Tobacco Companies Vs. Basic Respect For Human Life
I was just reading an article in the Raleigh News and Observer about tobacco companies. Recently, they lost in court against the federal government, and a ruling that prohibited the sales of cigarettes that are advertised as "low-tar" or "light" was placed against them. Now, these cigarette companies are trying to have that ruling put on hold pending their appeal. Here the story.
It's a fascinating article, really. There is an industry in the US that sells products that kill people. It's not like the gun argument (i.e. people, not guns, kill people). Here, a product is packed full of ingredients that are known carcinogens, ingredients that hook people and then end their lives, the last days spent gasping desperately for air. There is a distinct lack of morality here, a lack of concern about humanity, for this industry sells cancer. It sells lung disease, in little tube-shaped pieces. This lack of morality is demonstrated so well in this situation.
The companies against which the ruling was placed don't want to have to abide by it--yet. They actually point out their reasons as being that they would lose millions of money by repackaging their cancer sticks honestly. They'd have to remove the advertising lies about safe cigarettes, and since there are millions of packs of cigarettes out there with this false advertising, it would cost them large sums of money. The audacity! The ruling stated that these companies violated racketeering laws, that they misled the public about the dangers of smoking for decades, and yet they want this ruling to be put on the back burner for awhile, at least until maybe they can sell as much of their lies as possible.
By this strategy, the Mob could ask judges who convict their members of racketeering to just put those rulings on hold until maybe they embezzle or laundry a little more money. Or maybe Enron could have asked the judge to hold on, don't make that judgment yet, we need to cook the books a little more. Basically, this industry is asking that despite breaking the law for several generations, they want to continue to do just that, regardless of a ruling against them, until they can do some damage control and sell off all the cartons of light cigarettes they have stockpiled.
Some people might be tempted to argue that people should know better, that they should know that light or low-tar cigs aren't any safer. I'm here to tell you that there are a lot of people, generally speaking, who aren't terribly bright, aren't terribly informed, or are a lethal combination of both. Sometimes, after an encounter with someone, I step back and wonder just how we made it to the moon. Then you throw in some clever if deceptive marketing, and the next thing you know, people honestly believe stuff the cigarette companies say about their products.
I really like this quote: "Once forced to make these public statements, defendants will be effectively unable to take them back, even if their anticipated appeal is successful," was what the tobacco industry had to say about the judge's order that they publicly admit that their product kills folks. Even more astonishing is that they really expect that their appeal (i.e. ruling whether or not tobacco is dangerous, and hence whether or not they've been deceiving the public) to be successful. In other words, they don't want to just say what nearly everyone knows to some extent, that tobacco products are deadly.
I think a quote from the judge herself sums up my point nicely: "Kessler wrote that the tobacco companies "have marketed and sold their lethal product with zeal, with deception, with a single-minded focus on their financial success, and without regard for the human tragedy or social costs that success exacted."' Tobacco companies don't care that hundreds of thousands of people, if not millions, die each year from their products, that our health system is filled with people diseased from their products, and society itself is greatly impacted by their product. Even when all the knowledge we have about tobacco is laid out in front of them, even when a judge orders them to take responsibility for the damage they have done, they still try to weasel out of it. They still try to find a way to avoid admitting the carnage they cause. And I find that fascinating.
