Going up in Smoke
Nicotine: (n). “A colorless, poisonous alkaloid, derived from the tobacco plant and used as an insecticide. It is the substance in tobacco to which smokers can become addicted” (“Nicotine” def. 1). One cigarette consists of enough nicotine to cause permanent addiction and thirty-four million dollars per day is spent on tobacco advertising and promotions. One out of five people on Earth are smokers. That means that the tobacco industry is potentially leading 1.2 billion people to a premature death, and will not stop until the nonsmoker is extinct (Ferrell par. 1).
Each year, over one hundred million people worldwide are killed from the devastating effects of tobacco use.” (The Truth Facts). In the United States alone, four hundred thousand people die from tobacco which accounts for about one thousand two hundred lost American lives each day—a figure that represents more deaths than auto accidents, homicide, AIDS, drugs and fires combined (The Truth Facts ). Cigarettes, the most popular forms of tobacco, kill fifty people every hour. Tobacco causes diseases such as lung cancer, heart disease, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), chronic bronchitis and emphysema; and over 8.5 million Americans are currently living with these diseases (The Truth Facts ). The Center for Disease Control reports that tobacco use is the single most preventable cause of disease, disability, and death in the United States; yet multibillion dollar tobacco companies continue to successfully produce these deadly and addictive products. Phillip Morris, the world’s largest transnational tobacco company (Tobacco Atlas), earned a whopping 4.5 billion dollars in 2008 making Marlboro the best selling brand of tobacco in the United States (Phillip Morris). But, the ever-growing issue remains whether or not big tobacco companies can be held responsible for smoking-related illnesses and deaths.
Tobacco companies spend billions of dollars each year marketing their products. Through various mediums such as television, magazines, billboards, etc big tobacco companies seek to attract life long customers. To do so, tobacco companies target a range of demographics and take strategic measures to ensure consumers feel safer using tobacco. Advertisements like the “light” cigarette are currently one of the most popular. Hollywood has also greatly influenced tobacco use. Marketing in film and television especially has helped make cigarettes one of the most popular and widely used forms of tobacco amongst younger demographics. Hollywood stars of the early and mid-1900s to the present have often portrayed the glamorous lifestyles of smokers. Characters that do not rapidly age from tobacco use or die prematurely from tobacco-related illnesses. For many non-smokers, tobacco was portrayed as a convenient and readily available self –image booster.
Although these methods are arguably unethical, their ultimate goal is simply to convince consumers to try tobacco products. Realistically speaking consumers must always maintain a sense of personal responsibility, and therefore cannot justly hold tobacco companies liable for the damaging effects of their products. Tobacco companies neither intimidate nor forcefully persuade consumers into using their products. Unfortunately, smoking can become like any other addiction, and must be appropriately dealt with by the consumer. That is why making good decisions is critical. The choice to use tobacco is one of many personal decisions that we must make on a regular basis. Tobacco is not unlike any other commercial product. It is constantly being advertised by media, it is readily available, and consumers still continue to use it even though they are informed of and understand the negative consequences. Some might argue that tobacco companies practice unfair subliminal messaging, but many companies utilize this approach. Today, television commercials run about fifteen seconds and are shown for fifteen minutes every hour. That means on average, viewers are bombarded with sixty commercials per hour all with the intention of persuading consumers to utilize the information they present. What a consumer does with that information is left under his or her discretion. But just because something is offered does not mean you have to take it. The media simultaneously offers consumers enough information to understand that using tobacco is extremely detrimental to health and often ends in premature death.
Another issue with holding tobacco companies responsible for the effects of their products lies in the consumers’ ability to successfully litigate against them. Allowing victims to take legal action against corporations such as tobacco companies could open a Pandora’s Box of various lawsuits. If the tobacco industry is liable, so are gun companies, alcohol companies, social networking sites, and fast food restaurants. Many arguments against these corporations could be made about the health risks their products pose; but McDonald’s is no more responsible for obesity than Miller Light is for drunk-driving accidents; and Phillip Morris is no more responsible for lung cancer than Smith &Wesson is for the deaths of innocent bystanders. Yes, they produce these dangerous products, but they remain able to do so because the products continue to be purchased.
Furthermore, they are all one hundred percent legal. The government places certain restrictions on these industries, but allows them to remain in business as long as the public is educated about their ingredients and side effects. Anti-tobacco campaigns such as The Truth, diligently reach out to the public to inform them of the dangerous health effects of tobacco. Yet according to USA Today, states continue to do less about tobacco use problems such as teen smoking as they gain more knowledge about ways to lower it. Between Surgeon General warning labels and contracts such as the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement private tort litigation against these industries is now impossible, so consumers must continue to petition for change until these standards are improved.
Anti-tobacco advocates gave a small sigh of relief this year when President Obama signed the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act in June. The momentous Act gave the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) significant authority to regulate tobacco products and marketing, but to some more is still needed (Associated Press). The Act placed considerable restrictions on tobacco such as bans on flavored cigarettes; and also prohibited tobacco marketing in combination with other products regulated under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (H.R. 1180). Some of the more passionate anti-tobacco advocates, however, claim that because tobacco companies continue to knowingly advertise addictive products, they should be held fully responsible for their effects. Supposedly, consumers are not properly educated about the health risks associated with tobacco use and therefore are trapped into an often lifelong addiction.
We cannot justly hold tobacco companies accountable for their products, especially if we cannot fully hold ourselves accountable for our own choices. At the end of the day, using tobacco is a decision. We are constantly surrounded by positive and negative influences. The tobacco industry strives to addict, but consumers do not have to succumb to its influence. Anti-tobacco advocates encourage consumers to carefully think twice, yet tobacco use still remains a too common habit. Based on recent legislation, completely prohibiting tobacco appears to be an overly ambitious goal; but with hard work one day that may be possible. It will take diligence and strong collective efforts. Governments must be petitioned so that current tobacco laws can be amended. The public must continue to be educated about the negative health effects of tobacco, and most importantly, we must recognize the personal responsibility in conscious decisions we make.
