Post-Smoking Ban Studies Mislead Media & Public
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Kevin Godbee - Dec 3, 2011
- 3 min read
Columbus, Georgia – According to the International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers Association, the news media and general public are being duped into widely reporting and believing a new tactic of many tobacco prohibitionists who are issuing so-called post-smoking ban studies that supposedly show declines in illnesses like heart attacks.
The IPCPR cited studies reported by the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota and the states of North Carolina and Oregon that have been shown to be either false or misleading. The association’s position is based on analyses by Dr. Michael Siegel, a professor of social and behavioral sciences, mass communication and public health and public health advocacy in the Masters of Public Health program in the Department of Community Health Sciences at the Boston University School of Public Health in his blog http://tobaccoanalysis.blogspot.com.
"Although we disagree with Dr. Siegel’s position on smoking bans – he favors them, generally – we agree with his commitment to facts and truth over spin and self-serving rhetoric," said Bill Spann, CEO of the IPCPR which represents more than 2,000 manufacturers, distributors and retailers of premium tobacco products and related accoutrements.
"For example, the Mayo Clinic reported finding a 45 percent reduction in the rate of admissions for heart attacks in Olmsted County, Minnesota. Prohibitionists led the media to believe the decline was directly attributable to the smoking ban. Not likely, according to Dr Siegel. What the Clinic failed to report was that the rate of heart attack admissions for the entire state of Minnesota during the same time period was down 33 percent," said Spann.
"… I believe the Mayo Clinic investigators … deceived the media and the public by failing to disclose the striking decrease in heart attack admission rates in Minnesota as a whole during the study period…. ," said Dr. Siegel.
"Another example of false or misleading reporting was in North Carolina where they reported that a statewide smoking ban had resulted in a 21 percent decline in heart attack admissions, although the actual data showed a 21 percent increase in heart attack admissions among women and a slowing of the overall rate of decline in heart attacks in the state," said Spann referring to Dr. Siegel’s blog.
"Finally, Dr. Siegel refers to the state of Oregon and shows that there was no change in the rate of decline in heart attacks in Oregon during the first year of the implementation of the smoking ban," Spann said.
"The rest of the story is that the data from Oregon do not support the conclusion that the statewide smoking ban led to an immediate and significant decline in heart attacks, as claimed by anti-smoking researchers and groups," Dr. Siegel wrote in his blog.
"The ‘infantalization’ of America is happening right under our noses. Our supposedly representative form of government considers its citizens to be children incapable of making informed decisions. In their minds, our choices need to be made for us by ‘those who know better.’ These people have an agenda with a foregone conclusion, and will not let proven empirical standards interfere with stated dogma. It is out of control and needs to be stopped at the ballot boxes across this great land," Spann said.
Spann suggested that the media and general public should be skeptical of all statistics and epidemiological studies regardless of their source and look beyond the data to determine for themselves if the reports are true and accurately reflect the facts.
"Prohibitionists often find it irresistible to pull numbers out of the air and make wild, unsupportable assumptions in order to promote their objectives of running other people’s lives," said Spann. "Average Americans can stop this; all they need to do is stand up and be heard."
Written by Kevin Godbee
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A first whiff from the tin releases the aromas of shoe leather and hide glue in a base of clay soil with a campfire wafted over it like last night’s beach party. Once it’s been accustomed to oxygen again, subtle hints of sweetness poke through from the Virginias: lemon rind, light milk chocolate, the dregs of a peaty Scotch, and muddled cherry. Old regulars like fresh-sawn oak and tilled earth are there, of course, with distinct notes of truffle, creosote, damp peat, and pine bark mulch. As an aside, I’ve been re-potting my camellias and the similarity of aroma to the ericaceous soil mix is notable; the Katerini really brings the unique depth of its vegetal complexion when supported by the Rustica and afforded more voice in the mix. The smoky Cyprian Latakia, in turn, is backed by equal earthiness from the Rustica, which overall exhibits a profile similar to dark-fired Kentucky; it leans more toward the woody and vegetal end of that spectrum, echoing and amplifying those traits of the other constituents. The tobacco is presented pressed and cut into a couple of thick, hearty flakes in the tin, lightly moist and easily crumbled to prepare—I prefer mine with a bit of drying time. The out-of-this-world tin art for this episode in the series is Major O’Meara smoking a cavalier. In the absence of confirmation, I’m going to hazard a guess he’s of the Ithklur species. The first taste from the light is sweet, with hints of that milk chocolate dancing around the edges. The Virginia leads the smoke through the top of the bowl, and orchestrates it well. Thoroughly smoky with lemony, grassy highlights from the Virginia spectrum, it soon segues into the mid-bowl profile: heartier, smokier, with the flavor leaning to the mildly acrid and tangy tinge that is the campfire-esque signature of English blends. Caution advised, it can turn overly bitter if pushed—this is where one’s sipping technique is required to maintain the fullness of flavor through to the heel. I did tend toward a lot of relights, though it may have as much to do with technique as with the blend. Pacing is also important as the nicotine starts to manifest; though the Rustica’s contribution has been tempered well by the stoving, it can certainly upend an empty stomach. At the end of every bowl, the mouthfeel somehow gets better. The balance of sugars in the tobaccos would seem to be spot-on in this regard. 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Of course they are misleading – but it’s the old mantra of repeat a lie and people will eventually believe it, once that happens, it’s hard to prove that it is wrong.
My wife calls me a cynic. That is because I rarely believe what I am told by someone with an agenda… Paul is exactly right. Repeat the lie enough….
Yeah, I think Paul pretty much nailed it.
This reminds me of the foreign tourist trying to make a point with a non-English speaking local by successively repeating the question over and over again, increasing the volume of his query with each attempt. In the end he’s yelling at the poor local in English who still doesn’t understand what the tourist wants. The tourist is convinced that repetition and volume will eventually triumph over the fact that he’s speaking the wrong language. Eventually the local leaves the ranting tourist, disgusted with the attitude of foreigners in his country. My hope is that enlightened citizenry will eventually walk away in disgust en-mass from the anti’s yelling and finally allow a balance of reason and compromise to prevail. Keep up the good work Kevin & PM – the pendulum will eventually start swinging back.