For Mr. Just, however, who lives just west of Cleveland, the ad was a prime example of tax dollars going to waste. Although the Postal Service no longer receives tax dollars, the agency has been quite diligent as of late in playing down the perceived glamour of lighting up. In 1995, it banned smoking in all Postal Service facilities. And when the agency featured legendary blues guitarist Robert Johnson and artist Jackson Pollock on postage stamps, both appeared without their trademark cigarettes. Blame it on a cultural disconnect.
Postal officials say they never meant to promote smoking, or make it appear glamorous.
Officials at some of the nation's leading antismoking groups said they had not seen the ad, but when it was pointed out they reacted with indignation. This is going to backfire on the Postal Service. It may seem like much ado about nothing, but that's the problem. We have these images in our minds, and that's what needs to be undone. The Postal Service said it pulled the ad Tuesday, but will continue its pitch to the global marketplace.