This page contains a Flash digital edition of a book.
TOTAL LICENSING
that if an aggrieved party Now FDA Commissioner Kessler added the accusation The settlement did not destroy them. The very large
had a generic claim, the that the industry’s campaign also targeted to influence profit margin on each pack allowed them diversification
courts (to uncrowd their children and to stay with the terms of the farm – into other industries. It also allowed them to overcome
calendars from a thicket Tobacco’s goose was pretty well cooked. import duties (often sought to protect local monopolies
of small claims) would al- However, in March 2000 the Supreme Court, in a 4 or brands) by opening plants overseas. Philip Morris’
low the certification of all – 5 ruling (very close), issued the decision that the FDA annual 2005 report and PTC reports, show a domestic
similar issues into a Class did not have the jurisdiction to regulate tobacco – only production leveled off to a stable 190 billion cigarettes.
Action (like, for instance, Congress could do so. Overseas production rose radically from less than 190
asbestos claims). Again, the industry managed to get help from their billion in 1977 to 800 billions in that year.
friends in congress to slow down disaster. Of course the US Federal Trade representatives
In the interim in 1994 attorney Mike Lewis of Mississippi concerned about their US trade balance negotiated
A SHORT DEFINITION OF ‘TORT’ developed a strategy he sold to his friend, Mississippi’s at all GATT and WTO sessions to help this important
An article must be dangerous more than a normal Attorney General Michael Moore. They sued on behalf American export industry.
customer might anticipate. Good butter is not dangerous of the State for the costs created by tobacco to the Trade and economy tends to triumph over public health
although the cholesterol it deposits may lead to a heart State’s Medicare and Medicaid systems. Moore made unless there is a dramatic crisis and we all go about our
attack. Bad butter containing contaminated milk or it simple: “you caused the damage – you pay for it”. individual life or business. In some, particularly in the
poisonous fish oil is unreasonably dangerous (American Other states smelling an opportunity, joined the suit. richer countries, public health fights against cigarettes.
Law Institute). Local law firms did the state’s work on contingency. But in most countries genuine health restrictions lose
In 1983 Attorney Marc Edell, who had previously been They added claims of consumer fraud. out against the globally pervasive “Americanization”
involved in asbestos litigation, brought the first case on And the chase was on! In the end there was a forest of of the increasing affluence in the Third World and
behalf of Rose Cipollone against four major tobacco 30 State suits. A congressional enemy of tobacco, Henry the desire to adopt luxurious manifestations of the
companies. At that time she was undergoing treatment Waxman, had started hearings and under subpoena, 5 consumer society’s life style. Cigarettes are a part of
for lung cancer. company CEOs appeared and stated one by one that this life style and hundreds of millions of consumers are
Cases of this sort had been mounted since 1954 but they did not believe nicotine was addictive. This claim waiting in China!
there had not been enough clear proof tying tobacco brought ridicule and outrage. Private suits hitchhiked on (P) Gro Harlem Brandtland, former Prime Minister of
as a cause to the disease as an effect. In all courts these revelations. All these actions took advantage of Norway, now Director General of WHO, pushed hard
tobacco attorneys won always because courts cannot the now public memos evidencing that the companies for an “evidence” supported policy dealing with non
adjudicate on vague theories, only on provable facts had known and feared that nicotine was addictive but communicable diseases (including by extension, maybe,
and so all these clients received nothing for their trouble had not disseminated that knowledge. Their public tobacco)
and attorneys spent lots of money on a lost case. stance was different from their private memos. State Patiently, the intergovernmental negotiating body
Marc Edell felt there was now enough provable courts began fining, discovery actions produced more with approval of the World Health Assembly, began
evidence! and more evidence. Things could not continue this way! to develop FCTC (Framework Convention on Tobacco
(P) Meantime Surgeon General Koop weighed in The Ligett Group settled with a group of 3 states and Control)
again and found in his report of 1988: Cigarettes the solid industry ranks were broken. Peace talks began. (N) The tobacco industry, again, pointed out that no
were addictive, nicotine was the drug causing addiction, It was realized there were not enough courts, lawyers arbitrary judgment by do-gooders from the WHO had
addiction to nicotine, though different, was similar to and juries to hear all the trials in the offing. It was the right to make arbitrary judgment to dictate (sic) to
that for illicit drugs like heroin or cocaine. also realized that all these extra costs would be passed Third World governments how to attain for their people
(N) The defense in the Cipollone trial pointed out that in back to the still smoking consumer in the price of the a higher standard of living.
the same report, the Surgeon General had reported 43 cigarette. The US government was now interested in International sanitary laws might have stopped
million people had stopped smoking on their own. They ending the furor. If the industry could not be outlawed Smallpox and Yellow Fever and priority should be given
questioned why, then, had Rose Cipollone not stopped. (see the Failure of Prohibition!) a settlement had to to new antibiotics, vaccines against HIV and such.
Her decision to continue was, they said, well informed. be reached. Many powerful politicians on “The hill” Smoking should be seen as an unimportant side issue.
They reasoned that in some way the very successful sided with free enterprise against “Big Brother” control. The FCTC was adopted in 2003 and its recommendations
publicity of the anti smoking campaign worked to the However, the cigarette had fallen from grace and provide a forum for discussions in individual countries.
benefit of the tobacco defendants. Finally the jury in “smoke free” became the watchword. In the winter, The future will tell us.
the case gave the, by now, deceased Rose Cipollone a workers stand in front of their office buildings, freezing.
paltry $400,000 award. Edell’s firm had spent nearly This is their smoking “break” and a chance to get some GLOBAL WARMING
10 million over the 10 years the case dragged on, puffs in the open air. On November 16, 1992, Congress
so this really was a terrible investment and tobacco legislated the “Master Settlement Agreement”. It ANCIENT TIMES
litigation practically slowed down to a halt. Still, it was provided: • 4.5 billion years ago: Earth created.
the first time that tobacco ever was unable to squash • payments to 46 states of 206 billion over 25 years; • 3.8 billion years ago: single-cell life forms emerge.
a judgment. • the industry to fund a National Foundation devoted • 1.9 billion years ago: Nitrogen-dominated
to public health and reduction of smoking. atmosphere replaced by oxygen-rich atmosphere.
THE WHISTLE BLOWERS • Restrictions on advertising and promotion (outdoor • 540 million years ago: Earth apparently turned
A disgruntled big tobacco attorney with access to signs and sponsorship of Sports events had to go). from “ice ball” into a warm and humid world.
confidential papers photocopied a large load of those Many more stringent prohibitions were negotiated Simple microbes in the ocean transform into
memos. A senior research scientist who had been away during congressional debate. thousands of new species beginning the evolution
dismissed had lots of information about safety programs (N) The industry rejoiced! “The American smoker of today’s life forms.
leading to non addictive cigarettes that he was working retained their freedom of choice and personal • 350 to 250 million years ago: Ice sheets reappear
on, and that Brown and Williamson stopped. He even responsibility for their choices” at higher Earth latitudes.
went on the CBS 60 Minutes TV program to tell his (P) RALPH NADER: “the settlement left the Marlboro • 300 million years ago: Earth is uniformly hot
story. These escaping confidential facts were honey to Man in the saddle”. and humid, land area is dominated by swamps and
the anti-tobacco forces in Congress and in the courts (P) California health economists estimated California’s rain forest.
who demanded “Discovery”. Finally Al Pacino and yearly costs at 8.7 billion but the state would receive • 100 million years ago: Age of Dinosaurs. The
Christopher Plummer played in a popular movie: The 500 million. Earth is still warm, again humid, and globally
Insider. The movie did point out that the whistle blowers Fast forward to 2007 and globalization: Smoking is uniform. Continents are slowly separating through
were disgruntled employees, that the documents were still, notwithstanding significant reduction, the largest plate tectonics.
stolen. But the horse was out of the barn and industry preventable cause of death in the USA. It contributes • 60 million years ago: The world is in a
efforts in retributory legal action could not stop the to lung cancer, heart disease and emphysema. “greenhouse” condition without ocean circulation
dissemination of very disconcerting facts. The cigarette companies are substantially alive and well. patterns or Polar Regions.
148
Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 84 Page 85 Page 86 Page 87 Page 88 Page 89 Page 90 Page 91 Page 92 Page 93 Page 94 Page 95 Page 96 Page 97 Page 98 Page 99 Page 100 Page 101 Page 102 Page 103 Page 104 Page 105 Page 106 Page 107 Page 108 Page 109 Page 110 Page 111 Page 112 Page 113 Page 114 Page 115 Page 116 Page 117 Page 118 Page 119 Page 120 Page 121 Page 122 Page 123 Page 124 Page 125 Page 126 Page 127 Page 128 Page 129 Page 130 Page 131 Page 132 Page 133 Page 134 Page 135 Page 136 Page 137 Page 138 Page 139 Page 140 Page 141 Page 142 Page 143 Page 144 Page 145 Page 146 Page 147 Page 148 Page 149 Page 150 Page 151 Page 152 Page 153 Page 154 Page 155 Page 156 Page 157 Page 158