Philip Morris USA, R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. and other U.S. cigarette makers must pay part of a $591-million award to fund quit-smoking programs in Louisiana, a state appeals court ruled Wednesday.
The New Orleans court upheld part of a 2004 jury verdict that said the companies must pay for a 10-year program including nicotine gum and patches, telephone lines and regional stop-smoking centers, said Russ Herman, a New Orleans lawyer representing the smokers.
The companies can appeal to the Louisiana Supreme Court.
"On the whole, I'm very satisfied," Herman said. It wasn't immediately clear how much the companies will have to pay under the ruling, he said.
The decision upholds some aspects of the first jury verdict to require cigarette makers to pay to help smokers quit.
It comes after a federal judge in Washington ruled in August that the industry violated U.S. racketeering laws and must stop marketing cigarettes as "light" or "low-tar."
John Sorrells, a spokesman for Philip Morris parent Altria Group Inc., said the company hadn't seen the decision and declined to comment.
The Louisiana court reduced the amount the companies will have to pay and held that they would not have to pay at least $415 million in interest the smokers had claimed, Herman said.
A New Orleans jury of eight women and four men returned the underlying verdict in May 2004 after lawyers for a statewide class of smokers had asked the companies to finance smoking cessation programs for 25 years at a cost of more than $1 billion.
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понедельник, 27 июля 2009 г.
четверг, 16 июля 2009 г.
E-Cigarettes May Be The Answer To The Mental Addiction To Smoking
Despite the health warnings plastered all over tobacco products these days, about 1 in 3 of the population of the world smokes. The dangers of smoking have been made known for years and while many Americans have tried to quit with patches, gums, and prescription medications, some argue that the number one thing you need to do is to break the mental addiction to smoking.
The mental addiction to the act of holding something in your hand, puffing on it, and seeing the smoke is something that most people have a very difficult time getting over. The nicotine in cigarettes is cleared from the body only a few days after a person smokes their last cigarette, but the want of a smoke afterward (even 6 months afterward) can be unbearable. This is why most smoking cessation products like gums, patches, and pills do not work on a long term basis. Counseling is often needed to completely make the switch from being a smoker to being a non-smoker, but a new product may help break the mental habit by convenience alone.
The e-cigarette is comprised of an atomizer, a battery, a cartridge (sometimes with nicotine), and an LED light at the end to simulate burning. Cartridges are available in varying levels of nicotine strength, from high to zero, so an e-smoker can reduce the amount of nicotine they intake gradually. What makes the e-cigarette wonderful is the fact that it's not on fire, so it's very convenient to put down whenever you want to. An e-smoker is not obligated to smoking an entire cigarette even though they do not want to, so they actually end up smoking less than they normally would because having the e-cigarette out of their hand helps them forget about smoking.
In addition, e-cigarettes do not require an ashtray, since they are not on fire and do not produce ash. It is also less of a fire hazard, since e-smokers do not have to worry about waking up to themselves or their bed on fire just because they want to smoke in bed (often while watching TV).
Another reason to switch is due to the fact that e-cigarette cartridges are cheaper than a pack of tobacco cigarettes. One cartridge is the equivalent of a whole pack of tobacco cigarettes, depending on the smoking habit of the user. New users may not get as much use out of cartridges until they get used to them, because they treat them like a tobacco cigarette for a while until they realize they can actually set them down. Getting out of the mindset that it has to be held in the hand all the time is the most important thing to get away from, because the less you have it in your hand, the more likely you are to get occupied with other things (like life) and forget it's there at all.
The mental addiction to the act of holding something in your hand, puffing on it, and seeing the smoke is something that most people have a very difficult time getting over. The nicotine in cigarettes is cleared from the body only a few days after a person smokes their last cigarette, but the want of a smoke afterward (even 6 months afterward) can be unbearable. This is why most smoking cessation products like gums, patches, and pills do not work on a long term basis. Counseling is often needed to completely make the switch from being a smoker to being a non-smoker, but a new product may help break the mental habit by convenience alone.
The e-cigarette is comprised of an atomizer, a battery, a cartridge (sometimes with nicotine), and an LED light at the end to simulate burning. Cartridges are available in varying levels of nicotine strength, from high to zero, so an e-smoker can reduce the amount of nicotine they intake gradually. What makes the e-cigarette wonderful is the fact that it's not on fire, so it's very convenient to put down whenever you want to. An e-smoker is not obligated to smoking an entire cigarette even though they do not want to, so they actually end up smoking less than they normally would because having the e-cigarette out of their hand helps them forget about smoking.
In addition, e-cigarettes do not require an ashtray, since they are not on fire and do not produce ash. It is also less of a fire hazard, since e-smokers do not have to worry about waking up to themselves or their bed on fire just because they want to smoke in bed (often while watching TV).
Another reason to switch is due to the fact that e-cigarette cartridges are cheaper than a pack of tobacco cigarettes. One cartridge is the equivalent of a whole pack of tobacco cigarettes, depending on the smoking habit of the user. New users may not get as much use out of cartridges until they get used to them, because they treat them like a tobacco cigarette for a while until they realize they can actually set them down. Getting out of the mindset that it has to be held in the hand all the time is the most important thing to get away from, because the less you have it in your hand, the more likely you are to get occupied with other things (like life) and forget it's there at all.
понедельник, 13 июля 2009 г.
The Enjoyment Of Cigarettes Is To Die For
Have you ever wondered exactly what it is that people get out of smoking tobacco? If you are a non-smoker, it is a question that you will probably never have an answer to. It is hard enough to answer even for a smoker. The enjoyment that they get from a cigarette can be so vague that they even question themselves what it does for them. It does not make them high like other drugs do, at least not in a way that they can actually feel. However, even though a smoker can not really feel the effects it has on their body, the nicotine that they inhale does promote subtle changes that satisfies a physical craving that is experienced by addicted smokers.
It could be said that besides the physical satisfaction derived from inhaling nicotine, they also get a sort of emotional satisfaction when they smoke. It perhaps comforts them in some way that a non-smoker could not understand. Perhaps they get the satisfaction akin to what a non-smoker would get from relaxing in a hot bath or enjoying a cup of coffee. It just feels good to relax and enjoy a smoke. Smokers try to achieve this sort of satisfaction from a cigarette sometimes twenty or more times a day after they have become addicted. It is a strange habit to say the least. With a drug addict of another kind, you can almost understand the attraction because a drug like heroine or cocaine can transport the user to a more euphoric state, but tobacco does not do that,
Whatever enjoyment that people derive from smoking tobacco, it is an enjoyment that they would die for, literally. Not that drugs like cocaine or heroine will not also kill the user after a long period of addiction. Smokers must admit that they are willing to die for their habit because so many of them do everyday. The diseases and illnesses they end up with all because of smoking cigarettes can not be denied. While there are many that eventually find a way to quit this nasty habit, there are millions more that never will They will go to there grave huffing for breath and puffing on that last smoke.
It is so difficult to comprehend why someone would sacrifice their good life all for the sake of inhaling smoke day after day. That is what they do. They wake up smoking, they go through their day smoking, and they go to bed smoking at night. They must have a cigarette when they get the urge for one or they can become terribly anxious and irritable in most cases. These are true signs of an addiction. The only hope a tobacco smoker has is if they realize soon enough that they must find a way to give up the habit. There are many approaches used for this and it is a shame when a person dies from smoking having never found one of them.
It could be said that besides the physical satisfaction derived from inhaling nicotine, they also get a sort of emotional satisfaction when they smoke. It perhaps comforts them in some way that a non-smoker could not understand. Perhaps they get the satisfaction akin to what a non-smoker would get from relaxing in a hot bath or enjoying a cup of coffee. It just feels good to relax and enjoy a smoke. Smokers try to achieve this sort of satisfaction from a cigarette sometimes twenty or more times a day after they have become addicted. It is a strange habit to say the least. With a drug addict of another kind, you can almost understand the attraction because a drug like heroine or cocaine can transport the user to a more euphoric state, but tobacco does not do that,
Whatever enjoyment that people derive from smoking tobacco, it is an enjoyment that they would die for, literally. Not that drugs like cocaine or heroine will not also kill the user after a long period of addiction. Smokers must admit that they are willing to die for their habit because so many of them do everyday. The diseases and illnesses they end up with all because of smoking cigarettes can not be denied. While there are many that eventually find a way to quit this nasty habit, there are millions more that never will They will go to there grave huffing for breath and puffing on that last smoke.
It is so difficult to comprehend why someone would sacrifice their good life all for the sake of inhaling smoke day after day. That is what they do. They wake up smoking, they go through their day smoking, and they go to bed smoking at night. They must have a cigarette when they get the urge for one or they can become terribly anxious and irritable in most cases. These are true signs of an addiction. The only hope a tobacco smoker has is if they realize soon enough that they must find a way to give up the habit. There are many approaches used for this and it is a shame when a person dies from smoking having never found one of them.
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