THE TACTICS OF INTIMIDATION

San Diego Smoke Screen

Philip Morris may regret its decision to sponsor the host committee for the GOP convention in San Diego this summer. A coalition of anti-smoking activists, led by the American Lung Association, is gearing up for an all-out guerrilla war against the tobacco giant. Wherever Philip Morris shows up, the coalition will follow with it's "say no to tobacco dough" message. Among the plans: a roving billboard flashing a count of yearly cigarette-related deaths, noisy pickets at the tobacco execs' hotel and a "Send the Marlboro Man Packing" campaign. "We're going to be a constant nuisance," says the ALA's Debra Kelley. Philip Morris has no plans to pull out. "We've been a sponsor of the host committees for these conventions since 1972, says a spokesman.