It's a cunning switch because plenty more young people have access to magazines like Rolling Stone and Sports Illustrated than subscribe. And they wouldn't have to educate a single child about the dangers of tobacco to boot. Perhaps the most important, if unintentional, signal Philip Morris is sending is just how rattled it is by the determination shown by tobacco control advocates so far. Among those advocates is Bill Clinton, the first president to personally take on the tobacco industry while in office. All of this makes us think that it's essential to be ready to keep the pressure on.
Physicians have an extremely important role to play.
A few weeks ago we told you about Physicians for a Tobacco-Free America, an informal grass roots campaign to mobilize physician support. Hundreds of physicians signed up after seeing just that single notice about it in AMNews. Much more support is needed. It really doesn't take much effort to be counted among those who would support truly comprehensive and effective means to keep tobacco out of the hands of kids. Maybe Philip Morris and the rest of the tobacco industry should try it sometime.