Martin Meehan: “Today the tobacco industry will lose more than 1,100 customers. That is how many smokers will kick the habit or die.…”

“Today the tobacco industry will lose more than 1,100 customers. That is how many smokers will kick the habit or die. What are the cigarette companies going to do about it? Meet Joe and Josephine Camel. Everything that is wrong with advertising, they are guilty of. Since the Joe Camel advertising campaign began in 1987, Camel has increased its annual sales of cigarettes to children by $476 million. Studies have shown children can link old Joe Camel to cigarettes as quickly as they connect Mickey Mouse to Disney. The tobacco industry devotes $4 billion a year to marketing cigarettes to young people. The advertising and promotions help persuade more than 1 million Americans under the age of 18 to start smoking each year. Smoking is a personal decision, but it is a decision for adults to make. Last week, Surgeon General Dr. Elders released her report on 'Preventing Tobacco Use Among Young People.' I commend her efforts to put a halt to this epidemic, and I urge my colleagues to join in the fight to put Joe Camel out of a job.”