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May 2003
Dateline- Sudbury, Ontario
The answer came in Wednesday's Sudbury Star. CABR are going to court to challenge Sudbury's anti-smoking by-law. Our hopes and prayers are with these true heroes of Canada. The thing that struck me odd about the Sudbury situation is why they are so worried about second-hand smoke, when Sudbury contains the world's largest nickel mine. Sudbury is also facing the possibility of a strike at Inco (International Nickel). This is a great time to do a number on the hospitality industry. Dateline-Waterloo, Ontario
A few months ago I was interviewed by a radio station in Waterloo, Ontario over the proposal for a workplace smoking ban. I expressed shock to the interviewer that Waterloo didn't already have a workplace smoking ban. The interviewer was very sympathetic to smokers rights-which was even more surprising. He was a non-smoker. But even more shocking still was Waterloo City Council fearing a voter backlash just voted down a proposal to ban smoking in workplaces and legions, according to Wednesday's Waterloo Record. I can't begin to describe to the readers of Forces Canada how surprised I am at this development. Years before the smoking ban movement got going in Canada, Waterloo was at the forefront. Years ago Forces Canada was reporting on the devastation the hospitality industry in Waterloo suffered from the smoking ban. Their world-renowned Octoberfest closed years ago because of the smoking ban. Just the other day I reported that Waterloo's Marching Band was in serious trouble because of the charity bingo they relied on for financing was devastated by the smoking ban. Waterloo obviously didn't care how many jobs were lost or how many businesses destroyed, or how many kids had dreams dashed. This was all just "Collateral Damage" sacrifised to the Agenda. Is it possible a backlash has finally emerged in Waterloo? The anti-smoking nuts loved to remind us that the schnooks on City Council who pushed this idiocy through were all re-elected. Why are they all of a sudden getting cold feet now? Some anti-smoking nut from something called the Ontario Campaign for Action on Tobacco, expressed his disappointment to the Waterloo Record: "I've always been fascinated by how Waterloo, as the trend setter in the entire province, chose to take on the most controversial area, bars and restaurants first, and not do workplaces first." I'm kinda fascinated too that Waterloo may well be the beginning of the backlash to lifestyle management. Dateline-Belleville, Ontario
City Hotel's owner Sylvia Paz detailed her losses to the Intelligencer. Overall business down 50%.Beer sales went from 110 cases a month ago to 58 cases. Business went from $700 to $250 a day. At Sneaky Pete's business is down 40%. At the Dugout North business is down 60-70%. At the other Dugout location, which appeals to the lunch and dinner crowd, business is ONLY down 25%. All were quoted as saying that if the smoking ban was not lifted they would soon be forced to close. No kidding. They all wondered where all the anti-smoking loudmouths were who claimed they wouldn't patronize establishments because of smoking, now that smoking has been banned. We kinda wonder that too. Dateline- Vancouver, B.C.
The Vancouver Province is reporting on a multi-million dollar lawsuit filed by 1,200 Tl'azt'en First Nations people who live in North-Central, B.C-north of Fort St. James. The Tl'azt'en are alleging that beginning in the 1950s,good old lovable Cominco, who is so concerned with everyone's health, dumped tons of mercury into their water and fishing grounds. The Tl'azt'en are alleging that due to Mercury poisoning they have suffered epidemic rates of: cancer, lupus, kidney disease, birth deformities, and crippled limbs. Our hopes and prayers are with the Tl'azt'en First Nations People in their suit against the sanctimonious hypocrites at Cominco. Dateline Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario
Waterloo Region's director of environmental health, Brian Hatton told The Record:" It doesn't make any sense to me." This ain't brain surgery -- if people can't have a cigarette they're not likely to hang around a bar. Denial is not a river in Egypt. Its spin in Waterloo. Also from Waterloo comes more collateral damage from smoking bans. The latest victim is the Dutch Boy Drum and Bugle Corp. This involves 50 kids between the ages of 12-21.The Corp relied on charity bingo revenues. Since the smoking ban was imposed two years ago, the Corps revenue decreased to $40,000 from $120,000.The Corp disappointed 50 kids by having to cancel its appearance in the world championship in Orlando, Florida. Membership used to be free in the Corps. Now there is a $900 charge per kid for membership. How many poor and middle-class parents do you think are out there who can come up with a $900 fee per kid? The list of victims of smoking bans just keeps getting longer and longer. I just hope all the anti-smoking nuts are proud of themselves for all the kids they manage to disappoint, for all the jobs and businesses lost. The lists just keep getting longer. Dateline-Toronto, Ontario
So what would the anti-smoking nuts do when their tantrum and high profile resignation draws yawns from newsrooms coast to coast? Take out a full page ad in the Grope and Flail. 30 of these groups including: the Canadian Lung Association (don't buy Easter Seals-your money goes to support the anti-smoking nuts), Cancer Care Ontario, the Canadian Nurses Association etc., etc., criticized Annie for " not implementing a single new regulation under the tobacco act." The usual (YAWWWNNN) Light and Mild strum and drang. Bitching about having their budget cut. (Double yawn). And most devastating of all, instead of blaming smoking on a vast Tobacco Company Conspiracy ,Annie et al, places the "entire responsibility on individual rather than corporate behavior." Well. The Grope and Flail after accepting a multi-thousand dollar ad thought so much of this that they actually put the story on page 8. Even the usually bombastic Grope and Flail " Science" reporter Andre Picard seemed bored, and just going through the motions. One bit of good news emerged from the Grope and Flail's account: in addition to the 4 pain in the asses who resigned, Gar Mahood of something called" The Non-Smokers Rights Association" -- Canada's answer to the Taliban Vice and Virtue Committee-was kicked off Annie's panel. Stick to your guns, Annie. Dateline-Winnipeg, Manitoba
Lets face it Today's N.D.P. needs the cash. It promised HUGE RAISES to the likes of Winnipeg's Health Science Center, whose record of accomplishment ranges from being ranked WORST IN CANADA in every single McLean's Magazine ranking to being the subject of the longest running inquiry in Canadian history into the" PREVENTABLE DEATHS of 12 babies." Imagine the raises the Health Sciences Center would command if they actually did something right? Once again I urge all Manitoba smokers to vote Conservative on June 3. Dateline Peel, Ontario
As to be expected Physicians for a Smoker Free Canada -- who have done such a magnificent job controlling SARS in Toronto -- immediately denounced the decision. The usual lies about the health of workers put at risk, blah, blah, blah. Lets hope this common sense spreads in Ontario and the rest of Canada. Dateline Sudbury, Ontario
Dateline Ottawa, Ontario
Also in Ottawa the first hints about the Liberals new pot strategy were leaked to the Grope and Flail. This is beyond belief. Imagine Health Minister, and "OCCASIONAL SMOKER" Annie Get Your Gun McLellan teaming up with MADD to "de-normalize" any kind of smoking. (MADD stands for Mothers Against Drunk Drivers). This gets better. Annie and MADD are putting together a $240 million dollar advertising campaign warning kids about smoking pot and cigarettes. Annie and MADD is the most joyless union since the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. For you historical illiterates out there, the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact was the Hitler-Stalin friendship pact of 1939 that started WWII. I'm sure the kids of Canada are holding their breath for "Reefer Madness II" or "Here is your brain on drugs II." If this accomplishes what Ottawa's $480 million on "Tobacco Control" accomplished, expect teen drug use to soar. This is a guaranteed laughingstock. Contrary to initial media reports, Ottawa is not "decriminalizing" marijuana-they are merely lowering the penalty for possession to $100-to appease the rich who vote Liberal. In a sense they are in fact re-criminalizing possession. Ontario Courts have recently thrown out possession charges as being unconstitutional. It will be interesting to see if the Courts rule this latest Liberal lifestyle policing constitutional. Dateline Winnipeg, Manitoba
For those of you who wonder what the Loserpeg City Council could possibly do for an encore after a draconian smoking ban, we have an answer. Ban the Shrine Circus from Winnipeg. The pretext involves animal rights in a city where animals have more rights than smokers-about 30% of the population. There was never one iota of evidence that the circus animals were ever mistreated in any way. Never mind that there was never one iota of evidence about second-hand smoke harming anyone's health either. Who are the losers in the highhanded antics of Loserpeg City Council? For starters the kids who rely on the Shrine Circus to fund special burn units .The Shrine Circus raised $75,000 last year for the treatment of burn victims. One kid that was sent to Boston for special treatment had a bill of one million paid by the Shriners. The other losers in this are poor and middle class families that are deprived of affordable entertainment. I used to take my kids to the Shrine Circus. When I was a kid I used to go to the Shrine Circus. According to the geniuses at Loserpeg City Council, its a much better idea to have kids watching TV or playing video games than going to the Shrine Circus and supporting kids who are burn victims. City council is also planning to ban lawn pesticides even though a succession of Toxicologists testified that they are harmless, and there is NO EVIDENCE to support a ban. Whether it be second-hand smoke, the treatment of circus animals or lawn pesticides-no evidence is required for a political agenda in Loserpeg. In the future the only Circus Winnipeggers will be allowed to see will be City Council meetings. No shortage of clowns there. Also in Loserpeg there has been the odd letter in support in the local papers of exempting the Legions from smoking bans. This is an issue throughout Canada. What is often forgotten is the role the Legions play in fundraising for the Cadets. I am not a neutral by-stander in this. I have one 13 year old son who was just promoted from Cadet to Private in the Army Cadets. My other son is planning to join the Navy Cadets in September. I can attest from personal experience having attended a fund raising meeting about how difficult it is to try to raise money for this vital program and the integral role the Legions play in keeping this program going. In my son's Army Cadet unit about 80% of the kids (including many girls) are Native. Many of the officers and leaders are Native as well. Nothing gives these kids direction, discipline and self-esteem as Cadets. Once again whether it be poor Native kids or kids suffering from burns, that are the big losers in the elites political agendas. If you're a Manitoban and are as outraged as I am at the antics of the N.D.P City Council then I once again suggest you vote Conservative on June 3 and send the Kumbaya gang a real message. Dateline- Montreal, Quebec
Yahoo finance is reporting that Montreal based Rothmans is reporting higher tobacco sales, especially in Ontario and Quebec. The Grope and Flail's Report on Business is reporting that Rothmans has just raised its dividend. Take that for what its worth. Also in Montreal, the CBC is reporting that the city's Transportation Committee wants all cabs to be smoke-free. The rationale supplied by Transportation head Jeremy Searle is because cab drivers might get cancer from second-hand smoke. Cab drivers are fighting the proposal. First of all you can't get cancer from second-hand smoke, second of all, what's wrong with rolling down the window? Dateline-Fredricton,New Brunswick
Dateline- Summerside P.E.I.
There is a certain truth that Canada's war on smokers is a thinly veiled war on the poor. Canada's Fraser Institute calls it "Rich Canada's war on the poor." The proof of this can be seen in Potato-Headville-P.E.I. As I reported before, P.E.I. has gone out of its way to make life miserable for poor smokers-unless you are in jail. The Legions were not granted an exemption as private clubs for smoking bans, nor were they given money to install specially ventilated smoking rooms. The gratitude that P.E.I displays to its ageing heroes who risked their lives for the freedom we all used to take for granted is under whelming. However, according to the Summerside Journal-Pioneer, if you happen to be a member of the Yachting class you need not worry about smoking bans. The Silver Fox Curling and Yacht Club in Summerside P.E.I. will be spending $7,000 to install new smoking rooms. It seems that many of Summerside's plutocracy are smokers-and they can't be inconvenienced -can they? Those with lesser means such as Veterans on the other hand can go to hell in Potato-Headville. Dateline -Midland, Ontario
Dateline-Ottawa, Ontario
A couple of days ago I reported that 4 members of Annie Get Your Gun's (Health Minister Anne McLellan) advisory panel on how to torment Canadian smokers quit because they were told that they could only bore Mrs. McLellan- a self-described "occasional smoker" whatever that is-once a year instead of the previous 6 times a year. According to the Ottawa Citizen we shouldn't crack open the champagne to celebrate just yet. Mrs. McLellan is appointing 4 new pain in the asses to replace the 4 previous pain in the asses in this Liberal Government make-work program for the well-healed. The Liberals spend $480 million a year on grants for the alphabet soup of anti-smoking groups. What is to be done with the unlamented, departed Mary Jane Ashley, a professor of public health at the University of Toronto, (the University of Toronto managed to set a Canadian record losing only $263 million in the stock market last year. No wonder the U of T is trying to mooch money off Imperial Tobacco), Neil Callishaw of Physicians for a Smoker-Free Canada, Heidi Rathjien of the Quebec Coalition for Tobacco Control, and last and least Les (Less) Hagen of Action on Smoking and Health (ASH)? I have a great suggestion for Mrs. McLellan that takes into account a major hobby horse of the Liberal Party . Why not give Less Hagen et al a one way ticket to Angola to clear landmines? Dateline-Roberts Creek. B.C
In a scam that looks like its right out of Guys and Dolls, the Roberts Creek Coast Reporter is reporting that a certain Kenneth Knight has filed a multi-million dollar lawsuit with the avowed intention of bankrupting Imperial Tobacco (B.A.T) over light and mild cigarettes. Mr. Knight just happens to be married to one Heather Mackenzie (one of those broads who goes by her maiden name) of Airspace Action on Smoking and Health-not to be confused with Less Hagen's Action on Smoking and Health. For those of you unaware of Heather, she is one of the shrillest anti-smoking nuts out there. Heather was a former winner of the highly coveted and highly competitive Forces Jack-Ass of the Week Award. Instead of celebrating ,Heather had one of her tantrums-and threatened to sue if her picture was not taken off the Forces site. According to the Coast Reporter, Heather started her anti-smoking crusade because her mother-a heavy smoker-had liver cancer. Never mind that liver cancer is usually associated with heavy drinking not smoking. One good thing has come out of this Torts R Us fiasco (given Canadian law their chance of winning are between a snowballs chance in hell and zero. This ain't Illinois.) is that Heather is under court order to shut up. Heather's husband ,Kenneth Knight was rarely mentioned in the article. It was surprise-surprise-all about Heather. Its a shame that Kenneth Knight( Mr. Heather Mackenzie) can't sue for being pu--- whipped. I'm sure he has a hell of a case. Dateline-The British Medical Journal blockbuster on second-hand smoke-the story the media ignored
"This is just the latest challenge to the conclusions of research funded by the anti-smoking lobby, and of course, it has the puritans in a bit of a panic. You cannot reasonably object to-let alone legislate against-a habit that does no harm to anyone else... "Don't count on evidence or logic to reverse the trend, however. People in the throes of puritan passion...are impervious to such concepts." Tom Oleson, "Plodding platoons of Puritanism" Winnipeg Free Press, May 17,2003 In preparing my commentaries for Forces Canada I read an eclectic variety of newspapers daily. I subscribe to the print edition of the Winnipeg Free Press. I read the online editions of: the Globe and Mail (Grope and Flail), National Post, Winnipeg Sun-and Sun columnists throughout Canada, the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Minneapolis (Red) Star-Tribune, and the Providence Journal (North America's best opinion page). In addition I rely on a handful of heroes who send me stories from across Canada that I try to incorporate into the Forces Canada page. With the exception of Tom Oleson's column in the Free Press there was not a single reference to the British Medical Journal story in the North American media that I monitor. The only references that I have seen in North America came from CBC TV and CNN on the bottom of the TV screen. Lets suppose that the BMJ had found a statistically weak link by tweaking data-does anyone really doubt we would have seen banner headlines in the New York Times, Washington Post, Grope and Flail,etc? The opinion page would have been full of editorials and columns screaming for even more draconian smoking bans. Why the deafening silence and the DOUBLE STANDARD? This is MEDIA BIAS 101. On Friday my inbox was full from supporters e-mailing me the synopsis of the BMJ article. What was the "new ground breaking insight?" Not really very much. The Forces evidence archives contains more studies on this issue than JFK had girlfriends. The only thing really different from the BMJ study from countless studies in the Forces evidence archives is its comprehensiveness. The BMJ study studied the case files of hundreds of thousands of people over a 39 year period-and came up with no link between second-hand smoke and lung cancer and heart disease in non-smokers. The synopsis of the BMJ article is identical to innumerable studies in the Forces evidence archives on heart disease. Second-hand smoke is too diffuse to cause problems. The BMJ study results are identical to a mountain of epidemiology on lung cancer. It is useful to remember that heart disease in non-smokers has 300 documented causes. Lung cancer in non-smokers has 40 known causes. Second-hand smoke has never been proven to be a cause of ANYTHING! The only media coverage that I have seen on the BMJ study besides the aforementioned CNN and CBC has come from Britain and Australia. The spin machine is working overtime to discredit the findings. The main focus has come from the so-called tobacco company financing. London's Daily Telegraph however shows even these links are overblown. In one case its even tangential. The lawyer of one of the researcher defends tobacco companies. The funding the researchers received from" Big Tobacco" has already been wildly exaggerated by the anti-smoking nuts, according to the Telegraph. Research Chemists Littlewood and Fennell put this tobacco funding question in perspective: "The tobacco industry's interest in the basic science and epidemiology of ETS (second-hand smoke) may be a vested interest, but their research should be judged on its own merits-and not suppressed or ignored because the results are politically inconvenient. When scrutiny of research-both during peer review and post publication-is objective and scientific it is valuable." Toxic Toxicology: Placing Scientific Credibility At Risk. The editor of the British Medical Journal said much the same thing in the CBC interview on Friday. It would be a crime against civilization to suppress this ground breaking research because its findings are politically inconvenient. Let us not forget that before the BMJ study the longest most comprehensive study ever undertaken on second-hand smoke and lung cancer-that also found no link-was suppressed by the World Health Organization because the findings were politically inconvenient for the anti-smoking nuts. It is only because of the heroic actions of the Times of London and the Telegraph that the world knows about the attempted suppressed contents of the "World Health Organization Multicenter Case-Control Study Exposure to Environmental Tobacco Smoke and Lung Cancer in Europe.1998 "Be assured that the anti-smoking nuts at the W.H.O.have no links and received no funding from" Big Tobacco." This study and innumerable just like it can be seen in the Forces evidence archive. Dateline-Ottawa, Ontario
Its not often that I have anything nice to say about anyone from the Liberal Party of Canada but on this one I can sympathize with Mrs. McLellan. She obviously had enough of these sanctimonious bores-who talk out of both sides of their mouths. Today Mary-Jane Ashley called smoking an" epidemic." Just yesterday another anti-smoking nut was quoted in the press congratulating themselves for reducing smoking rates to 21%.Smoking rates spiked for many years as a direct result of the antics of the anti-smoking nuts. Even better its not just the Federal Health Minister who is ignoring Less Hagen et al. Not long ago a high profile resignation like this would have been front page news in the Grope and Flail, the Ottawa Citizen, CTV, the National Post and etc.All ignored the story completely. Could it be the media are getting tired of the endless verbiage and lies of the anti-smoking nuts? Only the Ottawa Sun and CBC covered the story. How the mighty pain in the asses have fallen. Dateline-Winnipeg, Manitoba
I received a very nice, complimentry e-mail from a fellow Winnipegger the other day, who raised an important point about the upcoming Provincial election. This fellow was wondering why I urged the smokers of Manitoba to vote Conservative given Stewart Murray's call for a Province wide smoking ban. Its a fair question. There are no good choices in Manitoba or Canada for that matter. It becomes a question of the lesser of evils. Its true that Stewart Murray is a schnook who will say anything trying to appease the plutocracy of Tuxedo and River Heights-that basically run the Province. Its also true that there are some real anti-smoking nuts in the Conservative caucus (Dennis Rocan and John Lowen). However, the Conservative Party's core support in Manitoba comes from the small business community and hospitality industry that would be decimated by a smoking ban. It is my hope that they will talk some sense into Stewart Murray. Premier Gary Doer is personally a moderate on smoking. The problem with the N.D.P is not Doer- its the nuts in the N.D.P. who control policy-and they are kooks. They don't care how many businesses and jobs would be lost with a Province wide ban. To THEM its just" collateral damage" to further their social-engineering scheme. This is in a Province that created 100 jobs last year while Ontario created 213,000. The Liberal Party under Dr. Jon Gerrard wants the whole province to quit smoking. Not only smoking bans, but snake-oil such as patches and Zyban will be paid for out of another cigarette tax. Gerrard's star candidate is Dr. Frederick Ross, the quack who refuses to treat smoking patients. Its not a great choice. But once again I urge Manitoba smokers to hold their nose and vote Conservative on June 3. Dateline Charlottetown, P.E.I
Also in P.E.I. the Charlotte Guardian is once again reporting on allowing prisoners to smoke because of fear of prison riots. Law abiding citizens cannot legally smoke indoors in P.E.I. Now it seems that P.E.I will construct smoking rooms in jails. Veterans who risked their lives for freedom, however can go to hell. And you wonder why I call them "Potato-Heads." Dateline - Prince George, B.C
Irrespective of his reasoning all are glad Mr. Krause voted the way he did. The anti-smoking nuts engaged in their usual whining and bitching to the press. A restaurant owner who just finished spending $28,000 for a smoking room was relieved. So were a lot of smokers in Prince George, B.C. Dateline Orangeville, Ontario
The Bingo operator told the Orangeville Banner that subsequent to the smoking ban: "Our attendance has fallen 15%...We have over 24 clubs and they donate back to the community at least a quarter of a million a year." But it is the heroes at the Orangeville Legion who show the determination
that made them "The Greatest Generation." The Orangeville Legion refused to
admit smoking inspectors into its premises because it was a private club.
The Legion claims to be within its rights, because an Ottawa judge ruled on
behalf of Ottawa Legion 371 that as a Private Club it was exempt from Ottawa's smoking ban. This is the first I have heard of the Ottawa decision.
The Ottawa media does not generally print anything favorable to smokers. It Dateline Winnipeg, Manitoba
Also in Winnipeg, the Free Press afforded me a rare opportunity to speak on behalf of the legions-albeit in a heavily edited letter. Here is how it read in Tuesday's Free Press: Veterans earned right to smoke Irene Zigarliski (Veterans fighting for ill health, letters,May 6) is mistaken on numerous levels. The statement that "second-hand smoke is slowly killing the Canadian people" is a tautological assertion devoid of one iota of evidence. The veterans went to war to stop those using phony health scares to legislate their personal morality. Hitler's quest was for a "Smoke-free Germany...a secure and sanitary utopia." Be assured that without the sacrifice of aging, heroic veterans, the likes of Mayor Glen Murray and Coun. Jenny Gerbasi - who legislate their own morality in private clubs-would be wearing pink triangles and yellow stars in Dachau. This is the gratitude given to aging heroes who risked their lives for freedom? Dateline Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island
In the 1950s there was a terrible B movie about prison riots. The only memorable thing that survived this Ike Age junk was a memorable song by The Coasters. You can imagine my surprise when I saw in the Charlottetown Guardian that soon the only place you can legally light up in P.E.I. will be in jails. The P.E.I. Attorney General told the Charlottetown Guardian that fear of prison riots are behind allowing smoking in jails. The law-abiding citizens of P.E.I. on the other hand can go to hell. Some "Potato-Head" (P.E.I. has two industries: Potatoes and mooching off the rest of Canada) told the Guardian that smoking should be banned in jail because two non-smoking guards have lung problems. There are thousands of causes of lung problems in non-smokers-second-hand smoke ain't one. But why confuse the "Potato-Heads" with facts and evidence? Dateline Kingston, Ontario
That depends on what kind of chicks we're talking about. B.C. Supreme Court Justice Sunni Stromberg-Stein wrote the majority opinion throwing out B.C.'s Province wide ban. Then there is the legal reasoning of Ontario Justice Cheryl Robertson. Here is what Justice Robertson told the Kingston Whig-Standard in denying a preliminary injunction to stop Kingston's smoking ban: Health is more important than a "few" lost sales. No one can dispute the dangerous effects of second-hand smoke. She outlined the evidence of Dr. Ian Gemmill ,Kingston's medical officer of health and the numerous studies he cited. "I prefer the evidence of Dr.Gemmil and find it to be more credible". What evidence is that exactly? If such "EVIDENCE" exists we at Forces - nor anyone else-has ever seen it. Not all Judges in Canada legislate their personal morality on the bench. Judges in places like B.C. Saskatoon, Saskatchewan and Fredrickton, New Brunswick-all threw out smoking bans. The antics of Judge Cheryl Robertson expose the dark side of Canada's affirmative action program. How did someone like this get into law school in the first place? Why did they make this mental midget a Judge? Perhaps Cheryl Robertson should do Canada a favor and go back to baking cookies for Liberal Party fund-raisers. Dateline Penetanguishene,Ontario
A suggestion for Mr. Freitag - file the case in Kingston, Ontario. Judge Cheryl Robertson will be very sympathetic to your "evidence." Dateline-Toronto, Ontario
"A just means is a just end" Immanuel Kant, Critique of Pure Reason Several weeks ago Forces Canada brought you the story of a no-strings attached grant of $150,000 by Imperial Tobacco (B.A.T) to the philosophy department of the University of Toronto for the study of ethics. Naturally Gar Mahood and his Canadian branch of the Taliban Vice and Virtue Committee (Non-Smokers Rights of Canada) were all over the Grope and Flail denouncing the lovers of wisdom for accepting blood-money from liars and killers, blah, blah, blah. You can imagine my surprise when I saw in Wednesday's Grope and Flail that Gar had a poll commissioned that claimed to show that 6 out of 10 Canadians were opposed to the University of Toronto accepting the money. The poll claimed to have polled 2,000 Canadians on the question. I'm guessing but wouldn't a poll that contacted 2,000 people cost in the 6 figures? Why didn't Gar just pass around the hat to anti-smoking nuts R Us and write the University of Toronto a check for $150,000 and skip the poll? They can't exactly plead poverty. The anti-smoking nuts annually receive some 450 MILLION of taxpayer money for their efforts. Personally speaking, I think you would be hard pressed to find 10 people in Canada, never mind 2,000 who know or care that the philosophy department of the University of Toronto received money from Imperial Tobacco. About the same number outside a philosophy department who could discuss Kantian ethics. For those of you who want to try start with "The Critique of Pure Reason". Its one of those 600 page turners you take to the beach. But the point of this sanctimonious posturing was for Gar to get his name in the Grope and Flail denouncing Tobacco Companies as liars and killers. Other than the Grope and Flail the media seems to be tiring of Gar's polemics. Let's take Gar's ranting at face value. What exactly did the Tobacco companies lie about? Lung cancer? Addiction? The whole point of Forces Canada is to stand up for the rights of consenting adults to consume a legal product free of harassment-not to defend "Big Tobacco." But on this one-who is the liar? Gar and the Taliban Vice and Virtue Committee or Big Tobacco? Smoking increases your risk of getting lung cancer. SMOKING DOES NOT CAUSE LUNG CANCER. The Medical textbooks define "CAUSE" as between a 50-100%correlation.Only 3-5%of smokers ever get lung cancer, of which there are 40 CAUSES-and second-hand smoke ain't one. Big Tobacco 1.Gar 0. Gar et al say smoking is "addictive" and Big Tobacco has lied about this for years. "Addiction "has a very specific meaning. Addiction means something that is BOTH habit forming AND intoxicating. Cigarettes are certainly habit forming, but they are not intoxicating. Marijuana is intoxicating without being habit forming. It is only alcohol, heroin and cocaine that are both habit forming AND intoxicating. Cigarettes are in a class like coffee-a mild habit forming stimulant-but not an intoxicant-thus not addictive. These are not hair-splitting distinctions. Addiction carries a connotation meant to stigmatize. In the recent movie Town and Country, Diane Keaton accused Warren Beatty of being addicted to pus**. Its a cute line but its not true. Big Tobacco 2.Gar 0. Perhaps the young lovers of wisdom at the University of Toronto would like to comment on the litany of lies regularly put out by Gar and his ilk. Lies about second-hand smoke. Lies about how smoking bans are great for business. Or the ethics of throwing bleeding people in stretchers and wheelchairs out of a hospital in the freezing cold to have a cigarette in Ontario. How about examining the ethics of all the prize packages at the Ontario Medical Association who took an oath to do no harm? Dateline-New Glasgow. Nova Scotia
Today's Torts R US story is datelined New Glasgow, Nova Scotia, but appeared Thursday in the Halifax Daily News. Several weeks ago, I alerted Forces Canada readers to be on the lookout for the New Glasgow 7. One of Canada's Most Wanted (alert John Walsh and Rose Marie's finest) is on trial for allowing six people to smoke in a pool hall in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia. The defense is actually very clever -and with huge implications for the enforcement of evil laws in Canada. The judges in Canada have a huge existential decision to make-do they want to be remembered by history (Forces is the first draft) as the honorable descendents of Robert Jackson, Earl Warren, Louis Brandeis, or do they want to be remembered as the next Roland Friesler. Earl Warren et al operated on what is called" The fairness principle-IS IT FAIR." Friesler, who was Germany's chief judge, jury and executioner under Hitler, on the other hand was concerned about legality not fairness. He screamed at those who plotted to kill or even criticize Hitler and sentenced ALL to death . Dietrich Bonfoffer, Moltke, The White Rose were essentially put to death for the crime of being Christian. Friesler was at the Wawaneese conference to give legal blessing to the legality of the Holocaust." The laws passed by the elected government of the German people are absolute" is an encapsulation of Friesler's legal thinking. Decency, common sense ,evidence, or any of the other niceties of Civilization never entered into his weltashauning (world view). The principles involved in Nova Scotia are no less fascist. Its about the enforcement of evil laws, where employees are deputized as enforcers. A 21 year old young woman's defense is the by-law as written only applies to proprietors and is unenforceable on employees. The Judge has taken the argument under advisement. He will rule May 26. Dateline Nainaimo, B.C
"As a Vancouver Canuck fan I am sorry my team didn't make it to the conference finals. But if we had to lose, it had to be to a team with an incredible amount of discipline and courage. The Wild have both in spades. Good luck against Anaheim." Dateline Toronto, Ontario
In Universities in the 60s and 70s one of the burning questions was whether Art imitated life or life imitated art. One of the greatest films ever made was "One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest." This prescient mid 70s classic starring Jack Nicholson as Randall and Louise Fletcher as Nurse Rached (both won Academy Awards for their roles) was set in a mental hospital where the anti-smoking agenda was played out on inmates. One inmate who violently objected to the smoke-free policies was given a lobotomy. Jack Nicholson was also given a lobotomy for trying to strangle the anti-smoking Nurse Mildred Rached. For those of you who feel life imitates art there is a story from Tuesday's National Post that is literally right out of One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest. The Pentanguishene Mental Health Center for the criminally insane-the only such facility of its kind in Ontario-has decided inmates should go smoke-free. For those who decide that quitting smoking is the way to go, a prize will be awarded-a fishing trip in Georgian Bay. But wait, this would discriminate against non-smokers-so now everyone can be a winner. Honest I'm not making any of this up. Since the SARS scare its been tough to get Hollywood to make films in Toronto. Some garbage with Richard Gere and Jennifer Lopez has shifted filming from Toronto to Winnipeg. It seems Miss Lopez was worried about SARS. "Catwoman" starring Halle Berry has shifted production from Toronto to Vancouver because Miss Berry is also worried about SARS. Thus I have a great suggestion to preserve Ontario's film industry: Why not a sequel to One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest? The Pentanguishene Mental Health Center would be a perfect location. Sean Penn would be a wonderful choice to play Randall. Penn hasn't been busy since going to Baghdad to support Saddam Hussein. For the role of Nurse Rached I suggest Toronto's very own Toronto Sun columnist Linda Williamson. Mrs Williamson wouldn't have to act. Linda's anti-smoking columns are virtually indistinguishable from Nurse Rached's anti-smoking diatribes. For the role of Pentanguishene Mental Health Spokesman, Don Parle -- who spins out drivel to the media-how about Iraqi Information Minister "Baghdad Bob?" You remember" Baghdad Bob" who daily would tell the world that there were no American tanks in Baghdad? All Baghdad Bob and Linda Williamson would have to do is act naturally. I'll see you on the Dark Side of the Moon. Dateline Yorke,Ontario
Dateline Kingston, Ontario
"If I have more Saturdays like this I'm out of business. That's 30 people that are out of work. I can't take a pounding like this. There's the theory that twice as many non-smokers will come out to the bars once they go smoke-free. Well where are they?" A couple of years ago when I was in Victoria, B.C. the very same question was posed in a newspaper advertisement from a local restaurant who asked where were all those who said the reason they didn't go to restaurants because of smoking. The restaurants in Victoria were ghost towns. Dateline Edmonton, Alberta
What is the difference between de-criminalization and legalization you may ask. Our beloved Prime Minister supplied the answer to a cheering mob at a $500 a plate Liberal fund raiser. Chretien told the cheering well-healed crowd that it was too early to start cheering." Don't start smoking yet", he told the adoring mob, "wait until summer. We are only de-criminalizing marijuana. We are not legalizing it." Huh? Chretien also promised
(threatened) a strategy of propaganda to keep kids away from pot. I'm sure the 2 or 3 kids in Canada who haven't smoked pot are
waiting deep anticipation to see" Reefer Madness." Chretien's tobacco control
strategy was so successful that teen smoking rates have skyrocketed since he Chretien also told the plutocratic Liberals his experience with tobacco." I started smoking when I was very young. I quit at 16 when my father gave me permission to smoke." This is the genius Ontario shoved down the throats of Canadians for the past 10 years. Dateline-Winnipeg, Manitoba
Also in Loserpeg, members of City Council, including the Mayor refused to meet with a convention of Veterans from Manitoba and Northern Ontario outraged over the smoking ban in legions, according to the Winnipeg Sun. The veterans mostly in their 70s and 80s fought the Nazi war machine, while City Council didn't have the guts to face 70-80 year olds. Talk about your profiles in courage. Dateline Winnipeg, Manitoba
"These are the Boys of Pont Hoch. These are the men who took a mountain. These are the heroes who liberated a continent." - Ronald Reagan. There was a banner headline today in the Winnipeg Sun about city council turning down the pleas from veterans for their legions to be exempted from Winnipeg's proposed smoking ban. The banner headline should have read: MAYOR TO VETERANS-DROP DEAD! I personally attended the City Council meeting yesterday to show support for the veterans. I can attest from being there that many of the heart wrenching stories didn't make the papers. The Winnipeg Free Press buried the story in the back pages. The story was front page news in the Winnipeg Sun. The usually anti-smoking Sun devoted an excellent editorial to the Vets "Let them smoke." Even more shocking was the Sun's resident anti-smoking lunatic, columnist Laurie Mustard, who never saw an anti-smoking program he didn't like, sided with the Vets. Laurie Mustard has even advocated outdoor smoking bans. In commenting on the war on smokers in the past few years, one of the
saddest, sickening stories that I have commented on has been the treatment
of the veterans and the Legions. These are old men and women in their 70s
and 80s who are expected to go outside in -40 bellow cold for a cigarette.
Attending the City Council meeting yesterday I was struck by the contrast
between the ageing Vets proudly wearing their medals of heroism, with a couple of twerps at city council. Mayor Glenn Murray is gay. City Councilor The Legions rely on an aging membership who have a beer, play bingo and VLTs to support a wide range of charities, including the Cadets. One Vet testified that the Legion in Brandon, Manitoba is on the verge of closing because of the smoking ban. The Vets through Poppy sales raised hundreds of thousands of dollars so Vets confined to Veterans hospitals would not have to go outside for a cigarette in the freezing cold. They now have smoking rooms. The proudest moment in my 13 year old son's young life was when he was recently promoted to Private from Cadet in the Army Cadets. What is often forgotten is what the Vets fought against. In Victor Klemper's "Witness to History" (Klemper was born and raised a Catholic but was classified as Jewish because he had one Jewish Grandparent) tells about the liberation of Dresden by American soldiers. He contrasts the Allied soldiers who were allowed to smoke with the "Prussians" who were not. Freedom meant having the freedom to smoke. In 1939 Heinrich Himmler banned uniformed police and SS officers from smoking on duty. Also in 1939 the Journal of the American Medical Association reported approvingly of Herman Goering's decree barring soldiers from smoking on the streets, on marches, and on brief off-duty periods. Shouldn't we be treating our Veterans better than Hitler treated his? Dateline Ottawa, Ontario
Dateline Toronto, Ontario
Dateline Winnipeg, Manitoba
The N.D.P was elected to "fix" health care. Have you been to a hospital lately? Have you seen any improvement or have you seen bleeding people in wheelchairs, on stretchers thrown out in -50 bellow for a cigarette. The longest running inquiry in Canadian history, found Winnipeg's Health Sciences Center caused the" Preventable Deaths" of 12 babies. Nurses testified they wished they warned parents "to take their babies AND RUN." There was testimony that these babies were treated like glorified laboratory animals and sacrificed to" the learning curve." What did the N.D.P. do about the endless circus at Manitoba's largest health facility, the Health Sciences Center-which was ranked WORST IN CANADA EVERY YEAR for the past 15 years in the McLean's Magazine Survey? They raised cigarette taxes to give THEM ALL A BIG RAISE. According to Statistics Canada Ontario created 213,000 jobs last year. Manitoba created 100.A province wide smoking ban will cause the loss of thousands of jobs and hundreds of businesses. If you have had enough then please vote Conservative on June 3.The Liberal Party of Manitoba has as its candidate Dr. Frederick Ross, the quack who cut off treatment of smokers. A correspondent wanted me to make a special plea to Native voters who are heavy N.D.P voters. The correspondent wrote to me of private conversations he had with many pushing smoking bans. This is done for racist motives. A smoking ban is a convenient pretext to exclude Natives-who are heavy smokers. One smoking ban proponent said a smoking ban was a "great way to get rid of the riff-raff" Natives). If smokers of Manitoba vote N.D.P on June 3 its a forgone conclusion there will be a Province wide smoking ban. Dateline Halifax, Nova Scotia
C.P. quoted Premier John Hamm who presides over this lunatic asylum is finally saying something reasonable. Hamm said there were no shortage of smokers who would readily take the job as a casino dealer. No kidding. Dateline Kingston, Ontario
Dateline Calgary, Alberta
Joke #1-Two men are at the Calgary Airport, one is wearing a Stetson. The guy wearing the Stetson says: "I'd never set foot in the plague-ridden city of Toronto, even if it was the last fu----- city on the planet. I hope they all die and rot in hell." Fellow passenger: "So you're worried about contracting SARS?" The guy in the Stetson: "SARS? What's SARS?" Joke #2 Calgary Sun columnist Bill Kauffman. The ink was barely dry on Bill Kaufman's previous column about second-hand smoke causing heart attacks, now Bill is championing the legalization of marijuana. In recent days I've had quite a few phone calls and e-mails on the topic of why the loudest anti-smoking nuts are so quick to push for marijuana legalization or as the Liberals call it "decriminalization." (de-facto legalization where the rich who smoke it will not be charged, but the poor who sell it will be). One correspondent pointed out the hypocrisy of the anti-smoking nuts. How can they be so pro-pot when it contains 10-20 times the amount of tar and carcinogens as cigarettes? The simple answer is rich people smoke pot and poor people smoke cigarettes. A loyal Forces Canada reader sent me e-mail correspondence he had with Bill Kauffman. The surprising thing about it was that such a complete imbecile could have a newspaper column in a major city. Kauffman defends his strident cigarette diatribes on the grounds that the IARC (a subsidiary of the World Health Organization) said that there was a 20-30% increased chance of getting lung cancer from second-hand smoke. Perhaps the intellectually challenged Mr.Kauffman should go back to watching Sesame Street. Today's lesson is brought to you by the number 2. In epidemiology anything under the number 2 does not register as a risk. The conventional epidemiological risk level from getting lung cancer from second-hand smoke is 1.15-a snowball's chance in hell. What the IARC did was take 50 existing studies-ignore over 50 other epidemiological studies that didn't fit its agenda-and voila- a 1.50 risk of getting lung cancer from second-hand smoke. To the geniuses like Bill Kaufman a 30% increased risk. Never mind ventilation which will completely eliminate any risk, anything under the number 2 does not even register. I don't think Bill Kaufman will be joining mensa anytime soon. Also on the marijuana question we get the latest column from Canada's answer to Nurse Rached --Toronto Sun columnist Linda Williamson. A tireless crusader on the evils of tobacco, a gleeful proponent of punishment for sinners whether it be increased tobacco taxes or more smoking bans -- Canada's very own answer to Carrie Nation admits she tokes. Linda Williamson (AKA Nurse Mildred Rached/Carrie Nation) tells of how the haute bourgeois at one of her parties toked up. Linda never said whether she inhaled, but pot is bad, even if she tokes. At least Linda has the balls to admit that she is a toker. Bill Kaufman didn't have the balls to admit that he does. Both look like they've had a few too many munchies. Don't they know about the health problems of obesity, or that pot has 10-20 times the levels of tar and carcinogens of cigarettes? The Sun media just put out a poll that showed 82%of Canadians want pot laws in Canada liberalized. When asked about this question by the media, in my capacity as President of Forces Canada, I have stayed neutral. Forces Canada's mandate is about the rights of consenting adults to consume a legal product free of harassment. < Back To "I read the news..." > |
TOBACCO
NEWS FROM CANADA
May
30 - In recent Forces Canada commentaries I have informed readers about a group
of people whom I consider heroes in Sudbury, Ontario. The group is
called "Citizens Advocating Bylaw Reform" or CABR. These Freedom Fighters have made
themselves a real pain in the ass to those who have imposed smoking bans in
Sudbury. Their first action was to have the Sudbury Health Authority
charged, convicted, and fined for breaking their own designed anti-smoking
by-laws. Next they went successfully after the City of Sudbury and had the
city charged convicted and fined $1,000 for breaking its own by-laws. What
could CABR possibly do for an encore?