英美报刊选读 Lesson 13

Although restrictions have been placed on the use of cigarettes in public areas such as restaurants and airplanes, the US has yet to place a ban on smoking. The government frequently inspects items sold to the American public. Commercial products that may be dangerous such as food, cars, and toys have been recalled in order for alterations. In the August 1995 issue of consumer reports, twenty- four products were recalled because of possible dangers to the consumer. These products included a car that may lose a wheel while in motion, a hair dryer that poses a fire hazard, and cookies that can cause an allergic reaction. Yet, the sale of cigarettes, knprohibited by the government. Why are cigarettes any different from other products sold in the US.


Tobacco was the first crop grown for money in North America. In 1612 the settlers of the first American colony in Jamestown, Virginia grew tobacco as a cash crop. It was their main source of money. By the 1800's, many people had begun using small amounts of tobacco. Some chewed it. Others smoked it occasionally in a pipe, or they hand-rolled a cigarette or cigar. The first commercial cigarettes were made in 1865 by Washington Duke. His hand-rolled cigarettes were sold to soldiers at the end of the Civil War.
Lesson 13
NYC Ban Sparks
Smoking War
History of Tobacco

Tobacco has a long history in the Americas.
Tobacco was grown by American Indians before the Europeans came from England, Spain, France, and Italy to North America. Christopher Columbus received tobacco as a gift from the people of the Bahamas during his famous voyage to the Americas.

By the 1980's, the tobacco companies had come out with new brands of cigarettes with lower amounts of tar and nicotine and improved filters to keep their customers buying and to help reduce their fears. The early 1980's were called the "tar wars" because tobacco companies competed aggressively to make over 100 low tar and "ultra" low tar cigarettes. Each company made and sold many different brands of cigarettes.
In
1984 Congress passed another law called the Comprehensive Smoking Education Act. It said that the cigarette companies every three months had to change the warning labels on cigarette packs. It created four different labels for the companies to rotate.

Smoking has several harmful effects on the body. Cigarettes cause eighty-five percent of lung cancer and are responsible for thirty percent of all deaths resulting from cancer. People who have smoked for a significant period of time will have noticeable problems breathing and will most likely be in poor health. One out of four deaths of people thirty-five to sixty- four years old result from smoking. On the average, every cigarette takes five and a half minutes of life away from a smoker.

Although smoking is a proven killer, Americans waste Billions of dollars each year on tobacco products. Other drugs that are harmful, such as crack or marijuana, are illegal in the United States. However, the use of cigarettes, which kills millions worldwide annually, is perfectly legal. If certain harmful substances are illegal, then cigarettes should not be permitted either.

They were selling their cigarettes mainly to men. Everything changed during World War I (1914-18) and World War II (1939-45). Soldiers overseas were given free cigarettes every day. By 1944 cigarette production was up to 300 billion a year.
Public Law 98-474, "Comprehensive Smoking Education Act, 1984"
Credit: Smoking Tobacco & Health, Centers for Disease Control

Since the 1980's, federal, state, local governments, and private companies have begun taking actions to restrict cigarette smoking in public places. The warning labels were the first step. Tobacco companies cannot advertise cigarettes on television or radio. It is against a law that was passed by Congress in 1971. Many cities across the U.S. do not allow smoking in public buildings and restaurants. Since 1990, airlines have not allowed smoking on airplane flights in the U.S. that are six hours or less. State taxes on cigarettes have increased.

In 1964 the Surgeon General of the U.S. (the chief doctor for the country) wrote a report about the dangers of cigarette smoking. He said that the nicotine and tar in cigarettes cause lung cancer. In 1965 the Congress of the U.S. passed the Cigarette Labeling and Advertising Act. It said that every cigarette pack must have a warning label on its side stating "Cigarettes may be harmful to your health."