Pubdate: 10 December 1998 Source: Shepherd Express (WI) Contact: http://www.shepherd-express.com/ Fax: 276-3312 Copyright: 1998 Alternative Publications Incorporated. Author: Don Wescher TOBACCO COMPANIES ARE GIGANTIC DRUG DEALERS I must express my opposition to Attorney General James Doyle's decision to accept the settlement offered by the tobacco industry. Given the information that has been made public about the effects of tobacco and the activities of these companies, I do not think that they or any other private companies or any investors should make a profit from the selling of tobacco to anyone. Do we not consider drug dealers more heinous than the addicts themselves, and are not tobacco companies (and secondarily their investors) gigantic drug dealers even though they are operating "legally"? Yes, we have the necessary evil of many millions of people already addicted to tobacco so that we must deal with that situation. However, recent commentary on public radio rightly pointed out that teen smoking is linked to the models of adult smoking and therefore they ought not to be considered separately. Thus, I would propose that there ought to be a nonprofit reorganization of the tobacco industry with the goal of hopefully phasing it out altogether eventually. I realize that this is a radical suggestion in these times when money and the free enterprise system are viewed in virtual godlike fashion. However, the alleged productivity and efficiency of our economic system sometimes comes with considerable social costs that private industry has generally not been held accountable for. I was not surprised that Gov. Thompson supported this settlement, given his alliance with business interests. However, this was not a decision that should have been rushed into, regardless of the deadline cleverly stipulated by the tobacco industry to avoid careful consideration and public input. At the very least, I believe that any settlement with the tobacco industry must include much closer monitoring by the government, as proposed by classifying tobacco as an addictive drug to be regulated by the FDA, which has been particularly opposed to the tobacco industry. By comparison note how we deal with marijuana, despite its possible medical uses and other uses in the hemp industry. Don Wescher - --- Checked-by: Rich O'Grady