Clearing The Air

Tuesday, October 31, 2006

After a week without internet connections.....We're back...with a new course of action

Ok it appears to be official, the financial devastation due to the smoking bans have been permanent and irrevocable to my former livelihood and family home. I will perservere though with a much more renewed vigor to expose the secondhand smoke lie and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's role in promoting policies (smoking bans) strictly for financial gain.

As a renewed course of action, Clearing the Air proposes that those groups battling the smoking ban agenda get the following language inserted as an amendment to any and all smoking bans:

Even though nearly all the pro-smoking ban lobbyists' testify that no businesses or individuals will be financially harmed because of smoking bans.....be it enacted, all groups which lobby or "educate" local lawmakers about the benefit of smoking ban laws shall place $10 million into a local trust fund to be used to compensate employees and/or businesses financially impacted by said smoking bans.

If as all the doctors and non-profits' claim..... "smoking bans are good for business" .... their trust fund will be secure and lawmakers, the public, as well as local businesses can be assured of no financial harm.

Each local smoking ban ordinance will require a separate $10 million trust fund to be financed equally by the all pro-smoking ban lobbyists involved (including RWJF).

Wednesday, October 25, 2006

Keep moving.....nothing new to see here folks....

The smoking bans have had such a profound affect on my family's livelihood and lives that we decided to move.........Yes we thought we'd downgrade from owning a new 2001 three level 4 bedroom, 4 bath home to renting a 1950 2 bdr. 2 bath cape cod. Why you might ask?..........Why indeed.

Suffice it to say that the liars at RWJF and the Johnson & Johnson Company as well as the non-profits they pay to do their bidding, have created a new lifetime adversary, who will stop at nothing to distribute the untold facts about secondhand smoke........which is up to 25,000 times SAFER than OSHA regulations for secondhand smoke........proven by the American Cancer Society the St. Louis Park, MN. Environmental Health Department and this British Medical Journal published test result, just to name a few.

I always joke to people that if the tobacco companies put me out of work I'd have every lawyer in the country filing lawsuits on my behalf.........but let it be the pharmaceutical nicotine interests fighting against tobacco being my cause of unemployment and house foreclosure and I can't find a lawyer to even listen.......oh well that's life on the politically incorrect side of the issue I guess.

I will be back in approximately 1 - 2 weeks........with a vengeance.......see you, or perhaps just your money, at the state capitol Robert Wood Johnson.

Follow the red......

Sunday, October 22, 2006

Minnesota Health Department exposed for taking funds from pharmaceutical nicotine interests

Clearing the Air readers know of the link between RWJF and the manufacturer of Nicoderm, the Johnson & Johnson Company. So when it is exposed that our "impartial" State Health Department receives funds from pharmaceutical nicotine interests while promoting a ban on tobacco nicotine use........the appearance of impropriety and conflict of interest is clear.

Clearing the Air will closely follow the situation to see if an investigation is forthcoming.

(RWJF financial grant to Minnesota Department of Health is backed up on C.T.R. servers just in case RWJF somehow "misplaces" their link.)

Below are $2,000,000.00+ in grants from the pharmaceutical nicotine foundation RWJF to Minnesota government agencies.

http://www.rwjf.org/newsroom/newsreleasesdetail.jsp?id=10386&gsa=1

http://www.rwjf.org/reports/grr/023573.htm?gsa=1#int_grantinfo

http://www.rwjf.org/portfolios/resources/grantsreport.jsp?filename=030782.htm&iaid=144&gsa=1#int_grantinfo

http://www.rwjf.org/portfolios/grant.jsp?id=55807&iaid=141&gsa=1

http://www.rwjf.org/portfolios/grant.jsp?id=59870&iaid=141&gsa=2

Saturday, October 21, 2006

How to operate a successful multi-billion dollar pharmaceutical nicotine empire

1) Set up a "foundation" which has the outward appearance of "caring" for peoples' health.

2) Provide funding to innocuous non-profit organizations which have an interest in promulgating lies about secondhand smoke, if they hope to get another multi-million dollar grant from RWJF; so that your pharmaceutical nicotine product sales increase after the passage of smoking ban legislation.

3) Teach retailers how to capitalize on new legislation which your pharmaceutical company funded.

4) Drink liberally at the end of the work day to ease your conscience of all the innocent people you put out of work due to your smoking ban lobbying efforts.

5) Finally, do fun stuff with all of the money you just made........buy an NFL franchise.

Even as the American Cancer Society and a local Environmental Health Department prove that secondhand smoke is up to 25,000 times SAFER than air quality regulations for secondhand smoke.

(click on the colored text for supporting data)

Thursday, October 19, 2006

Good day local politicians......just wanted to let you know how your policies destroy lives.

The following letter was sent to Minneapolis, St. Paul, and Bloomington MN. city council members after they enacted smoking bans......and is relevant to any local or state government which passes smoking bans.

Apparently it takes nearly a year before you actually get forced out of you home due to foreclosure......I didn't know that, did you?

Just to refresh your memory on how your misguided ordinances negatively affect peoples lives, here is that story:

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2006/09/true-confessions-of-my-reasons-for.html

Of course I am not the only one negatively affected......here are the thousands more in mostly Hennepin county: (each establishment employed 30+ people on average)

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2005/11/updated-hennepin-ramsey-hospitality.html

But since the media refuses to report the negative impact.......somehow up in your pristine ivory towers, all is right with the world. And in fact, in your narcissistic minds you saved the people from a fate more hazardous than nuclear fallout.......secondhand smoke. I don't say that as a sarcastic joke I mean it literally. You folks actually believe the pharmaceutical lie that there is "no safe level" of secondhand smoke...where are the cries of "there is no safe level of radiation"?

We are naturally exposed to low levels of radiation all day everyday....and it is fact that OSHA has a safe level of exposure (pel) to radiation......and everyone of you is content to let the OSHA regulations dictate that safe level.......Yet, it is also fact that OSHA has a safe level of exposure (pel) for every one of the chemical components of secondhand smoke and air quality testing by a local St. Louis Park, MN. Environmental Health Department and the American Cancer Society finds that secondhand smoke concentrations ranged between 15 - 25,000 times SAFER than OSHA permissible exposure limits (pel) for exposure to secondhand smoke......NOT A HEALTH HAZARD.

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2006/02/air-quality-testing-and-secondhand.html

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2004/04/american-cancer-society-test-results.html

Oh well, the opposition is well funded by the pharmaceutical industry (RWJF), even the AMA accepted $88 million from RWJF to spread lies about secondhand smoke.........how could we expect our local politicians to remain steadfast.......in an avalanche of cash and disinformation, shown here:

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2006/10/how-drug-industry-uses-non-profits-to.html

The payoff to the drug companies for smoking cessation is huge........$500,000,000.00+ annually, so their incentive to lie is well documented:

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2006/09/now-that-rwjf-has-put-smoking-bans-in.html

But could I ask just one thing of all of you who enact such laws which clearly are very damaging to the lives of many of us....... is it possible for you to demand that these billion dollar special interests set aside a few hundred million dollars before you enact such legislation.....so that those harmed, like myself, have someplace to turn for help when our jobs are lost, our vehicles are repossessed, and our homes are foreclosed?

And just to let you know, as I am packing my things before eviction November 5, 2006, from probably the last house my ruined credit will ever again own......to move into a run down rental home; you should be aware that you have done nothing but strengthen my resolve to vehemently oppose and testify against the smoking ban at the state level. And as many State Senate and House members have come to know my situation firsthand and have tried to help my family personally.....there will be fewer state lawmakers who fall for the same pharmaceutical lies you did.

The negative effects of smoking bans on peoples lives and livelihoods along with the total disregard and apathy by the non-profit "do-gooders", speaks volumes about the real agenda and the lack of concern for health and welfare.....

Monday, October 16, 2006

It's clear to me now why the tobacco industry doesn't do more to fight smoking bans

Much to the chagrin of the pharmaceutical nicotine industry which funds smoking ban efforts and the non-profits they fund to accomplish that end. Smoking bans don't decrease cigarette sales and /or use.......they have actually been shown to increase the sales and use of tobacco products, as this story out of Scotland indicates.

.....Other countries also saw a rise in the number of young people smoking because the habit came to be seen more as an act of rebellion. ....... if people are smoking more at home since the ban, children who live with smokers may be suffering instead......

So it seems that smoking ban activists are actually causing more harm than good.....but until the money which supports them from the pharmaceutical industry dries up.....the increase in smoking rates is unlikely to end anytime soon.

And the tobacco industry has an unlikely and unwitting ally.........the smoking ban activists.

Sunday, October 15, 2006

Clearing the Air cannot support the RINO for Governor...

RINO (Republican in name only)

Clearing the Air pointed out long ago that the Republican Party tends to be more free market friendly than Democrats. Indeed the Minnesota Republican Party even added this language to its 2004 party platform:

S. Opposing any state or local adoption of a smoking ban on privately owned restaurants and bars. (found at bottom of page 7)

However, in the race for Governor here in Minnesota, Clearing the Air will depart from its typically right leaning politics because our current RINO Governor Tim Pawlenty not only supports a statewide smoking ban, but said he would gladly sign it into law.....And Pawlenty has been anything but conservative on a whole host of issues....supporting state subsidized sports stadiums, light rail, an increase in tobacco taxes, etc. While Democratic challenger Mike Hatch has stated, according to one local website:

He said he was bothered by the idea of a smoking ban and wouldn’t support a statewide ban.

Clearing the Air will wait for a confirmation from challenger Mike Hatch on his stance against a smoking ban before giving any endorsement though.

Developing.....stay tuned.

Prophecy of our forefathers......Plus an addendum that should be added to any and all smoking bans old or new

I happened to glance up at our wall calendar this morning and found a prophetic quote:

A government that is big enough to give you all you want..........is big enough to take it all away1. -Barry Goldwater

Of course the perversion to this prophecy regarding smoking bans is that government didn't enact such legislation of their own accord, policy makers were misinformed and lied2 to by pharmaceutical interests3 whose real objective was to obtain a government mandate which favored their nicotine products4 over tobacco nicotine product use.

And the only way to bring common sense back to the issue is for lawmakers to realize that there already is an established safe level5 of exposure for secondhand smoke components and as the American Cancer Society has shown us, secondhand smoke concentrations are up to 25,000 times safer6 than the established safe level.

If however, lawmakers refuse to use reason and science as the basis for laws; they need to put one further safeguard in place: If the implementation of a smoking ban results in loss of revenues7, business closings8, or job losses9......the pharmaceutical interests (especially RWJF and Johnson & Johnson Company10), and non-profits which did their bidding11 will be responsible for providing compensation to those12 affected13.

Thursday, October 12, 2006

How the drug industry uses non-profits to push its interests

Surrogates for Their Agenda
How the drug industry uses non-profits to push its interests

The article states:

...the pharmaceutical industry has mounted a sophisticated grassroots campaign to build support for its position on key issues that affect its bottom line. The industry has funded various groups to champion its positions, sponsored studies tilted to the industry and hired public relations firms to spearhead campaigns to soften up public opinion and government policies....
I've linked to this story in prior posts but I think it is important to make this story a post of its own. If you click on the title above you can read the entire story. And true enough it is a story that needs to be told, but at Clearing the Air the real story that The Center for Public Integrity is missing is HOW THE DRUG INDUSTRY USES NON-PROFITS TO PUSH ITS SMOKING BAN AGENDA....TO PROP UP PHARMACEUTICAL NICOTINE (smoking cessation) PRODUCT SALES.

Smoking-cessation category (US) sales*Information Resources Inc. (IRI) 52 weeks ended Oct. 2, 2005 (not including Wal-Mart data) Total smoking-cessation category in FDMX* ($494.8 million)

Here are a sample of grants directly from Johnson & Johnson Company's political arm, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), (see links above for Nicoderm rationale to implement smoking bans) so you can see the type of non-profits that the drug industry funds; and the activist goals and agenda:

http://www.rwjf.org/portfolios/grantlist.jsp?iaid=143&gsa=1

And when Clearing the Air informs lawmakers and you the general public, that the health "hazard" claims these activists' are making reqarding secondhand smoke are nothing more than exaggerations and lies; here are the facts and science we base that claim on:

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2007/05/peer-reviewed-and-bmj-published.html

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2004/04/american-cancer-society-test-results.html

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2006/02/air-quality-testing-and-secondhand.html

text in red= supporting data hyperlink

Wednesday, October 11, 2006

When does an issue rise to a level of health hazard requiring government action?

Clearing the Air believes that if someone is going to goto lawmakers and claim we need a law for x,y, or z because x,y, or z is a health hazard. Then the initial hurdle ought to be to first prove that x,y, or z is a health hazard.

And OSHA standards ought to be the gauge if the argument is that we need to protect employees' health....because OSHA is the agency that protects employee health regarding every potentially hazardous workplace situation. If actual x,y, or z levels are below OSHA guidelines ie. safer than OSHA guidelines, then no organization has the right to bring that particular issue before lawmakers to demand an ordinance or legislation.

And in the case of secondhand smoke the ALA, ACS, AHA, AMA, ANR, ASH, etc. etc. and anyone else that recieved Nicoderm funding thru RWJF would be driven out of city hall & state capitols for wasting lawmakers' time on an issue which clearly does not rise to health hazard levels.....and only serves to financially benefit the pharmaceutical nicotine industry which funded such efforts.

St. Louis Park, MN. Environmental Health Department and OSHA data prove secondhand smoke conentrations indoors are 500-15 times SAFER than OSHA regulations. Not a health hazard.

The American Cancer Society and OSHA data prove secondhand smoke conentrations indoors are 25,000-532 times SAFER than OSHA regulations. Also not a health hazard.

However all the non-profit groups which lobby for smoking bans are heavily funded by pharmaceutical nicotine interests, who have a financial interest in seeing that lawmakers ban the use of their competitors' product -tobacco nicotine.

Smoking bans are nothing more than one industry....drug manufacturers (Nicoderm maker Johnson & Johnson Company and its political wing, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation RWJF) using the force of government to give them a competitive advantage in the marketplace......while masquerading the the secondhand smoke issue as one of health "hazard"........... clearly an exaggeration if not an outright lie.

Saturday, October 07, 2006

Overheard by a consumer rights advocate organization recently....

During a recent local radio interview a consumer rights advocate made a comment to the effect of: Certain companies try to convince lawmakers to pass laws that benefit themselves so that they don't have to compete against other companies.

There is a nationwide phenomenon which fits that description exactly, it occurs in city halls, county commissions, and state capitols across America and now around the world.....they're called smoking bans. Smoking ban propnonents masquarade the issue as a public health concern, but two indedpendent air quality studies prove that secondhand smoke levels are actually between 15 - 25,000 times SAFER than OSHA workplace air quality regulations for secondhand smoke, so the health hazard argument and justification is simply a canard.

Read more about the two air quality studies by a local health department and the American Cancer Society here:

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2006/02/air-quality-testing-and-secondhand.html

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2004/04/american-cancer-society-test-results.html

Now, look behind the scenes to see who is really funding the smoking ban efforts and you'll find a more corrupt and monopolistic agenda. Pharmaceutical nicotine interests like the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (division of J & J) and the Johnson & Johnson Company (which owns ALZA the manufacturer of Nicoderm & Nicoderm CQ) provide funds for the lobbying efforts of pro-smoking ban activists:

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2006/01/will-there-be-investigation-into-this.html

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2005/07/why-is-pharmaceutical-company-funding.html

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2006/08/its-time-for-full-scale-congressional.html

Why?.........because it adds to their bottom line profits: http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2006/09/now-that-rwjf-has-put-smoking-bans-in.html

Here are some examples of specific grants provided by the Nicoderm manufacturer -Johnson & Johnson's "philanthropic" division the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF).
http://www.rwjf.org/portfolios/grantlist.jsp?iaid=143&page=2

http://www.rwjf.org/portfolios/resources/grantsreport.jsp?filename=041244.htm&iaid=141&gsa=1#int_grantinfo

So it is no surprise to see a $3,991,235.00 grant by RWJF to the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids used to lobby for smoking bans in bars and restaurants in Washington D.C. Nor is it surprising to see a $99,000,000.00 grant by RWJF to the American Lung Association, American Cancer Society, and American Heart Association funnel its way to the lobbying efforts of smoking ban across the country, or $88,000, 000.00 from RWJF to the American Medical Association so that physicians might "educate" lawmakers around the country about the urgent need for more smoking bans. Yet the fact that these funds and agenda comes from competing nicotine interests ought to be enough to discredit the dubious information they provide to lawmakers.

Meanwhile tens of thousands of people like myself are put out of work and stand to lose everything so that pharmaceutical nicotine interests can continue to turn a profit in a monopolistic setting and not be required to compensate those of us that they've displaced.

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2006/09/true-confessions-of-my-reasons-for.html

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2005/11/updated-hennepin-ramsey-hospitality.html

http://www.smokersclubinc.com/banloss3.htm

Look, I realize tobacco is an easy target and I am not asking for people or lawmakers to stand up to defend tobacco interests. But people are losing jobs and livelihoods because of pharmaceutical nicotine interests who demand that lawmakers ban use of their competitors' product -tobacco. I know it is not politically correct to defend such private property rights issues when they seem so intertwined with tobacco interests, but the injustice to the tens of thousands at the hands of the pharmaceutical nicotine interests is very real.

Pharmaceutical nicotine interests seem intent in not remedying the job or business losses, caused by their actions, voluntarily. The time has come to fight this broad injustice, and so the only recourse seems to be to use the rule of law to compel these multi-billion dollar pharmaceutical nicotine interests to compensate those who have been financially harmed by their ill-advised, profit motivated agenda..... smoking bans.

Here is an article which helped tutor pharmaceutical nicotine interests' on how to profit from new government regulations (smoking bans) against the tobacco companies.
http://www.smoke-free.ca/pdf_1/ands.pdf

Wednesday, October 04, 2006

The internet is the great equalizer says Google chairman Eric Schmidt

In this article Google's chief executive makes a very salient point.

Writing in the Sun tabloid, the Google boss said the online world has empowered ordinary people with the ability to challenge governments, the media and business.

"It has broken down the barriers that exist between people and information, effectively democratizing access to human knowledge," Schmidt wrote.

"This has made us much more powerful as individuals."

Very true, and as a case in point the mainstream media, which is loathe to call out the pro-smoking ban lies for what they are, would never publish the fact that the American Cancer Society conducted air quality testing in smoking venues. And they (msm) would never point out that the ACS air quality studies when compared to OSHA air quality regulations prove that actual secondhand smoke concentrations are up to 25,000 times SAFER than required.

Thus proving that secondhand smoke is neither a health hazard nor requires or legitimizes government smoking bans.

The other thing that mainstream media would never point out to the public or to lawmakers is that the funding and demand for smoking bans is not due health concerns as much as pharmaceutical nicotine interests' bottom line profit concerns. Selling smoking cessation products becomes much more profitable after smoking bans pass, $500,000,000.00+ annually to be exact.

So Clearing the Air definitely agrees with Schmidt's assertion, and we have the comments from lawmakers across the globe as proof positive that the internet is becoming the great equalizer, and an alternative source for facts when msm deems facts as unnecessary.

(text in red = supporting data hyperlink)

Tuesday, October 03, 2006

Was former Surgeon General Carmona ousted for his junk science conclusions in a June 2006 report?

From this story it appears that is the case:

So did you get pushed out because of the second-hand smoke issue?

There were a number of those editorials. To be honest with you, if I was, I would never know. If someone [in the administration] would have made a compelling case to stay, I would have thought about it. I had nobody tell me: you're out of here because you wrote that report. All I heard were complaints that some people in the administration were not happy.

And as Clearing the Air stated at the time, the "no safe level" argument is a blatant lie. OSHA puts forth a safe level of exposure, called permissible exposure level (pel), for all hazardous compounds. If we followed the argument that there is no safe level of exposure to hazardous chemicals we would have to declare the very air we breath as hazardous because of the carbon dioxide (CO2) naturally present. CO2 kills humans at a concentration of 20%.

As a matter of fact OSHA sets a (pel) for all the chemicals in secondhand smoke and according to American Cancer Society air quality testing, secondhand smoke is up to 25,000 times safer than OSHA permissible exposure limits.........ie. not a health hazard.

American Cancer Society air quality testing data. The American Cancer Society measured the air quality for secondhand smoke in several venues.

ACS tested by measuring the "marker" chemical in secondhand smoke -nicotine.* The results are shown above ranging from 20 -940 nanograms / cu. M. A nanogram is 10 (-9) of a gram or 0.000000001 of a gram which is also 0.000001 of a mg (milligram)

Full OSHA table here:

http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=STANDARDS&p_id=9992

The OSHA safe exposure level to airborne nicotine for an 8 hour per day, 40 hour per week is 0.5 mg/cu. M as per the partial OSHA table above.

So to determine what the American Cancer Society air quality testing really tells us, we compare the test results to the OSHA permissble exposure limits (pel).

OSHA safe level 0.5 mg divided by ACS result 20 nanograms, which is also 0.000020 of a mg. Thus, 0.5 /0.00002 = ACS secondhand smoke levels are 25,000 times safer than OSHA regulations (pel).

So the former surgeon general exercised poor judgment by claiming there is "no safe level" (a lie), and Carmona wasted a large sum of taxpayer money issuing a worthless report all in a feeble attempt to keep the smoking ban debate in the public forum. .........So yes, his resignation was a prudent decision, because his firing would have been justified.

-Thanks to Colin Grainger for the tip.

Additional information about Carmona's departure.

http://www.cato.org/pubs/regulation/regv30n1/v30n1-5.pdf

Monday, October 02, 2006

There are numerous special interests like RWJF & the non profits they fund willing to lie about the facts, to get lawmakers to pass needless laws.

Dear lawmaker,

Here is what you should know before considering a ban on smoking in private bars and restaurants:

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2006/06/case-against-smoking-ban-laws.html

One of the most egregious lies is that secondhand smoke is hazardous, even though their own air quality testing proves quite the opposite:

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2004/04/american-cancer-society-test-results.html

Why do pharmaceutical nicotine interests like the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Johnson & Johnson Company continue to fund the lobbying efforts of pro-smoking ban activists?.........because it adds to their bottom line profits ($500,000,000.00 + annually):

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2006/09/now-that-rwjf-has-put-smoking-bans-in.html

http://www.rwjf.org/portfolios/grantlist.jsp?iaid=143&page=2

http://www.rwjf.org/portfolios/resources/grantsreport.jsp?filename=041244.htm&iaid=141&gsa=1#int_grantinfo

Thank you for taking the time to read over the facts. The livelihood of tens of thousands of people depend upon you making the right choice.

I know because my job was eliminated and my house was foreclosed upon because of the smoking bans.

http://cleanairquality.blogspot.com/2006/09/true-confessions-of-my-reasons-for.html

Sunday, October 01, 2006

Omaha police department says their community is so safe that enforcing the smoking ban is their number one concern...

Things are a little different in cowtowns apparently.

"...on Wednesday, Omaha police said residents should dial 911 to report smokers. Police said that when the city's new smoking ban kicks in, 911 dispatchers will be ready to deal with the calls...."

Why not just call a press conference to tell criminals across the nation that the city of Omaha is so safe that the most pressing issue for 911 emergency responders is to stop those evil smokers from lighting up........

.....don't worry folks deputy Barney Fife will be there to handle your most serious smoking ban violators......that number again is 9-1-1.

Shoot.............life is sure simple in the country.

I wonder if Omaha police cars still have just that one siren dome light on top?

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