Federal appeals court strikes down FDA tobacco warning label law

[Eddie Teach]

American courts rule in favour of big business over health of its citizens. News at 11.

Some people just can't/don't want to be helped.

Or MacDonald's should put warnings on its Big Macs: Eating this will make you laughingly obese.

I saw a guy in a documentary who eats nothing but Big Macs. He was pretty thin.

[Razgovory]

He should go to Somalia and eat nothing but carrion, grass and shell casings.

[Josephus]

When I used to smoke (I quit four years ago Labour Day), I actually used to love collecting Canada's graphic warnings. There was one really cool one (they've changed them since) that had a picture of  a cigarette with one end slowly sloping down in an arch and the slogan was: Smoking makes you impotent.

My favourite though was the one in the hospital which had the slogan: Cigarettes reduce Life Expectancy. To which I used to say, "Bah, I don't expect much out of life anyways."

Anyways, Canada has had cool graphic warnings probably for 20 or more years. Nobody even thought to think of it as violating free speech.

[Syt]

25, 30 years ago, some doctors' waiting rooms had anti-smoking/drinking posters. One that I particularly remember was cigarette stumps and two burning cigarettes in an ash tray that was shaped like a lung.

[Barrister]

Anyways, Canada has had cool graphic warnings probably for 20 or more years. Nobody even thought to think of it as violating free speech.

There has been lots of litigation whether or not various restrictions on cigarette ads violate free speech or not.  It's generally been found that yes, they do restrict cigarette companies free speech, but that such limit is justifiable under s. 1.  However in some cases such restrictions have been struck down.  See RJR MacDonald v Canada [1995] 3 SCR 199.

[Josephus]

I take that back.

Other than the cigarette companies, and,maybe, their lawyers, no one really is all fussed about it.

[garbon]

I talked to a friend who said if those images (shown in OP link) were on a pack, she'd smoke more as they'd stress her out.

[sbr]

Free speech issue? I just don't see it.

Timmy, I love[1] you, but are you fucking retarded[2]?  This is the government compelling that a private person[3] make particular speeches with every sale of their product.  How could that be anything other than a free speech issue?

[1] In a prison way.
[2] I tried to write this in a kinder fashion, but couldn't.  This is take 3.
[3] To the extent corporations are people, I recommend life without parole[4], but that's beside the point.
[4] Except for corporations under the age of 18, who might be able to reform.

One of my all time favourite posts.

  Yeah it is.  I didn't see it until I got home from work at 4:30AM and my brain was too frazzled at that point to respond but I did Laugh Out Loud^TM when I read it.

[ulmont]

Free speech issue? I just don't see it.

Timmy, I love[1] you, but are you fucking retarded[2]?  This is the government compelling that a private person[3] make particular speeches with every sale of their product.  How could that be anything other than a free speech issue?

[1] In a prison way.
[2] I tried to write this in a kinder fashion, but couldn't.  This is take 3.
[3] To the extent corporations are people, I recommend life without parole[4], but that's beside the point.
[4] Except for corporations under the age of 18, who might be able to reform.

One of my all time favourite posts.

  Yeah it is.  I didn't see it until I got home from work at 4:30AM and my brain was too frazzled at that point to respond but I did Laugh Out Loud^TM when I read it.

Glad you two liked it.

[Neil]

I take that back.

Other than the cigarette companies, and,maybe, their lawyers, no one really is all fussed about it.

Not especially, but it's still stupid and pointless.

[garbon]

Actually who are these people who have yet to learn that smoking is harmful?

[crazy canuck]

Actually who are these people who have yet to learn that smoking is harmful?

Teenagers and particularly teenage girls.

[HVC]

They know, they just don't care. Pictures won't stop that. When I started I knew cigarettes were bad. They didn't have pictures yet, but if they did I highly doubt it would do anything.

[crazy canuck]

They know, they just don't care. Pictures won't stop that. When I started I knew cigarettes were bad. They didn't have pictures yet, but if they did I highly doubt it would do anything.

The idea is to create a stigma around smoking.  Thats why the anti smoking adds these days focus on how it makes you look like crap.  We cant prevent people from doing stupid things but we can appeal to their vanity.

[garbon]

Actually who are these people who have yet to learn that smoking is harmful?

Teenagers and particularly teenage girls.

Pretty sure they know they are bad. Kinda like HVC said. I know its been a bit since I was a teen but already in the 90s we had lots of info pushed on us about how bad smoking was. And now with so many places where it is banned...