A DIFFERENT WINDOW: WHAT? HOW'S THAT AGAIN?

Remember the tobacco lawsuit? Seems as part of the settlement the tobacco companies had to spend x amount of money on programs that would discourage teen smoking. Everyone shouted "Hurrah. Make them spend some money in a positive way."

Phillip Morris had some book covers designed. What better way to reach teens than with a product used by children in a school environment.

One of these covers is an abstract design in neutral colors. It is kind of Southwesterny. It kind of reminds me of a blanket or serape design. It has the words "Think, don't smoke on the cover. On the inside it has one of the Surgeon General' s warnings that appear on cigarette packages.

Another book cover has a snowboarder. Snow billows up behind him against an orangey colored sky. The snowboard is seen front view, slightly on an angle. One of those popular images that seems as if you are seeing it very close up and coming towards you. The message is something along the lines of don't go up in smoke.

This is a good way to reach kids and the messages are positive. They even go so far as to have the Surgeon General's warning printed on the inside. The teen will see it every time they open their textbook.

The Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids should be happy with this. Right? Not!

Mathew Meyers, president of the campaign, comes on TV, looking very angry and self righteous. No smile on this face!!

He tells us, in an outraged tone of voice, that Phillip Morse is trying to send our teens subliminal messages. The abstract design, he says, is a tobacco logo in disguise. The snowboard is a clever cover-up for a matchstick and the snow is a clever way of depicting smoke!

Furthermore, the message, "Think don't smoke" is a clever way of encouraging teen smoking. Because "everyone knows that teens are going to do just the opposite of what you tell them to do."

WHAT!!!!

Did Mr. Meyers just throw the whole teen anti-smoking campaign down the commode and flush a few times? Didn't he just negate any messages that his own campaign is using?

What about those warnings by the Surgeon General? What about the television ad that says, "Talk to your teen about smoking. They are listening."? Everyone knows that teens are going to do the opposite of what you tell them.

So it seems as if we should be telling teens to smoke. Therefore they won't. Therefore the tobacco companies and Joe Camel were discouraging teen smoking after all. And the warnings on the packs were actually encouraging teen smoking. Right ?

Or maybe it is just the tobacco company that is so powerful that only their messages will have a reverse effect? Maybe the tobacco companies have the power to take over the minds of people?

This is just too ludicrous to be believed. Oh come on now Mr. Meyers, you have just made your blind hostility too plain. The tobacco companies are wrong no matter what they do. The only hope is to wipe them out. Seems like someone else had that idea about a whole race of people didn't he?