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From: jtyd@ur-tut.UUCP (Ty Dibble)
Newsgroups: net.med,net.legal
Subject: Re: AMA anti-smoking drive
Message-ID: <295@ur-tut.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 13-Dec-85 19:26:31 EST
Article-I.D.: ur-tut.295
Posted: Fri Dec 13 19:26:31 1985
Date-Received: Mon, 16-Dec-85 04:49:27 EST
References: <291@ur-tut.UUCP>
Reply-To: jtyd@ur-tut.UUCP (Ty Dibble)
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Organization: Univ. of Rochester Computing Center
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Xref: watmath net.med:2981 net.legal:2629

I don't see any first amendment problems.  It seems to fall within 
the off-limits area of advertising a service which could be described as
"helping people kill themselves" or "may we poison your child".
I am not trying to be inflammatory, only to get you to see a different
perspective. 

Most smokers think that they should be allowed their "pleasure" even though
it can be demonstrated that it is harmful to them.  They feel that it is 
not unfair to make everyone pay for their medical expenses through higher 
insurance costs.  They believe that even though their habit is offensive 
to many and harmful to those who are allergic or who have trouble breathing, 
that their right to harm themselves and make everyone else pay for it 
is somehow more important than everyone elses right to breathe clean air, etc. 

I believe that most smokers would find it appropriate to make it illegal 
to sell harmful drugs to people.  I think they would find it absurd that
it would be legal to advertise such a service.  Unfortuneately they either
do not see that this is the same or if they see it they want to find a
way around it.  

I think the issue of advertising dollars is a red herring.  It made no
particular difference to TV and should not make much difference elsewhere.
The big difference would be in the amount of profit since a great part of
the cost of a pack of cigarettes is advertising.

If the tobacco companies put the money they currently spend on advertising
into medical care for cancer victims, it would show responsible citizenship.
If the money the government pays to tobacco farmers was converted to
medical care over 2-3 years it would give the farmers a chance to change
jobs.  But it still would not cover all the medical costs.