EVENTUALLY it will be iliegal to smoke or possess tobacco. It’s simply too deadly a drug to be allowed to continue to destroy lives: one in five deaths in Canada is now caused by smoking. It’s also too costly for tax- payers to be spending more than $3.5 billion each year as ov: health care system tries in vain to treat smoking-related diseases. Clearly, if tobacco was - being introduced today in the | _ Marketplace, it would never be approved for distribution or consumption. We simply know too much about the terrible consequences of addiction to the evil weed.. That wasn’: the case way back in the 16th century, when tobacco was Srst intro- duced to Europeans by North American natives. It was Sir Walter Raleigh, the _ ,famous poet and adventurer, “who helped make smoking tobacco fashionable in . England. It is even said that “he took a puff or two before - he went to the scaffold in the ‘year 1618. ‘> By that time, some - Englishmen were already _- lamenting the introduction of ~~ tobacco into their land. In ’ + “1604 King James issued his Counterblast to Tobacco, warning the English people of the “venomous quality” of _ the’drug. 2 “And here’s what the good. mailbox ~ Leave it to Dear Editor: * It’s time North Van City “ council ‘realized: the days of “father knows best” are over. The public are no longer satis- -fied with opinions — we want the facts! Ernie Crist’s idea to create a ‘city/district citizen’s task force to weigh up the pros and -cons of amalgamation makes sense. Let’s determine if the ‘benefits of a marriage are real or imagined. With ... senior governments down- ‘loading expenditures to the municipal level, every possible _.. cost-saving ineasure sl.ould be “examined. No sacraments exist when it comes to saving Us taxes. City council opposes amal- gamation because the heritage id stands at $30 milion vs. the district’s $10 million. Strangely no mention is made of the district’s $150 million land bank, proceeds from which are also destined to their Heritage Fund. So who's fooling whom here? One must question the motives of our city councillors and whose interests are they best serving? David Sadler North Vancouver king said almost 400 years ago about the foul habit of smoking: *.... A custom Joathsome to the eye, hateful to the nose, harmful ro the brain, dangerous to the lungs, and, in the black stink- ing fume thereof, nearest resembling the horrible Stygian smoke of the pit that is bottomless.” Whew! Imagine what he would have said if he knew what we know today about the millions who have died from smoking tobacco since his time. What's truly remarkable, however, is that even now there are still a few extremists who actually seem to believe the federal government has one too far with its recent legislation restricting tobacco advertising and sponsorships. Some have even attempted to argue that this is an issue of freedom of speech and expression. Since when does our constitution protect the marketing strategies of corpo- rations that deliberately aim to addict young people toa drug that will likely kill them? The government has it right this time. And there’s no doubt in my mind that this is simply another slow but steady step in the eventu- al move towards makin: tobacco products illegal. It can’t come too soon. And to those who argue that this would represent an unnecessary infringement on le’s rights and freedoms, T ask: what about the three million Canadians alive today who will ‘die from tobaczo- (long hair extra) — sclared causes? What about their dghts? Or their families? Or the taxpayers who are forced to foot the bill for their slaw and painful deaths? The irony about the cur- rent controversy over the advertising restrictions is that it’s hardly a new story. It’s been tried before, right here in British Columbia, but without success. In the carly-1970s the province’s flamboyant, tecto- talling, non-smoking premier, W.A.C. Bennett, decided to wage an all-out assault on the “pushers” of tobacco and cohol. His Social Credit government actually passed legislation banning any kind of advertising of tobacco, liquor, beer and wine in B.C. This ban went much far- ther than restrictions on the promotion of tobacco or booze anywhere else in North America at the time. It outlawed any possible men- “tion of these products, except on the packages and bottles in which they were sold. And there was a great concern expressed about phether Bntish Columbia ad the legislative er tO stem the ee of North American advertising and media interests, [ct alone the powerful tobacco and liquor companies. / When W.A.C. Bennett explained the legislation, however, he left little doubr about his strong feclings on the subject. “I see no reason why we should continue to allow the pushing of these products,” Perm Special , Manicure & Pedicure °45*|j Ckansing Facial Chez Elle Esthetic & Hair #207-1331 Marine Drive. West Van (Upstairs « 922-1225) he said. “ft is the pushers we're after.” That was in 1972. A year later, W.A.C. Bennett's gov- ernment was defeated, after 20 years in office. And the tobacco companies and the distillers, who actively cam- paigned against his govern- ment, breathed 2 temporary sigh of relief. Friday, March 14, 1997 — North Shore News — 7 ing the plug on the pushers Old man Bennett was crit- icized at the time for being old-fashioned, a country bumpkin who was simply out-of-syne with the modern age. But on the issue of advertising and the promo- tion of addictive substances — as on numerous other issues — he was actually well ahead of his time. Thank Call Your Honey Bunny Free for 1 full year ... {see instore for details) Offer expires Mar. 31/97 1 Nokia goodness we're finally catch- ing up. — The North Shore News believes strongly in freedom of speech and the right of ail sides ima debate to be heard. The columnists published in the News present differing points of view, but those views are not necessarily those of the newspa- per itself. : | Free Home Talk for Your Firs Yer | weekend calling © 55¢/min. local weekday calling - © 30 free local calls tol number” ~~. evening min every month - PLAY. REWIND. STOP. _ (You’ve just learned about the internet.) 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