Billings man gets 10 years in marijuana case Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Billings-man-gets-10-years-in-marijuana-case-3769606.php#ixzz22xQaz1m3

A Billings man has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for marijuana trafficking and money laundering and his twin brother was sentenced to 3½ years in prison for trying to frighten a witnesses from testifying before a grand jury in the drug case.

 The Billings Gazette reports (http://bit.ly/OK6DPo ) 33-year-old Christopher Andrew Lich was sentenced Monday to 10 years in prison to possessing marijuana for distribution and money laundering. U.S. District Judge Richard Cebull also ordered him to forfeit two vehicles, two motorcycles and nearly $3,100 in cash.

 Cory Matthew Lich was sentenced Tuesday after pleading guilty to tampering with a witness. Prosecutors alleged he told a witness to keep quiet last November, a day before the witness was to testify before a grand jury.

Plain packaging of cigarettes encourages young smokers to heed health warnings

Researchers asked eighty-seven teenage secondary school (high school) students from the city of Bristol, UK, to look at twenty images of cigarette packs on a computer screen for ten seconds each while a device tracked their eye movements. Some packs were plain, carrying only the name of the brand in a plain font and a standard pictorial health warning.

The rest were the conventional and colourful packs of ten popular cigarette brands, which included the same health warnings. Students who had never smoked paid attention to the health warnings on both plain and branded cigarette packets, while daily smokers tended to avoid looking at any health warnings at all. But students who were occasional (non-daily) smokers, or had tried smoking at least once, paid more attention to the health warnings on the plain packs than to those on the branded packs.

Compared with adults, adolescents are highly vulnerable to taking up smoking. Research has established that pictorial health warnings can discourage young smokers and that adolescents who forego a cigarette because of a health warning have a lower intention to smoke. As a result of its plain-packaging legislation, the Australian government is facing an international trade dispute involving several tobacco companies and tobacco-producing nations. The results of this study will give the Australian government another piece of evidence in its favour, and something for other governments to consider as they contemplate plain-packaging legislation of their own.

Barrett Duke: Why Medical Marijuana is a Joke

An oxymoron is a figure of speech that uses contradictory terms, like "larger half" or "jumbo shrimp." The term also applies to the phrase "medical marijuana." There is very little medicinal about marijuana. Yet, each year more states are legalizing its use for all sorts of medical purposes. Connecticut recently became the 17th state along with the District of Columbia to legalize marijuana for medical purposes. At least 19 states considered a medical marijuana law in 2012 and six others are still considering legislation.

Don't be taken in. Marijuana is a dangerous drug with countless negative effects. The rush to decriminalization in the name of pain control or mental health cannot be justified. Most people who use marijuana to relieve severe pain combine it with stronger pain relievers because marijuana is not effective enough by itself. Furthermore, marijuana's pain-relieving ingredient has been available by prescription for years. A person can purchase Marinol -- right now -- with a doctor's prescription. The use of marijuana as a means to improve one's mental health also is not justifiable. People dealing with depression need the regular care of a trained professional.

If they require drugs, there are plenty of proven mood-altering ones available that do not introduce as many potential and likely problems as marijuana. Smoking marijuana medicinally threatens to make bad situations worse for many users. Marijuana introduces multiple toxic chemicals into the systems of people whose bodies are already weakened from their ailments. Not only might these toxic chemicals interfere with the healing process, but users also risk developing additional problems. Medical marijuana puts the user at higher risk for cancer, psychosis, strokes, respiratory damage and heart attack.

These risks must be weighed to determine marijuana's actual value, even for a limited range of carefully monitored applications like treating glaucoma or enhancing appetite. Part of the reason we have not had more success ending rampant illicit drug abuse in our nation is the fact that so many states have legalized marijuana for medical purposes. Such counterproductive policies are the equivalent of drilling holes in the bottom of your boat while you are frantically trying to bail water. In fact, if you take a closer look, you will see that most states currently debating legalizing the use of marijuana for recreation first legalized it for medicinal use. Medical marijuana is the Trojan horse of recreational marijuana. Now, I am all for people finding relief from pain and illness.

One of my grandmothers died from a terrible form of bone cancer. Cancer killed my father and at least one of his two brothers. Their deaths were slow and painful. If I thought marijuana would do more for someone in the same situation than the multitude of drugs already available, I would likely be making a much different argument here. But the plain fact of the matter is that there are better and safer drugs. Marijuana is not the solution. It merely adds more problems. Instead of making drug use easier, we should redouble our efforts to warn people of the dangers of drug use, develop more effective rehabilitation programs for those who are convicted of drug possession, and increase our prosecution of those who supply the drugs. We are in a battle for the lives of millions of people. They deserve our best efforts, not our surrender or thoughtless compassion. Let's call medical marijuana what it is -- an oxymoron.

Third Hand Smoke Also a Danger

We've heard a lot about second hand smoke and how it can affect people. Now scientists are finding third hand smoke can be dangerous too. What is third hand smoke and how can it be avoided? We know smoking can harm us. And if we live with a smoker, that second hand smoke we inhale can affect us as well.

"Second-hand smoke is when somebody smokes in the presence of other people and they inhale that smoke. That causes all kinds of problems such as lung cancer, such as C-O-P-D, such as asthma and respiratory infections in children," says Dr. Norman Edelman, director of the American Lung Association. Now scientists are finding that third hand smoke, which is the fumes that come off somebody who has smoked elsewhere can have a negative impact on our health, as well as our children's. "There's evidence now that third-hand smoke is a risk factor in children like chronic ear infections and chronic respiratory infections," Dr. Edelman explains.

"And if your clothes reek of smoke, your hair reeks of smoke, your little child is going to get an asthma attack, more than likely." How to avoid passing on your smoke to others? The American Lung Association says, try to quit. If that's not possible, take the smoking outside, where the air is less concentrated and the smoke fumes are not as heavy and won't be left on clothing. "Smokers should know that they're not only doing damage to their own hearts and lungs and other organs but they're doing damage to the people around them."

More than 1,000 people quit smoking in Torbay

MORE than 1,000 people in Torbay have stopped smoking with the support of the local NHS Stop Smoking Service. Figures just released show that 1,041 smokers in Torbay quit the habit between April 2011 and March 2012. Paul Sheward of the Stop Smoking Service in Torbay and Southern Devon Health and Care NHS Trust said: “It is fantastic that so many people have quit smoking in the last year with the help of the Torbay Stop Smoking Service.

“Giving up smoking is a really big decision to make, so knowing that support is on hand is something that people find really useful. Evidence shows that you are four times more likely to successfully quit smoking with specialist support. “Our trained advisors can offer practical support and guidance on the best methods to quit smoking, based on the latest evidence and the circumstances of individual smokers. “If you are thinking about quitting or have tried in the past and not been successful, I would highly recommend getting in touch with the service.”

Fiona Andrews, Director of SmokeFree South West said: “The local stop smoking services continue to help thousands of people with friendly, supportive staff and most importantly expert advice. "It was another fantastic year for these ex-smokers who have achieved their goal and can look forward to a healthier future.” Professor Yvonne Doyle, Regional Director of Public Health, added: “If you are a smoker, why not go for gold this summer and sign up to a local service, you have everything to gain and the services are free, professionally run and successful.”

Tobacco tax needed for children's benefit

I strongly disagree with The Daily News’ July 2 editorial on the cigarette tax headlined, “Smokers getting stick’s sharp end.” While smoking is an individual decision, the cost to our state government and society is high. According to the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, the state of North Carolina will spend over $2.4 billion dollars annually in smoking-related health-care costs.

Specifically, taxpayers shoulder over $769 million in Medicaid spending every year for smoking-related medical treatment. Increasing the cigarette tax can help pay for these costs to the state, and it also deters use of tobacco products, especially amongst a population that is particularly susceptible to smoking, our children. Raising North Carolina’s cigarette tax by $1 would reduce smoking among youth by 15.4 percent, preventing addiction among 81,000 of North Carolina youth. In the editorial, you state that “anti-smoking campaigns targeting children are commonplace.” Unfortunately, that is no longer true.

The budget passed by the North Carolina General Assembly recently includes language prohibiting the use of any funds for statewide marketing and media campaigns for tobacco cessation and prevention. Therefore, there will no longer be any state funds available for the nationally recognized and wildly successful TRU anti-smoking TV and radio ads which have been so effective among people of all ages, but most especially our youth.

With the loss of this educational campaign, youth smoking rates are likely to increase, and increasing the cigarette tax becomes an even more valuable option to deter our children from smoking. Raising tobacco taxes is a win-win for our state. It will save lives and raise revenue in this difficult economic time.

Mo. Supreme Court clears minimum wage, tobacco tax ballot wording

The Missouri Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected challenges to ballot summaries and financial estimates for initiatives to increase tobacco taxes and raise the minimum wage in Missouri, the Columbia Missourian reports.

The ruling will allow the initiatives to appear on the Nov. 6 ballot, if the secretary of state’s office decides that enough petition signatures of registered voters have been submitted. In the ruling, the Supreme Court overturned a Cole County judge’s ruling that the state auditor lacked the constitutional authority to prepare financial estimates for ballot measures. It also rejected claims that the ballot summaries were unfair and insufficient.

The proposed minimum wage increase would take the state’s minimum pay up by $1 to $8.25 an hour starting in 2013, with annual cost-of living adjustments in subsequent years. The cigarette tax would increase the tax on a package of cigarettes to 90 cents a pack, up from the current 17 cents.