: quit smoking and you can still save your skin

The good news is that if you do give up, the skin will start to repair itself. The bad news for those who can't or won't give up (such as devoted smoker Kate Moss) is that the later you leave it, the more irreversible the problems.

Smoking affects the entire body and when it is put under stress  -  in this case with a toxic concoction of carbon monoxide, cyanide, tar, formaldehyde and other chemicals  -  the brain diverts vitamins away from your skin to be used elsewhere.

Cigarette manufacturers: FBR accused of introducing complicated FED system

The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has introduced a very complex 'slabs system' of the Federal Excise Duty (FED) for the cigarette manufacturers which has only benefited the multinational companies with stagnation in the incidence of taxes ie sales tax/FED on most popular brands of the product. Tax experts told Business Recorder here on Thursday that the multinational companies and the FBR had deliberately implemented a very complicated excise duty system to charge less amount of FED on popular brands of cigarettes.