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"Putting pressure on parents
who let teens drink at home" (Oliver
Prichard, The Philadelphia Inquirer,
Mar 31, 2003) -- With prom season around the
corner, teenagers everywhere are gearing up for the
timeworn traditions of party planning, dress shopping
and, inevitably, underage drinking. But students aren't
the only ones who need to worry about the parties being
raided. Across the country, communities are taking steps
to stiffen criminal penalties for parents who open their
homes to underage drinking. Alcohol-prevention experts
hope such efforts will erode what they view as a
widespread acceptance of allowing teenagers to drink in
"supervised" settings. "Increasingly,
people are becoming aware that they can be subject to a
criminal prosecution or a whopping lawsuit for underage
drinking on the part of their children and their
children's friends," said Gary Tennis, legislative
liaison for the Pennsylvania District Attorneys
Association. ID# 6438
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"This Is The Year, Anti-Tobacco
Groups Say" (Garret
Condon, The Hartford Courant, Apr
3, 2003) -- Youngsters from Ansonia -
trained and supervised by the Trinidadian folk group
Ajali - pounded rhythmically on West African drums,
lending a compelling backbeat to Wednesday morning's
anti-tobacco rally at the state Capitol. The musicians
were helping about a thousand elementary, middle and
high school students drum up support for anti-smoking
legislation. The mood at this year's gathering - an
annual event sponsored by several prominent anti-smoking
groups - was decidedly upbeat. The legislature is likely
to douse smoking in restaurants, bars and other
workplaces. ID# 6437
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"Soft on Drunk Drivers" (The
Washington Post, Mar 29, 2003) --
Maryland has
been notoriously lenient on drunk drivers, thanks to key
state legislators with law practices that include
representing them and to judges who are too tolerant
when it comes to repeat offenders. An exceptional
surprise on Thursday was a unanimous state Senate vote
for a bill stripping judges of the option of sentencing
repeat offenders to community service. Instead, people
convicted of drunken driving twice within five years
would serve a minimum of five days in jail, and
third-time offenders would serve a minimum of 10 days. ID#
6432
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"N.Y. bar patrons may someday agree
with smoking ban" (Jesse
J. Logan, Reuters Health, Mar 28, 2003) --
As New York City bars and
restaurants go smoke-free this weekend, bar patrons may
take comfort in a study that suggests -- given enough
time - those who disapprove now may actually end up
liking the change. In a California survey, most
bar-goers said they supported and complied with a
similar law two years after it went into effect. While
60% approved of the law three months after it went into
effect, that number increased to 66% at the eight-month
point and reached 73% about 2.5 years after the law was
in place. "As people grew accustomed to smoke-free
bars they absolutely realized that smoke-free bars are
so much more enjoyable," said study co-author
Colleen Stevens, of the California Department of Health
Services in Sacramento. ID#
6423
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"Md. Senate 'Puts Teeth' in Drunken
Driving Bill" (Brigid
Schulte, The Washington Post, Mar
28, 2003) --
The Maryland Senate
unanimously passed a tough drunken driving bill
yesterday, stripping from judges the option of
sentencing repeat offenders to community service and
instead mandating five or 10 days of jail time. The
bill, a top priority for public safety advocates, faces
an uphill battle in the House, with only days before
adjournment. It goes to a House committee that has
historically bottled up such legislation and that has
been sitting on a similar bill since February. ID#
6416
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"New York State Adopts Strict Ban on
Workplace Smoking" (Winnie
Hu, The New York Times, Mar 27, 2003) --
After two years of
legislative gridlock, New York today became only the
third state to pass a tough antismoking law that would
ban smoking in nearly every restaurant, bar and
workplace. The Legislature moved exceptionally quickly
to pass the measure, overcoming fierce opposition from
some Republican members and a heavy lobbying campaign by
the tobacco, liquor and restaurant industries, which
derailed a similar effort less than a year ago. ID#
6409
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"Medical Marijuana Bill Passes" (Lori
Montgomery and Craig Whitlock, The Washington
Post, Mar 27, 2003) -- The
Maryland General Assembly has voted to dramatically
reduce penalties for cancer patients and others who
smoke marijuana to relieve suffering, and Gov. Robert L.
Ehrlich Jr. said yesterday that he is inclined to sign
the measure. The bill, which passed the House of
Delegates last week and won final approval in the Senate
yesterday, would set a fine of $100 for using marijuana
out of "medical necessity." Possession
otherwise carries a maximum penalty of a year in jail
and a $1,000 fine. If the bill becomes law, Maryland
would become the first state to single out seriously ill
marijuana users for relaxed sanctions, although some
other states have done more to decriminalize medical
marijuana. In recent years, eight states have legalized
marijuana for medical purpose. ID#
6411
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"Office Targeting Illegal Alcohol
Sales" (The Washington
Post, Mar 27, 2003) -- Nearly
every week, Montgomery County officials send young
workers into stores, restaurants and bars to see whether
the establishment does what it is supposed to tell the
teens they cannot buy alcohol. Nearly 20 percent of the
time, the businesses violate the law prohibiting the
sale of alcohol to people under age 21. When the county
first started such checks in the early 1990s, the
violation rate was about 50 percent. "Montgomery
County has one of most aggressive 'sales to minor'
enforcements in the country," said Dennis Theoharis,
executive director of the Montgomery County Office of
the Board of License Enforcement. "We are one of
the few jurisdictions that on a regular basis, at least
weekly, are sending under-age-21 government employees to
conduct compliance checks." ID#
6408
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"Senate OKs needle bill in effort to
curb AIDS" (Kate
McCann, The Chicago Tribune, Mar
25, 2003) -- Anyone
18 or older could buy from pharmacies hypodermic needles
without a prescription under a bill that narrowly passed
the Illinois Senate Monday. Sponsors hope the bill will
curb the spread of HIV/AIDS by giving more drug users
access to clean needles and by educating them on how to
properly dispose of needles. The measure passed the
Senate 30-24 and now goes to the House for
consideration. "Some people use drugs no matter
what," said Sen. Steve Rauschenberger (R-Elgin), a
co-sponsor of the measure. "What has been proven in
other states is, if there is access to legally possess
sterile needles, there is a reduced amount of hepatitis
and HIV/AIDS in that population." ID#
6406
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"Ban on Workplace Smoking Nears Vote
in State Senate" (Winnie
Hu, The New York Times, Mar 24, 2003) --
Legislative leaders have
agreed on a tough new bill that would ban smoking in
nearly all workplaces throughout the state, including
restaurants and bars, but the fate of the bill remained
uncertain tonight after it ran into stiff opposition
from some Republican senators. The proposed state ban,
if approved, would be one of the most restrictive
antismoking measures in the country even more
stringent than the new smoking ban that is scheduled to
take effect in New York City on Sunday, because it does
not include several exemptions that were added to the
city's law by the City Council. ID#
6401
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"Liquor Sellers Take Pledge to
Change Ways" (Carol
Pogash, The Los Angeles Times, Mar
23, 2003) --
When civic leaders focus on
crime here, they blame a lot of conditions poverty,
joblessness, a shortage of police. They also blame an
oversupply of liquor stores. This month, most of the
city's liquor store owners and mom-and-pop grocers
agreed to try to alter some of their practices that have
been deemed threatening to public health. One hundred
and eight stores have posted pledges promising to drop
cheap high-alcohol wines from their shelves, remove drug
paraphernalia and shut down at midnight, rather than the
legally permissible closing time of 2 a.m.
ID# 6399
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"Police endorse driver drug test" (Marilyn
Miller, The Beacon Journal, Mar 24, 2003) --
The Summit County Police
Chiefs Association has endorsed an ordinance that would
require specific tests for those suspected of driving
under the influence of marijuana and cocaine. County
Councilman Paul Gallagher, D-at large, introduced the
measure earlier this month. As an assistant Portage
County prosecutor, Gallagher learned firsthand about the
frustrations of trying to convict those suspected of
driving under the influence of drugs. Such standards are
already in place to test for alcohol." ID#
6398
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"Legislature out to hike smoking age
to 19" (Christi
Parsons and Ray Long, The Chicago Tribune, Mar
21, 2003) --
Illinois lawmakers launched
an assault on youth smoking Thursday, with the House
voting to increase the legal smoking age from 18 to 19
and the Senate approving a bill that would limit sales
of tobacco products near schools. By making it harder
for teenagers to get cigarettes, sponsors said, they
hope to keep more Illinois residents from picking up the
habit when they're young. "We know that smoking
kills kids," said Rep. John Fritchey (D-Chicago),
sponsor of the House measure. "More than a third of
all children who ever try a cigarette will become
regular daily smokers. We're under a lot of pressure to
do more with less right now, and this is a way that,
without a price tag, we can help thousands of
kids." ID#
6395
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"House approves medical marijuana
bill" (Associated
Press, The Chicago Tribune, Mar 18, 2003) --
The Maryland House of
Delegates approved a bill today that would dramatically
reduce penalties for Marylanders who use marijuana for
medical reasons. The bill had bipartisan support and
passed 73 to 62. The legislation would allow people
charged with possession of small amounts of marijuana to
present evidence that they have a medical condition that
is helped by smoking marijuana. The maximum penalty for
possession of marijuana for medical purposes would be a
$100 fine. There would be no jail term. ID#
6387
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"Alcohol Tax? Bad Idea" (Jeff
Becker, The New York Times, Mar 19, 2003) --
Jim Gogek (Op-Ed, March 13)
calls for an increase in alcohol taxes to help states
address their budget problems and suggests that such
increases will curb alcohol abuse. Taxes already account
for 44 percent of the cost of beer. Additional tax
increases on beer will raise prices for everyday
consumers and harm an industry that contributes billions
to the economy. Academic studies have consistently shown
that the behavior of illegal under-age and abusive adult
drinkers is not affected by the price of alcohol. ID#
6388
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"No drifting, no wafting . . . no
smoking" (Mary
Umberger, The New York Times, Mar 16, 2003) --
The smoking wars continue
to smolder, this time flaring up in -- where else? --
California. The state legislature there is considering a
law to ban smoking in common areas -- the lobbies,
stairwells, hallways, swimming pools -- of apartment and
condo buildings. The goal is to declare that the
"drifting, wafting or blowing of tobacco
smoke" is a nuisance, and offending smokers would
be subject to a $100 fine. Now, I'm willing to bet that
the chances of passage for AB 210, as the bill is
officially called, are next to nil. (The bill is resting
comfortably in a committee these days.) ID#
6385
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"Taxing the Binge" (Jim
Gogek, The New York Times, Mar 13, 2003) --
In the next few months,
legislators across the country, struggling with the
worst fiscal crisis to hit states since World War II,
will cut the financing of social programs. This will
probably mean the demise of many alcohol and drug
programs that keep adults out of jails and emergency
rooms and children out of foster care and juvenile
halls. There is a solution raise alcohol taxes to pay
for social services. Taxes on alcohol don't even begin
to pay the costs of alcohol abuse. Federal estimates put
those costs at $185 billion, while federal, state and
local alcohol tax revenues total about $18 billion.
Alcohol excise taxes used to be a significant slice of
federal budget receipts, representing 11 percent in 1941.
ID#
6383
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"Study favors treatment over jail
for some addicts" (Todd
Zwillich, Reuters Health, Mar 11, 2003) --
A New York effort that
emphasizes drug treatment over prison for repeat felons
with addictions has nearly halved new convictions among
people who complete the program, a report released
Thursday concludes. The program, which has spread to 15
jurisdictions in the state since 1998, has also cut the
cost of incarcerating felons in the program in half,
from an average of $64,000 for people who go to prison
to an average of $33,000 for those receiving supervised
treatment instead. Some prosecutors say that the
program, which is similar to increasingly popular drug
courts, gives them the discretion to attempt to turn
drug-using criminals into functioning members of society
rather than sending them to prison for drug-fueled
crimes. ID#
6378
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"Program
offers drug users new way of dealing with addiction" (Louie
Gilot, El Paso Times, Mar 11, 2003) --
While regular courts lock
up scores of drug addicts daily, El Paso's Drug Court
works hard to keep them out of prison. The Drug Court
program -- basically probation with drug treatment,
frequent drug testing, police monitoring and court
visits -- is a little more than a year old in El Paso.
And those in charge of the program have high hopes for
it. "The traditional way of dealing with minor drug
crimes is not effective. It only fills prisons,"
said Judge David Guaderrama of the 243rd District Court,
a mild-mannered, seven-year judge who wears ostrich
cowboy boots under his suit pants. "(Drug Court) is
the most rewarding thing I've ever done." ID#
6370
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"State
putting more cash into fighting club drugs" (Eric
Krol, Yahoo News, Mar 11, 2003) --
The state will earmark more
money to stem the deadly tide of club drugs and start a
program to make students and parents more aware of their
dangers. Gov. Rod Blagojevich is expected to announce
the club drug efforts during his State of the State
speech Wednesday. "Before this becomes a
frightening epidemic, the governor is trying to nip this
in the bud," Blagojevich spokeswoman Abby Ottenhoff
said Monday. A Daily Herald investigation of the growing
club drug and heroin problem in the suburbs documented
13 teen deaths caused in part by club drugs or heroin in
2000 and 2001. ID#
6368
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"U.S.
abstains in the war on tobacco" (Derrick
Z. Jackson, The Chicago
Tribune, Mar 10, 2003) -- The
United Nations voted to go to war against the world's
worst weapon of mass destruction. The United States is
against the resolution. This news passed by almost
without notice almost two weeks ago. In Geneva, about
170 nations met in an effort to agree on a global treaty
on tobacco. Cigarettes, according to the UN World Health
Organization, kill 4 million people a year and will kill
10 million a year by 2030, according to current trends.
Without a war on tobacco, cigarettes will kill 500
million of the 6 billion people alive today on Earth.
Most of the nations that gathered in Geneva agreed to
final text that will be presented to the WHO in May for
adoption. ID#
6367
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"Breathing
New Life Into Smoke-Free Living" (Jacque
Petterson, The Los Angeles Times, Mar
6, 2003) -- Smoking at Home
Targeted (March 2) states that "people irritated by
secondhand smoke call [Assemblyman Joe] Nation's bill
long overdue." We wish it were as simple as an
"irritation." Those of
us who are making the call to action to which Nation, a
San Rafael Democrat, has responded have illnesses such
as migraines, lupus, heart disease, asthma and other
serious lung diseases that are seriously made worse by
tobacco smoke. As the American Lung Assn. states,
"When you can't breathe, nothing else
matters." To say we must live
with secondhand smoke in our homes to accommodate the
smokers is absurd. ID#
6363
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"Moderation
is Urged for Alcohol Ads" (The New
York Times, Mar 6, 2003) --
AFTER a wave of
controversial beer commercials featuring women wrestling
in wet cement and young men cavorting with full-figured
twins, an alcohol industry association has developed a
new vision for the advertising of beer, wine and liquor.
No, the future does not belong to full-figured triplets.
The core idea is the opposite, to promote "drinking
well," a practice comparable in maturity,
satisfaction and safety to exercising well or making
love well, said Marcus Grant, president of the
International Center for Alcohol Policies and the man
who developed the plan. The new approach, which Mr.
Grant plans to propose today at a meeting of industry
executives in New York, urges alcohol marketers to
practice a new form of moderation. ID#
6359
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"Measures
not stopping unlicensed, drunk drivers" (Dee-Ann
Durbin, The Chicago Tribune, Mar 6, 2003) --
Unlicensed and drunken drivers continue
to evade measures to keep them off the roads, according
to a pair of studies. In one
report, researchers found that one in five drivers in
fatal crashes are unlicensed. It also found that
unlicensed drivers are five times more likely to be in
fatal crashes than drivers with valid licenses. The
other study found that 40 percent of all drunken-driving
trips are made by habitual drunken drivers, and that
more than half of all arrested drunken drivers are
repeat offenders. ID#
6358
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"Global
doping policy approved" (Stephen
Wilson, The Chicago Tribune, Mar 6, 2003) --
Sports bodies and
governments from around the world approved a policy
Wednesday to standardize rules against doping and punish
athletes who are drug cheats. Under the new code,
athletes will be subject to random, out-of-competition
drug testing. Now comes the real test putting the
program into practice. "The future will tell us if
this wonderful day can also be rated as a pivotal day in
the fight against doping," IOC President Jacques
Rogge said. After a three-day summit, 65 sports
federations and 73 national governments backed a global
plan that establishes regulations, procedures and
sanctions. ID#
6357
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"Rogge
No Room for Drug Code Rejection" (The New
York Times, Mar 4, 2003) --
Sports or countries that
fail to comply with global drug rules should be excluded
from the Olympics, IOC president Jacques Rogge said
Monday. Opening a three-day summit on drugs in sports,
Rogge also said countries refusing to fall into line
should be barred from hosting or even bidding for the
games. Rogge wants sports bodies and governments to
adopt the World Anti-Doping Agency's uniform code, with
sanctions applied across all sports and countries. His
intervention seemed to have an effect Later in the day,
soccer's governing body settled its differences with
WADA over two-year suspensions. The international
cycling federation also signaled its intent to back the
code despite continuing to criticize the sanctions and
exemptions of U.S. pro leagues. ID#
6343
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"Coors'
twins ads a hit with target market" (Michael
McCarthy, USA Today, Mar 2, 2003) --
Judging by what's hot with
young men these days, few are aspiring to be sensitive
Alan Alda-types from the '70s. Along TV favorites, in
addition to sports, are shows such as The Man Show on
Comedy Central. Their magazine taste runs to Maxim and
Stuff not GQ. To sell beer to these guys, the prime
market, Coors concluded that the way to get their
attention would be commercials featuring a pair of busty
cheerleaders who are twins. ID# 6340
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"College
towns fight student slums" (Larry
Copeland, USA Today, Mar 2, 2003) -- It's
Friday evening in this city of 78,000 that's home to the
University of Alabama. On the tree-lined residential
street where they live, university students Chris Smith,
22, and Jayson Perkinson, 21, are sipping Bloody Marys
and expressing their extreme displeasure over a
crackdown by the city. "It's just one thing after
another," says Perkinson, a public relations major
from Pensacola, Fla., plopping down on a tan sofa on the
front porch. "It seems like they're trying to take
away our freedoms, piece by piece," adds Smith, an
advertising major from Savannah, Ga. What has their ire
up is a series of new City Council laws. Effective
Saturday, the city banned the outdoor use of indoor
furniture like their couch and reduced the
operating hours of all-night bars. ID# 6339
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"Teenagers
on a Binge" (The
New York Times, Mar 2, 2003) --
Under-age drinkers consume
about 20 percent of all the alcohol imbibed in this
country, according to a report published last week in
The Journal of the American Medical Association. Many
parents are already aware of the horrific problem young
Americans have with binge drinking, but it's time to
spread the alarm. The alcoholic beverage industry
dismisses the new study, by Columbia University's
National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, as an
"attempt to manipulate data to get headlines."
But the study gains credence from being published in a
prestigious peer-reviewed journal, where an editorial by
the heads of two federal substance abuse agencies called
its findings on under-age drinking "of particular
concern." ID# 6338
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"How
to spend spring break" (The Chicago Tribune,
Mar 3, 2003) --
As spring break 2003
approaches--a reason for celebration among college
students and dread among their parents--it's worth
recalling these startling statistics from a 1998 study
The average male has 18 drinks a day and the average
female has 10 drinks daily during the holiday. More than
half of the men in the study, and almost as many of the
women drank to the point of vomiting or passing out at
least once. Those sobering statistics, from the Journal
of American College Health, underscore the dramatic--and
sometimes lethal--evolution of spring break over the
past decades. Spring break has evolved into a Mardi
Gras-like, MTV-spotlighted bacchanal for students who
flock by the tens of thousands to beaches in Florida and
Texas. ID# 6337
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"Medical
marijuana bill gains momentum" (Tim
Craig, The Chicago Tribune, Feb
27, 2003) --
Proponents of legalizing
marijuana for terminally ill patients believe they have
the momentum this year to pass a General Assembly bill
creating a state-run program to oversee use of the drug.
Maryland's attempt to decriminalize the drug, however,
places the state at odds with Bush administration
officials, who have tried to communicate their
disapproval to Republican Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. And
a federal drug official warned yesterday that Maryland
patients possessing the drug could be arrested under
federal law. ID# 6333
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"Government
rejects higher cigarette tax" (Maggie
Fox, Reuters Health, Feb
27, 2003) --
The federal government has
rejected a plan that would raise the federal cigarette
tax by $2 a pack to fund programs that would help
smokers quit, Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy
Thompson said on Wednesday. The plan, approved by the
Health and Human Services' Interagency Committee on
Smoking and Health, would have set aside half the money
raised for initiatives to help people stop smoking. But
Thompson said the idea of raising the tax from the
current 39 cents went against the basic philosophy of
the administration of President Bush, which is both
against raising taxes and pro-big business. ID#
6330
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"Study
measures alcohol's toll" (Kathleen
Fackelmann, USA Today, Feb 26, 2003) --
A report out Wednesday says
underage drinkers and adults who drink excessively
account for more than half of all the alcohol consumed
in the USA, but the alcohol industry is casting doubt on
the numbers behind the conclusions. The report by the
National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA)
suggests that together those two groups spend about $57
billion a year on booze. Alcohol abuse takes a huge toll
on the nation in car accidents, injuries, high-risk
sexual behavior and alcohol poisoning. Children are
particularly at risk New research suggests that alcohol,
especially in large amounts, can harm the
still-developing teenage brain. ID# 6326
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"Liquor
Industry and Scientists at Odds Over Alcohol Study" (Donald
G. McNeil, The New York Times, Feb
26, 2003) --
A study of excessive
drinking that appears in today's issue of The Journal of
the American Medical Association has started a saloon
brawl of its own between the authors and the liquor
industry, with each side accusing the other of
manipulating the figures. The study, by an institute
affiliated with Columbia University, concludes that half
the alcohol purchased in the United States is sold to
teenagers or people who drink too much. The study, which
is the journal's lead article, is couched more as a
political statement than as a dry recitation of numbers.
It ends with an attack on the liquor industry, calling
for higher taxes, antidrinking publicity campaigns and
tougher sentences for those who sell to minors. ID#
6325
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"Bill
Would Punish Those Who Serve Alcohol To Minors" (Yahoo
News, Feb 24, 2003) --
A state lawmaker said
she'll recommend approval for a bill to make an adult
liable if they serve alcohol to anyone under 21 years
old and that minor then hurts or kills someone. The bill
would also make an adult liable if they buy alcohol for
a minor and the minor causes an accident. Mothers
Against Drunk Driving wants the new law. MADD said 31
other states already have what's called a "Social
Host Liability Law." Senate Judiciary Chairwoman
Sen. Colleen Hanabusa said if adults know they will be
liable when they serve alcohol to kids, it might prevent
drunk driving accidents that have occur after graduation
parties. ID# 6322
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"DUI
Bills DOA" (The
Washington Post, Feb 23, 2003) --
CAPISTRANO
HAS its swallows; in Annapolis every year at this time,
the defense-lawyer buzzards return to the place where
drunk driving bills go to die. The legislative graveyard
is the House Judiciary Committee, ever led by Chairman
Joseph F. Vallario Jr. of Prince George's County, a
lawyer whose practice happens to include representing
drunk drivers. Alcohol-related deaths in Maryland go up,
but the proposed laws go down. A few measures struggled
through during the past two years, thanks in large
measure to the threat of losing federal highway funds. ID#
6318
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"Sales
of Cigarettes Online Hit" (Bob
Tedeschi, The New York Times, Feb
24, 2003) --
ONLINE sellers of
cigarettes have been in an enviable position until
recently. As states steadily raised cigarette taxes in
an effort to balance budgets and curb teenage smoking,
more and more consumers turned to the Web, where cheap
cigarettes abound. But such bargains may not be so
easily found in the future, some analysts said, as
states like New York prepare to outlaw online tobacco
sales, while others crack down on cigarette buyers who
do not pay taxes. ID# 6317
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"Regulating
drunk driving across the nation" (Wendy
J. Hamilton, The Chicago Tribune, Feb
21, 2003) --
Steve Chapman's Jan. 23
column, "Do we need a national DUI remedy?
Washington vs. the states on drunk driving" on the
Commentary page, ignores the rights of taxpaying
citizens to drive on public roadways without the threat
of being run down or maimed by a drunk driver. After
years of battling politics in state legislatures,
Congress in 2000 passed the federal law setting the
illegal drunk driving limit at .08 blood alcohol
concentration (BAC), and for good reason. The .08 BAC
law is a reasonable, common-sense law that is proven to
save lives. The federal law requires states to adopt
this standard or lose highway funding. To date, 17
states have not changed their BAC standard accordingly. ID#
6315
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"Curb
underage drinking" (The San Francisco
Chronicle, Feb 13, 2003) --
Well, it is a big deal.
It's estimated that alcohol is implicated in half of all
serious injuries and deaths of young people. Every state
has made it illegal for anyone under the age of 21 to
drink alcoholic beverages. Yet government surveys show
that the beer and distilled spirits industry earns an
estimated $100 million from the underage youth market in
California, and $1 billion nationwide.
Assembly Majority Leader Wilma Chan, D-Oakland, has
introduced legislation that will impose a fee on
producers of alcoholic beverages based on the revenue
they earn from the sale of alcohol to minors. ID#
6310
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"Film
and fashion smoking assailed" (Reuters,
The Los Angeles Times, Feb 19, 2003) --The
movie and fashion industries should stop glamorizing
smoking, the World Health Organization said Tuesday. It
urged them to "stop being used as vehicles of death
and disease." The U.N. body, trying to realize a
global anti-tobacco treaty, called on the film industry
to avoid presenting smoking in a favorable light and on
the fashion industry not to use cigarettes as fashion
accessories. ID# 6309
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"Drug
Treatment Woes" (Rob
Fleming, The Washington Post, Feb
19, 2003) --
D.C. Superior Court Judge
Jeanette J. Clark declared Initiative 62 invalid
["Judge Rejects D.C. Plan to Treat Drug
Offenders," Metro, Feb. 11], even though it passed
with 78 percent of the vote in November. District
residents know that drug and alcohol abuse underlies
much of the city's crime. More than half of people
arrested for violent crimes test positive for drug use,
and half of those involved in murders were under the
influence at the time of the crime. Half of the city's
residents say they know someone who has a drug or
alcohol problem, and they want them to be treated, not
prosecuted. ID# 6308
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"Judge
Rejects D.C. Plan To Treat Drug Offenders" (Arthur
Santana, The Washington Post, Feb
11, 2003) --
An initiative passed by
D.C. voters last fall that would require the city to
offer treatment to scores of nonviolent drug offenders
cannot take effect because it illegally dictates how the
D.C. government must spend its money, a judge ruled
yesterday. The ruling by D.C. Superior Court Judge
Jeanette J. Clark was a victory for the D.C. government,
which filed suit to block the initiative from becoming
law. D.C. officials said the measure would generate huge
costs and jeopardize the future of an existing drug
court.
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"Children focus of bill aimed at
meth labs" (The
Chicago Tribune, Feb 18, 2003) --
Illinois' attorney general
launched a crackdown on the state's growing problem with
methamphetamine labs Monday, seeking to double criminal
penalties if children are exposed when the drug is
manufactured. Convicted meth makers would face prison
terms of 6 to 120 years under the proposal, which will
be introduced in the legislature this week and could
become law July 1 if approved. Atty. General Lisa
Madigan said meth labs are law enforcement's
"fastest growing, most devastating and most costly
problem." She called the mixture of meth production
and children a "recipe for disaster." ID#
6306
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"W.H.O.
Plan on Tobacco Limit Ads, Raise Taxes" (Alison
Langley, The New York Times, Feb
15, 2003) --
It is nearly impossible to
find a no-smoking table in a restaurant in Switzerland,
a country where one in three people over age 15 lights
up. Despite Switzerland's high cost of living,
cigarettes are cheaper here than in any other Western
European country, and the number of cancer deaths is
rising. But Switzerland is also the home of the World
Health Organization, and delegates from 191 countries
are gathering in Geneva this weekend to work on the
final text of a treaty to control tobacco and its
devastating effects on public health. "I know that
both in France and Switzerland there is smoking in
restaurants I don't like it at all," said Gro
Harlem Brundtland, the health organization's general
director, said in an interview. ID#
6304
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"Meth
lab dumps threaten farm workers, environment"
(The Sacramento Bee, Feb 17, 2003) --
As methamphetamine labs are
dismantled in the Los Angeles basin, ranchers and
growers are seeing a spike in the number of drug
manufacturers moving into the Central Valley from Kern
County to as far north as Sacramento. The manufacturers
set up shop in rural areas, make thousands of pounds of
the highly addictive drug in a few hours and then dump
the toxic chemical byproducts along roadways or on
farms, where they pose a threat to residents, workers
and the environment. The rising incidence of meth labs
and their byproducts is so alarming in the northern
Central Valley that law enforcement officials are
training growers, their employees and their families how
to spot a drug lab dump and what to do. ID# 6303
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"Some
resorts throwing cold water on spring break" (Jayne
Clark, USA Today, Feb 13, 2003) --
For more than a decade,
Cancun, Mexico, has been party central for the boozed,
be-thonged and besotted boys and girls of spring break.
But this year, the drink-till-you-drop college crowd
will find less-indulgent hosts. A majority of the
Caribbean resort's hotels, bars and clubs that cater to
the student trade have signed a "civility
agreement" to enforce laws that in past years often
were ignored, officials say. Among them are bans on
underage drinking and public nudity. But Cancun isn't
the only locale attempting to dilute the combustible mix
of booze, sun and hormones that dowse college kids when
school's out. Spurred either by fed-up residents, safety
concerns for the students or concern that ribald crowds
drive away mainstream tourists, a number of party-hearty
havens are imposing limits. ID# 6300
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"States
take fizz out of Miller promo" (Stefanie
Olsen,The New York Times, Feb 13, 2003) --
Some state alcohol
commissioners have a message for Miller Brewing Beer
marketing and the Web don't always mix. At issue is a
city guide the beer and marketing giant launched last
year to highlight local bars and events. Regulators in
California, Texas and four other states have recently
ordered Miller to block or restrict the site,
Millertimenetwork.com, saying it violates rules
restricting the value of promotions that brewers can
provide to retailers. "Each state has their own
alcohol board, and for any promotion we do, that board
will look at how it adheres to their guidelines,"
said Scott Bussen, director of marketing communications
at Miller. "If the program gets watered down, we
will evaluate it." ID# 6299
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"Police
To Use $100,000 To Shut Down Clubs, Treat Drug Users" (Yahoo
News, Feb 13, 2003) --
Fort Lauderdale police are
employing an unusual tactic in the fight against club
drugs. Project Ecstasy uses $100,000 to close down the
clubs where drugs are prevelent, arrest the pushers and
offer treatment to users as an alternative to jail time.
Robert Cooke with the Fort Lauderdale Police Department
helped land the federal grant to launch the project. ID#
6297
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"$2
Federal Cigarette Tax Hike Sought" (Ceci
Connolly, The Washington
Post, Feb 13, 2003) --
A federal health commission
on smoking is recommending that the Bush administration
raise the federal tax on cigarettes from 39 cents to
$2.39 a pack, arguing that the huge increase could
prevent 3 million premature deaths and help 5 million
Americans quit smoking within a year. At least half of
the $28 billion expected to be generated by the tax
increase would be invested in anti-tobacco efforts such
as a national quit line, a major advertising campaign
and insurance coverage for federal workers seeking
treatment. The proposals, which the 28-member panel
endorsed unanimously Tuesday evening, reflect a dramatic
shift in political winds as the tobacco industry's clout
wanes and tobacco-related illnesses climb, several
health experts said. ID# 6296
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"Supervisors
Seek 'Tippler's Tax' to Help Health System" (Daren
Briscoe, The Los Angeles Times, Feb
12, 2003) -- Los
Angeles County supervisors voted Tuesday to seek the
authority to levy a county tax on poured alcoholic
drinks to help fund the county's health system. A
"tippler's tax" would provide a steady source
of revenue in a county faced with declining revenue and
a growing population of uninsured, and a tax of 5 cents
per drink could raise as much as $250 million annually,
according to Supervisor Gloria Molina, who sponsored the
motion. "I don't think people would mind paying an
extra nickel for a glass of wine to save the health
system," Molina said. The proposal is likely to
face strong opposition from the alcohol lobby, and Karen
Ross, president of the California Assn. of Winegrape
Growers, said it was "inappropriate" to
earmark certain programs to be funded through a tax on
one pro- duct. ID# 6295
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"Group
rallies support to fund youth alcohol treatment" (Danielle
Samaniego, The Los Angeles Times, Feb
11, 2003) -- Several
community leaders publicly announced their support
Monday for a state bill aimed at cracking down on
underage drinking. Assembly Bill 216, sponsored by
Assembly Majority Leader Wilma Chan (D-Oakland) and
backed by the Community Wellness Partnership of Pomona,
would require liquor companies to pay an annual fee
based on revenue earned from the illegal sale of alcohol
to minors. The money would help fund 68 youth alcohol
recovery and prevention centers statewide. "This is
something I totally embrace, whatever it takes, I'm
looking to support the effort," City Councilman Dan
Rodriguez said during a news conference at the Pomona
Public Library. ID# 6294
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"Rehab
home neighbors keep on the defensive" (Deirdre
Newman, The Los Angeles Times, Feb
10, 2003) --
Residents who live near an
alcohol and drug rehabilitation facility in the Hall of
Fame neighborhood continue to exert pressure on the city
to reject the owner's attempts to increase her number of
clients. Eleanor Manion is asking the Planning
Commission to approve the expansion of her facility,
which is in a single-family home in the 3100 block of
Cork Lane, from six residents to nine, saying it will to
provide a more stable and supportive living environment.
Neighbor say their main concern is that increasing the
number of clients increases the likelihood of trash such
as used condoms, alcohol beverage containers and
cigarette butts being strewn on their lawns. They also
charge the home is in such a state of disrepair that it
diminishes the quality of the neighborhood. ID#
6292
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"Sunday
Bar Alcohol Ban Struck Down in Ga." (Yahoo
News, Feb 7, 2003) --
A law that bans
free-standing taverns from selling alcohol on Sundays
while allowing hotel and restaurant bars to remain open
was struck down by a county judge. Superior Court Judge
Marvin Arrington said the state law was discriminatory.
The ruling, issued Wednesday, applies only to Fulton
County, where Atlanta is located, but would have
statewide implications if Attorney General Thurbert
Baker appeals to the Georgia Supreme Court. The attorney
general's office has not decided whether to appeal, a
spokesman said Thursday. ID# 6288
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"Lincoln
schools study further drug testing" (Karen
Cimino, Yahoo News, Feb 9, 2003) --
At least one Charlotte-area
school district is considering expanding random student
drug testing in light of a recent U.S. Supreme Court
ruling. Lincoln County Schools could join a short list
of Carolinas districts that already test more than just
athletes. The school board policy committee will discuss
the issue Monday. In June, the Supreme Court upheld an
Oklahoma school district's policy requiring students in
activities such as marching band, language clubs and
student government to submit to random drug tests. Many
area districts, including Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools,
have rejected random drug testing because it's too
expensive. ID# 6287
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"City
smoking ban is lacking support" (Gary
Washburn, The Chicago
Tribune, Feb 10, 2003) --
Despite a push by
anti-tobacco advocates to ban smoking in Chicago
restaurants, more city voters oppose the proposed
prohibition than support it, according to a new Tribune/WGN-Ch.
9 poll. Almost half of those surveyed--49 percent--said
they do not favor pending legislation that would outlaw
cigarettes in eateries, while 42 percent said they agree
with it. About 10 percent expressed no opinion on
proposals that have been the subject of spirited City
Council hearings. "I am thrilled to see that the
public understands our issue," said Colleen McShane,
president of the Illinois Restaurant Association.
"This is about choice and there are plenty of
restaurants to choose from in the city of Chicago." ID#
6286
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"Where fans get hurt more than
players" (Ashley
Michaels, The Los Angeles Times, Feb 4, 2003) --
Every year at the end of
January, men go to battle shedding blood, sweat and
tears on an open field of freshly cut grass. Tens of
thousands of loyal surveyors sit on the edge of their
seats overcome with emotion as a contagious fiery
passion runs rampant throughout the stadium. This
testosterone driven event is known as the Super Bowl.
Everywhere in America, the sound of beer cans opening
mixes with the smell of heart-stopping
cholesterol-saturated foods wafting through the air...On
an average day, 44 people die in alcohol-related traffic
crashes, which accounts for 40% of highway deaths. On
each of the past six Super Bowl Sundays, an average of
59 people were killed in alcohol-related crashes,
constituting 54% of highway deaths that day. In the year
2000, 62 people were killed in alcohol-related traffic
crashes on Super Bowl Sunday, accounting for more than
59% of all road deaths that day. ID# 6281
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"Calif. Students Devise Own
Anti-Drug Plan" (Yahoo
News, Feb 4, 2003) --
Students at two Southern
California high schools volunteered to be placed on a
list to be drug-tested, giving them an excuse to say no
if offered drugs "We're not interested in catching
kids," explained James Berube, the school
district's assistant superintendent of Business
Services. "We're interested in helping kids in our
community." The district will assemble a list of
volunteers and randomly pick an as-yet-undecided number
of students to test each month. ID# 6280
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"Alcohol Banned At Area Lakes" (Yahoo
News, Jan.
31, 2003) -- California
State Parks officials announced Friday that alcohol will
be banned at Lake Natoma and Folsom Lake. The ban will
take effect March 1. "This new alcohol consumption
policy prohibits the use of alcohol at all day-use areas
at Folsom Lake and Lake Natoma. That includes all
shoreline, except campgrounds and permitted special
events," California State Parks supervisor Scott
Nakaji said. Officials said the ban is the result of a
marked increase in alcohol-related problems at the lakes
in recent years. ID# 6273
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"Ireland to Ban Smoking in Workplace
(That Means Pubs, Too)" (Brian
Lavery, The New York Times, Jan.
31, 2003) -- Ireland
will ban smoking in all workplaces, including pubs and
restaurants, starting in 2004, Health Minister Micheal
Martin said today, angering tobacco manufacturers and
publicans who called the ban unenforceable and an
infringement of personal liberties. The announcement
coincided with the Irish Office of Tobacco Control's
publication of a study on the effects of secondhand
smoke, which found that people who work in smoky
environments are up to 30 percent more likely to get
heart disease, among other illnesses. "The bottom
line is you don't have to be a smoker to get cancer from
cigarette smoking," Mr. Martin said in a statement,
adding, "It is only fair that we have a level
playing field in this important area of public health
and that the health of workers is protected on an
equitable basis for all." ID#
6269
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"'Sin tax' to aid
state deficit" (Anthony Lima, The Lantern, Jan.
30, 2003) --
Ohioans should expect to
pay more for alcohol and cigarettes if Gov. Bob Taft's
new proposal to balance the budget is passed through the
General Assembly in the next few weeks. To alleviate the
$720 million deficit facing the state, Taft will be
putting together a package that will include spending
cuts and revenue enhancements. The proposal will be
presented to the legislature Monday. Andrew Herf,
spokesman for the Wholesale Beer and Wine Association of
Ohio, said he believes the "sin tax" is just a
short-term bandage for the state's financial problem and
it will not be a long-term solution. ID# 6265
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"Council not hot on beer delivery" (June
Casagrande, The Los Angeles Times, Jan.
29, 2003) -- Contrary
to recommendations from the Police Department and
Planning Commission, City Council members Tuesday denied
a request for a pizza parlor to deliver beer and wine
along with food. "It would be insane to allow
Hotties to deliver alcohol with pizza," resident
Laura Dietz said. The Planning Commission approved the
request from Hotties Pizza for the site at 325 Old
Newport Blvd. after the Police Department attached
restrictions designed to curb liquor-related worries.
The Police Department's report found "no serious
concerns in regards to the proposed operation," and
the document recommended safeguards Employees delivering
beer and wine must be at least 21 years old;
entertainment, dancing and outdoor drinking are all
prohibited at the restaurant; and beer and wine can only
be delivered along with food. ID# 6263
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"The Perfect Crime" (Suzanne
Smalley, NEWSWEEK, Feb. 3, 2003) --
After two whisky and Cokes, Patricia
White decided to call it a night. The 47-year-old mother
of three had been talked into helping her boss, Lorenzo
Feal, celebrate his birthday with several colleagues. As
she was leaving, Feal handed White a bottle of water,
she says. She took a big gulp and spit the rest out
because it tasted salty. Three hours later, White woke
up in Feals bed, naked and nauseated shed been
drugged and raped..."Its ideal for predators and
tough for prosecutors." Another prosecutor, Timothy
Walsh, calls GHB-fueled sex assaults the "perfect
crime" since the liquid poison is colorless,
odorless and frighteningly easy to use. And without
toxicological evidence, it can be difficult to prove
that the rape victim didnt willingly consent to sex.
GHB, long popular among club goers, has been illegal
since 2000, but it can be manufactured in the kitchen
sink using commonly available chemicals. ID#
6261
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"High court voids part of drunken
driving law" (Jeff Long, The
Chicago Tribune, Jan. 25, 2003) --
Prosecutors will have to work harder to prove reckless
homicide in drunken driving cases after the Illinois
Supreme Court on Friday declared a portion of the
state's law unconstitutional. Opening the door for
perhaps hundreds of people convicted of reckless
homicide to seek new trials, the high court said the
Illinois law wrongly shifts the burden of proof from
prosecutors to defendants. Since the mid-1980s any
drunken driver involved in a fatal wreck was presumed
reckless. In 1991 the legislature clarified that
presumption, saying that being under the influence of
alcohol or drugs "shall be presumed to be evidence
of a reckless act unless disproved by evidence to the
contrary." ID# 6259
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"Do we need a national DUI remedy?" (Steve
Chapman, The Chicago Tribune, Jan.
23, 2003) -- When
a boss gives an employee a task, it's best for the
employee to accept it, and when the federal government
tells the states to do something, it's prudent for the
states to submit. In either case, the consequences of
refusal are generally too painful to bear. But lately,
something unusual has occurred Washington has demanded
action from state legislatures, and many of them have
invited Washington to go pound sand. In 2000, President
Clinton and Congress decided that drunk driving required
a national remedy. So they enacted a law instructing
states to reduce the blood-alcohol level that defines
drunk driving to .08 percent, down from the .10 percent
that was common. ID# 6253
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"Lawmakers Target Student Drug Use" (Yahoo
News, Jan. 22, 2003) -- One
of the most controversial programs proposed by lawmakers
this year is forcing school children to take drug tests.
The proposal came up again Tuesday in Linda Lingle's
State of State address. The governor calls her proposal
for testing school children for drugs voluntary.
However, she later explained such testing would be
mandatory unless a parent said in advance he or she did
not want their child tested. ID# 6251
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"Groups seek 50% alcohol tax hike" (Kevin
Corcoran,
The Indianapolis Star, Jan.
19, 2003) --
Health and safety advocates
want to increase taxes on every can of beer, glass of
wine and bottle of booze sold by 50 percent to raise
more money for alcohol rehab programs and efforts to
curb underage drinking. But winning higher alcohol taxes
on the heels of last year's increases in business
income, cigarette, gambling and sales taxes won't be
easy -- even though Indiana's alcohol taxes are
generally lower than those of surrounding states. If the
General Assembly were to go along, it again would be
relying on vice as a virtue, targeting a narrow segment
of the population for taxation to achieve a worthy
social goal. ID# 6246
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"U-M will go smoke free" (Marsha Low,
The Detroit Free Press, Jan.
15, 2003) --
Sitting outside the
University of Michigan's East Quadrangle hall Tuesday,
John Trummer III shook from the frigid cold as he
struggled to enjoy an afternoon smoke. Bundled in coat,
hat and gloves, the U-M sophomore took a few quick puffs
and headed for warmth. This unpleasant ritual is the
plight of most smokers. And come fall, Trummer will be
joined by hundreds of U-M students when smoking will be
banned from the dorms. "We have a policy that says
the rights of a nonsmoker to protect his or her health
will take precedence over those who want to smoke,"
said Alan Levy, U-M's director of housing public
affairs. ID# 6245
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"Mixed results on college-alcohol effort" (Benjamin
Y. Lowe,
The Philadelphia Inquirer, Jan.
15, 2003) --
Police in this college town
have not been able to get the students here to drink
less, but they have managed to get them to behave better
when they do, according to Mayor Richard B. Yoder.
Statistics released from a
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