Fighting back against Tobacco Control in New Zealand

As expected, the following headline caught my eye this morning:

Tobacco Control Groups continue to mislead public

Really? No kidding, huh? So can it be that people are starting to see through the ruse of the anti-tobacco movement? It would certainly seem so, and I suspect that it is because they are finally getting so out of control that their true intentions and methods are becoming clear and they can no longer hide behind their “do good” facade.

So what has finally pushed people over the edge?

“Today we have seen press releases by the Cancer Society taking comments made by the Association at yesterday’s presentation before the Health Select Committee completely out of context,” said NZACS Chairman Bryce Taylor.

“They have tried to demonise retailers who sell what is still a legal product.”

First off, here’s an example of one of these asinine press releases. But that aside, whoa ho! There it is. The anti-smoking groups are going after everybody and anybody who has anything to do with tobacco and are using overtly misleading data and statements to sway public opinion and influence public offices. Sound familiar? it should, we see it here all the time. But there is one thing that is really interesting here:

“If they had an understanding of the retail sector then they would understand… “

Bingo. Rarely, if ever, do these groups have even the most rudimentary understanding of the real world and how things work. All they know is a personal agenda against tobacco and they are willing to say or do anything – even if that means hurting others – to accomplish their selfish goals.

To further that:

“The commercial reality is that retailers sell tobacco to adult consumers who wish to see and choose a product that is still legal. Tobacco products do not ’sit alongside baked beans’ and for Mr Dalton to claim so is again misleading and scaremongering,” said Mr Taylor.

I couldn’t have said it better myself! Taylor hit the nail squarely when he said that they sell tobacco to adults. Furthermore, as the real world understands, advertising and marketing is designed for brand recognition and to promote one brand of a same product over another. It isn’t some conspiracy theory to draw people into smoking through insidious packaging techniques.

This is a big reality check, and people need to start opening their eyes to this sort of silly but misleading behavior designed to sway the world to their favor.