|
|
|
THE
FORCES NEWSLETTER
FORCES has a newsletter now. To receive it, please enter
your e-mail address in the slot below. |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
May
15, 2006 |
|
|
May 15 -
More frauds, more frauds!
-
Here we go
again with fraudulent statements from the antitobacco industry – of course,
appropriately combined with scare tactics to instigate social hatred against the
smoker, the killer of his own children and non smokers!
The false
representation of evidence this time comes from the Cancer Center of the
University of Minnesota and it is published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers &
Prevention. While we are unable, at the moment, to ascertain how much money (and
from which antitobacco tax-funded program) these people were paid to fabricate this
umpteenth piece of propaganda, we are outraged (and baffled) at the supreme level of
skills reached by the antitobacco industry when presenting useless information
as “science”. And, of course, the media are the un-critical
carriers as usual. To better understand how people are being conned this time, first
please
read the article we are linked to.
Done? Good,
let’s go, then. We must reiterate first that the issue of the NNAL and the NNK is a
good piece of junk information to mislead the public and to stoke the fire
of antismoking hatred. Here are some simple observations that will
help you understand why:
a)
The truth:
4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanone (NNK) is a nitrosamine
unique of tobacco smoke.
b)
The fact:
the metabolites are 4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanol (NNAL)
and its glucuronides (NNAL-O-Gluc and NNAL-N-Gluc). The sum of these metabolites represents NNAL.
c)
Dishonest assumption number 1:
the linear model without threshold, condemned by all honest scientists
because it is scientifically absurd, assumes that if one gram of substance "X" harms
you, then one milligram will still harm you, although 1,000 times less. This is false. If it were true, we would have no medicines but only
poisons, as most medicines are powerful poisons in higher doses. This junky
model, however, has been fully adopted by “public health” and environmentalists
to justify their abuses and to give value to studies that prove nothing.
d)
Dishonest assumption number 2:
the presence of a substance in the body only indicates exposure, and exposure does not imply risk. This delinquent tactic is used
abundantly by antitobacco – for example: cotinine in urines indicates exposure
to passive smoke (implication: danger!). Exposure to passive smoke,
however,
is not proven to be dangerous, so the presence of cotinine, although real, becomes
irrelevant.
e)
Misleading, partial information:
Keeping in mind the facts in (c) and (d), the presence of NNAL read in urines
turns out to be utterly insufficient to represent any danger whatsoever,
but this is not stated in order to scare the readers. Experiments have demonstrated that it takes the
equivalent of actively smoking 40 cigarettes a day for 40 years in a row to increase
cancer rates in lab animals from NNN and NNK, thus NNAL.
This fraud has been already revealed by Steven Milloy and researcher Martha
Perske in 2001, but the antismoking gangsters let it “sit” for a few
years and now they try it once again - however, it
was a fraud then as it is now. In both cases the aim of this
misinformation is to justify intervention programs to
force parents not to expose their children to harmless secondhand tobacco smoke.
The above is
tantamount to criminal behaviour, as it is clearly meant to make people believe
that insignificant amounts of suspected carcinogens (and they will remain
only suspected as long as the etiopathology of cancer continues to be a
scientific mystery) can constitute a danger for the child. That in turn
induces guilt and fear in the parents and sets the judicial stage for the removal
of parental authority from smoking parents on the base of child abuse,
which is exactly the position that antismoking villains are taking today to institute a reign of
terror. Unless solid, political and legal actions are undertaken by all
the liberty forces that are involved against these mobs, this will lead to very,
very ugly consequences. In the meantime let us straighten up the words of
Stephen Hecht, team member of this piece of
disinformation: "The take-home message is, 'Don't worry about smoking around
your kids'", as you are not doing anything immoral or harmful. If
you go outside to smoke because of fear and guilt, however, you will surrender to
abuse and fraud – once again.
|
|
|
Healthism
May 15 -
Socialism Junked - While secondhand smoke has never been proven to be a
hazard to nonsmokers, the political ideology that falls under communism or
socialism has been revealed as a total failure. The cadres,
however, are still active but, as our correspondent from Denmark notes, are now
bossing us around under the banner of health.
Anti-tobacco Death Toll
May 15 -
Actual vs.
virtual death toll - It is now beyond an irritant when one hears the
mendacious and shameless nonsense repeated time and time again by the scurvy
anti-smoking lobby and the British government concerning the fictional numbers
of people who have died from the effects of second hand smoke. When this lobby,
along with our government, is asked to name anyone who has actually
died from it - let alone three people - they are unable to do so.
However, we can name three
people who have already died as a result of smoking bans in the UK. There was
the elderly pensioner - Jim Donachie - who fell against a bar in Dundee when
trying to go outside for a smoke; the nurse - Cheryl Moss - who was murdered at
Hornchurch Hospital when she was forced to go outside to an unsafe area for a
smoke. And lastly, there was the patient at Doncaster Hospital - Philip Hoe -
who accidentally set himself on fire as a result of sneaking outside for a
crafty puff. If there hadn't been smoking bans but instead properly controlled
and properly ventilated interior locations for smokers then all those three
would still be alive now.
Proven deaths in
the UK, to date, from second hand smoke = 0
Proven deaths in
the UK, to date, as a result of smoking bans = 3
Anti-smokers
May 15 -
Banzhaff's lucky colleagues: the ASH Ayotollah stalks prey on his own campus
-
Unstinting
in his holy war against anyone who doesn’t behave, believe, or restrict others
in the way that he sees fit, ASH Ayatollah John Banzhaf has taken to attacking
not only his home campus of George Washington University, but singling out and
terrorizing a particular administrator who isn’t doing what John wants. Working
with Banzhaff – or even within a few square miles of him – must be a real treat!
When will people start standing up to this bullying hot-air bag?
Propaganda
May 15 -
Our servile press, once again -
Experienced
newspaper people know that most readers read only the headline, a few take in
the first paragraph or two, and only a small number make it through the entire
news story. So with all the controversy now brewing over cooked figures and
sensational misrepresentation in the ETS story, here comes Reuters Health with
the following headline: Mortality Rate Would Plunge Without Passive Smoking.
Sends a clear, unequivocal message, doesn’t it? Your smoking neighbour is
responsible for most deaths that occur, is how it’s going to roughly
translate in the minds of the unreflective segments of our society. More fuel
for prohibitionist fire and the brutality that is coming with it. Reuters Health
Services claims its news is “internationally
recognized as unbiased, authoritative, timely and dependable”. Well, the
bias in the headline is clear. Maybe Reuters should instead promote itself as
“claiming a lack of bias, while projecting the authority of powerful interests
that need help to get their message across.” No wonder people have turned to the
blogoshere in the past few years to escape this sort of “disinterested” media.
By the way, readers should take
note of the quote at the end of the article: "A nationwide passive smoking
ban would have a dramatic effect." Expect to see the term “smoking ban”
increasingly replaced with “passive smoking ban”. It’s the new code term for de
facto prohibition.
Cultural Invasion
May 15 -
The horror, the horror… -
A
Canadian moves to Denmark and can’t wait to educate the natives about their
backwardness and slow response time in the anti-smoking Jihad. They didn’t know
what they were missing, but that’s before she arrived and took stock of the
deplorable state of affairs in this forgotten backwater:
“Lars Løkke
Rasmussen, the minister of health and interior affairs, continues to inhale his
daily nic fix, not even ceasing for the recent christening reception of the new
royal heir apparent, little Christian Valdemar Henri John. Despite the four
names, he does have only two lungs, which the government and Grandma seem set on
polluting. The government gave him a pony as a christening gift. I thought a
smoke-free country would have been better.”
Junk Science
May 15 -
Overestimating the obese -
And
speaking of junk science, this one's a beaut. Stoking the "obesity epidemic",
the guys from Harvard Public Health officially decide what we've all known all
along: that people lie on telephone surveys, especially when the honest answers
are "incorrect" or might show them in negative light, according to the current
definitions of negative.
This , for openers, is quite
an admission, since most epidemiology rests on the bedrock (or quicksand) of
questionnaires, and conceding this point should shoot a hole through the heart
of those telephone surveys that ask: "Do you smoke?" But don't hold your
breath. The point about lying will only be applied when results under- estimate
fashionable epidemics or might otherwise undermine the power of the nannies. As
for instance when not enough people are "obese." But take it to Step Two-- as
these guys do: Having suddenly discovered that a lot of people lie, they've, all
by themselves, re-visited the studies that don't show sufficient obesity in the
states, and mathematically adjusted for gigantic amounts of lying. Up to
50%!!
Now imagine if they applied
that same percentage of liars to the question, "Do you smoke?" and the entire
threat of ETS would disappear as those "innocent" "non-smokers" were suddenly
unmasked. |
|
Straightening up Eaters
May 15 -
From Big Tobacco to small sugar cone -
Finally,
the disinfecting sunlight of a public health campaign seems set to end the
decades-long reign of the small-proprietor ice-cream vending industry in
England. In a move to draw attention the industry’s manipulative marketing
tactics (they systematically park their vans near schools), health campaigners
are focussing on the tremendous cost wrought to society by these seemingly
innocuous, mostly ma-and-pa businesses.
“There are millions going into healthy food in schools, yet kids are rushing to
spend their money on food from mobile vans,” says Chris Waterman, the executive
director of the Confederation of Education and Children’s Services Managers .
Think of the
waste. Millions of pounds sterling wasted. Millions. And that’s not just idle
speculation. It’s the considered judgement of the
Executive Director of the Confederation of Education and Children’s Services
Managers.
Those few
industry apologists that remain in the health care sector (one quoted here
actually sounds as if she’s defending ice cream) should weigh their words
carefully or consider changing careers.
May 15 -
Big Mac attack -
Yes,
it's going to be official. The British parliament is about to enact the...er,
not law, just apparently the statement that "There is no NEED for bigger
burgers." Next they'll be prattling that there is no NEED for strappy gold
sandals with 4 inch heels. The declaration is, of course, one more "for the
children" who "aren't old enough to make informed choices." Along with its new
laws on what is and what isn't "anti-social behavior" Tony Blair's UK is on a
Huckabee-like health kick and the article tells us much more than we want to
know about Blair's personal path to physical salvation (climbing more stairs;
drinking water instead of tea.) And soon, we'll presume, drinking that water in
a "smoke-free" pub. Inspiring, isn't it? Doesn't it just make you want to run up
some stairs and chug-a-lug some water? Jolly Old England?
Fight
for Freedom
May 15 -
Germany resists EU over tobacco advertising
- Are the Health Nazis trying to take Berlin? Some members of the German
government are fighting European Union function-creep into the realm of health
legislation within individual member states. That’s the main issue behind
Germany’s resistance to an EU tobacco ad ban directive.
EU Commissioner warns Germany
Germany defies ban
Anti-tobacco
snake oil
May 15 -
New brain-tinkering drug targets smokers: spare us the
“novelty” - Check
out the FDA press release and article links below for news of a “new molecular
entity” (not just new, but “novel”, we’re promised) that’s going through the
approval process for use in smokers. It’s supposed to be a response to the 80
percent failure rate of the last generation of expensive smoking cessation
wonder drugs. This one tinkers you’re your brain neurotransmission.
We think we’ll give it a pass.
Hands off our neurotransmitters, in other words, especially in a context where
the ethical issues surrounding the research and development of new
pharmaceuticals is a hot issue. See, for example, the recent controversies over
clinical trials
,
new revelations about safety of some of the popular
antidepression drugs,
and an almost constant bombardment of disturbing stories about the world of
health-related scientific research, its funding, publication, and politics.
Which is not to say that
progress in the field of pharmaceuticals is unwelcome – as long as it’s real
medical progress, not emotionally-fed social fashion or worse.
As a recent
article in Pharmacy Times
highlighted:
“the term lifestyle drugs
has come on the scene” in recent years with the emergence of a variety
of medications – and even dubious new medical conditions – that occupy a
fuzzy frontier between medicine and social – or self-perception.
Smoking cessation drugs
certainly fall into this murky category.
So why be a media victim and pop
expensive, possibly damaging drugs for the non-existent condition of tobacco
addiction? We say: never mind the illusion that something “novel” can get you to
do what you’re too lazy, undisciplined or indecisive to do yourself. If quitting
smoking is what you want to do, do it the old-fashioned way – which is the most
sure-fire way to date: just do it. And let ‘em tinker with someone else’s brain.
FDA approves novel medication
New kind of drug could increase
number who quit smoking
Redemption
May 15 -
Mea culpa -
John
Stossel is one of the few members of the mainstream media who can read a
scientific study and comment intelligently on its contents. Needless to
say this has made him a controversial figure since he is quick to debunk what
purports to be conventional wisdom.
In his latest book he expresses regret for endorsing the secondhand smoke fraud.
That was before he learned of the con job practiced by agenda-driven
"scientists." Now he knows better and we're all much better served. | |
 |
Monkeys and
instruments
- Instrumentation today is immensely sensitive because of continuous technological
advancements; it may even measure molecules. Clearly instruments have evolved
much faster than people have and, unfortunately, those who push the buttons are still monkeys that confuse molecules with bananas. Keep
in mind that in less than a drop of water, for example, there are
6.0221415 × 1023
molecules, or over 600,000 billions of billions of molecules
(Avogadro’s number). It is therefore quite conceivable that each one of us
contains some molecule (and toxics, mamma mia!) that was in the body of some Egyptian
pharaoh or Julius Caesar. The power and precision of these instruments is
exactly what antismokers and other fear mongers use to con the public into the
perception of danger. With such instrumentation it is always possible to
find some carcinogen in anything you explore – in fact, it is inevitable. |
Poor Avogadro (1776-1856) certainly did not
anticipate that his famous number would be used for junk science. |
|
For a
Fistful of Molecules
- Have you noted that, in the
debate between Norman Kjono and Stanton Glantz last
April 3 the antismoking clown stated that there are 6,000 "toxics" in
passive smoke, while up to a few years ago there were just over 4,000? That’s why – the
instrumentation has been perfected and now it is possible to sound the
alarm For a Few Molecules More! (click here to create the appropriate
[passive smoke]
ambience with Ennio Morricone's music). Does that
mean that we have to stop smoking? Certainly not. It just means that we have to
stop being
gullible monkeys – that is, stop believing the antitobacco propaganda
and fight its agenda with all we've got, at every turn. Let’s light one
up to that!
|
 |
|
|
Behavior
Control
May 15 -
Smoking; child abuse -
On
April 27, KATU in Portand, Oregon, published a news item on its website.
A doctor pushes to make smoking an act of child abuse.
The doctor is Chris Covert-Bowlds,
hailed as "the father of Washington's new sweeping anti-smoking law for
public places." As a resident of Washington state for less than a year,
this is the first time I was made aware of him and his apparently major
role in our "sweeping" smoking restrictions.
Perhaps that's because - as
the article states - he is "is a member of the informal, unorganized and
quiet movement toward making it a criminal act to smoke around kids. "
("Covert" action, so to speak?)
The news item warns us
outright:
"…there is another anti-smoking movement
brewing behind the scenes, (my emphasis) with the potential
to reach much further into people's private lives. The movement is
to make smoking around kids a form of child abuse. The crime would
include smoking while you are pregnant, smoking around kids inside
your home and smoking inside a vehicle with kids inside. "
Of all the deceptive practices used by the
Antismoking Crusaders, I strongly believe this represents the most
treacherous turn in the road yet. This man is a fanatic. He and others
like him have every intention of bending a gullible public to his will.
When you add his underhanded, "covert" methods to the
fact that he has been financially backed by GlaxoSmithKline.
(Scroll down to his letter to the editor of American Family Physician
and read the note at the bottom.); you will fully grasp the implications
of this announcement aimed at voters in a state planning to put its own
smoking law on the ballot next year. I strongly urge readers to take
action. On my
blog about this issue, I have posted a link to a list of Oregon
newspapers, as well as a copy of the letter to the editor I sent to all
of them. It's going to take more than a single "voice" to draw any
attention from the media or the seriously misled public, however.
Especially since:
" Results from a KATU News/Survey USA
poll show that a strong majority of people in our area think smoking
should be considered child abuse, whether it is while pregnant,
while in the car with a kid or inside your home. "
This is no small matter. And the impact
isn't confined to Oregon and Washington. Another quote from the KATU
news item tell us that there are approximately 17 states where smoking
has been "the central issue" in a custody case. Please speak out before
our society is pushed off the cliff into an abyss from which there is no
way to emerge! - Kathleen Leech, a resident of Washington State |
|
|
FORCES INTERNATIONAL (Forces, Inc.) is a
non-profit educational corporation organized under the laws of the
Commonwealth of Virginia, USA. Forces, Inc. has received a
charitable tax exemption under Internal Revenue Code 501(c)3.
Your contribution is tax deductible.
FORCES INTERNATIONAL ©
trademark, logo and original material copyright © 1995-2006 is
property of FORCES INTERNATIONAL unless otherwise indicated.
Original FORCES material may be reprinted or used in any
non-commercial form if proper credit is given to FORCES and original
intent remains intact. All other material remains property of its
creator/owner. | |
|
