MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency
World Medical Association supports growing moves for plain tobacco packaging
The World Medical Association has supported the increasing number of countries planning to introduce plain packaging of tobacco products, including Australia and France. This week it joined the Norwegian Medical Association in supporting proposals to introduce plain packaging in Norway. Read full article
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Disclaimer & comment rulesI am puzzled by the idea that plain packaging is supposed to prevent access by children. By removing branding, it opens the way for pirated products which may actually be more dangerous. The war on tobacco is generated by government funded lobby groups. We also have a war on sugar, we have had a war on fats which is now falling apart, we have a war on salt, also based on junk science, the medical zealots are taking over the world.
Apr 17th, 2015 - 07:23 am - Link - Report abuse 0I don't smoke, never have.
Uruguay are facing multi-billion law suits from the US brand leader, now based in Switzerland.
Apr 17th, 2015 - 12:03 pm - Link - Report abuse 0I think Uruguay would have to do an Argentina and refuse to pay because 3.3M people, every man, woman and child could not afford it.
It is amazing the lengths that tobacco companies are going to to prevent this.
Apr 17th, 2015 - 01:00 pm - Link - Report abuse 0We had Ukraine suing us even though Ukraine doesn't grow tobacco nor sell it to us.
It is working though. The tobacco companies are now publishing very selectively sourced reports showing that consumption in Australia is increasing.
It isn't.
About 3 weeks ago I watch in amazement when someone in the supermarket spent 10 minutes getting the checkout girl to find a cigarette packet that had “the foot”. Seems it was the least offensive packet for this drongo.
@3. I'm curious. It appears that humans have been smoking since around 5000BC. As yet, it does not appear to have killed off the race! Ever noticed what 'doctors' have said about carbohydrates, sugar, salt, fat, cholesterol, calcium, magnesium and potassium. The list of medical conditions if you have a deficiency or an excess is amazing. About 34 of them. I'd like to take what doctors say with a pinch of salt, but salt isn't good for me. But doctors have 'fads'.
Apr 17th, 2015 - 03:59 pm - Link - Report abuse 0Now, can you tell us how long tobacco products have been packaged for? Presumably, smoking completely took off after the tobacco, or other substances, were packaged.
When someone goes to a store to buy a carton of, say, cigarettes, what will they get? I'm sure you know about counterfeits. Will it be something that kills? Far quicker than a pack of cigarettes would. Will the doctors just be standing back?
Thinking back to when people started to whinge about the odour, it was about the same time that women were going to great lengths to alter their hair colour. They stank. I only went out with one once. Never again.
Recent research shows that 'second-hand' smoke has little or no effect. In fact, there is a considerable school of thought that all the various 'protections' that are advised actually have a detrimental effect on, particularly, children. The little darlings are now so molly-coddled that their immune systems don't get a chance to develop.
Now tell us how you feel about freedom and liberty.
The odour of Indian food disgusts me. Eggs make me vomit. Brussel sprouts usually get spat out. Can I have them all banned? What part of your antipathy is based on intelligence and what part on bigotry? Smoking banned in buildings. It's cheaper than proper air-conditioning. Smokers shouldn't stand in entranceways. They should stand out in the rain and the snow where they can freeze and die of something else. You do know that IF you ever eliminate smoking, the tax will just go on something else?
Wow Conq, who knew that you were such a delicate flower?
Apr 18th, 2015 - 04:59 am - Link - Report abuse 0The British Medical Journal just last month stated that there was no increase in illicit tobacco use in Australia due to plain packaging. So unfortunately there won't be any smokers buying counterfeits and getting killed quicker. More's the shame.
Smoking also doesn't help children's immune system to develop. The opposite. You won't prove otherwise. Also children don't possess the ability to consent to having drugs used in their presence.
I love freedom and liberty but I'm not an American so prefer to live in a society where those ideals don't overpower commonsense.
Thankfully my city is now banning smoking in open spaces. Seems people should have the freedom and liberty to not be near smokers.
And as for the lost tax income. I'll suck it up. I mean think about how much money we will save when all those sickly smokers finally die off and stop littering all our footpaths.
Slowly but surely. About to head below 10% of the population. Most of them the dregs and poorly educated part of the population.
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