Call it "Yankee Imperialist Corrupts Impressionable Iraqi Youth":
Am I supposed to believe that USA Today had no other more relevant pictures they could have used? The fact that they went back to an AP file photo from 2007 is pretty strong evidence that USAT's page-fillers were looking to make a point.
Here are selected paragraphs from the related report by Greg Zoroya:
Pentagon health experts are urging Defense Secretary Robert Gates to ban the use of tobacco by troops and end its sale on military property, a change that could dramatically alter a culture intertwined with smoking.
Jack Smith, head of the Pentagon's office of clinical and program policy, says he will recommend that Gates adopt proposals by a federal study that cites rising tobacco use and higher costs for the Pentagon and Department of Veterans Affairs as reasons for the ban.
The study by the Institute of Medicine, requested by the VA and Pentagon, calls for a phased-in ban over a period of years, perhaps up to 20. "We'll certainly be taking that recommendation forward," Smith says.
A tobacco ban would confront a military culture, the report says, in which "the image of the battle-weary soldier in fatigues and helmet, fighting for his country, has frequently included his lit cigarette."
Also, the report said, troops worn out by repeated deployments often rely on cigarettes as a "stress reliever." The study found that tobacco use in the military increased after the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan began.
Far be it from me to deny soldiers risking their lives for their country a bit of stress relief. But apparently the perfumed princes at the Pentagon can't put themselves in the shoes of combat soldiers and imagine that for some of them a smoke break might be a useful tonic in very difficult situations.
Besides, a graphic at the USAT's story shows that tobacco use by all veterans, at 22%, is barely higher than that of the entire population's 20%. And guess what? If you take into account the fact that men greatly outnumber women in both the active military and veterans' ranks, that 2% difference probably disappears. This American Lung Association Fact Sheet estimates that 17.4% of women smoke. So it appears that smoking is no more of a problem in the military than it is in the country as a whole.
So what's the point? I'll leave that to readers to think through and perhaps comment upon.
Cross-posted at BizzyBlog.com.
—Tom Blumer is president of a training and development company in Mason, Ohio, and is a contributing editor to NewsBusters
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We heard about this early
July 10, 2009 - 19:42 ET by bigtimerWe heard about this early today on Rush's show with Mark Davis filling in, as I said on another thread to JDW and others, smoke was coming from my ears I was so hot about this...how dare they take that away from the military men and women.
Here are the very people that have given us our freedoms from day one, and they are going to be the first to have more of it taken away, makes me sick, our nation is being strangled to death slowly...but surely, in more ways than one.
...and by the way, this is a legal product....make it illegal and get it the hell over with and quit taxing people to death your socialism.
Btw...pop and alcolol is next.
Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea. ~Andrew Breitbart
bt, you have to remember
July 11, 2009 - 05:46 ET by motherbeltbt, you have to remember that they get no tax revenue
from tobacco products sold on bases. So they lose nothing.
And there may be the same percentage of smokeres in the general population, but they have a lot more control over the military.
Their next "reasoning" will be that the military health care system has to deal with the consequences of smoking.
Anyone see where I am going with this?
I didn't think it was physically possible, but this both sucks and blows. -Bart Simpson
I do now mb...now that
July 11, 2009 - 16:24 ET by bigtimerI do now mb...now that you've explained your thoughts.
Wow, you're one step ahead of us, good thinking, that is exactly where they are going, thank you for putting this post out here, makes it all so obvious actually.
Now smoke is really coming out my ears.
Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea. ~Andrew Breitbart
WHAT ABOUT THIS DEVELOPMENT?
July 12, 2009 - 08:59 ET by reelman46OBAMA: DECEPTION ON BUSH “CRIMES”
Obama doesn’t want to look back, but Attorney General Eric Holder may probe Bush-era torture anyway.
This is another blatant Obama-lie. He can squash even the mention of
the outrageous hateful act of going back to a previous President for
alleged “crimes”. I posted he would do this last year, that he was a
far lefty kook deep inside as he record showed. In this case another
lefty kook, Holder the Hateful, will be his shield while Obama pretends
(lies) that he is really opposed. This is the Chicago Way…destroy, not
defeat.
Waterboarding three top AQ versus bombing beheaders. Give us all a break. Its the liberal world view again…America the Guilty.
Maybe after this the pantywaist get-a-long Republicans will finally
(after a decade plus) realize the modern democrat (secular socialist)
Party is a criminal enterprise that needs exposing-opposing with a lot
more vigor.
Doug Schexnayder, Ph.D. (theconservativecrawfish)
As a fairly new non-smoker
July 10, 2009 - 20:58 ET by DoktorFrankenAs a fairly new non-smoker (just about 2 years now) this picture makes me want to smoke a small Iraqi child.
this picture makes me want to smoke a small Iraqi child.
July 10, 2009 - 22:05 ET by shawn228"this picture makes me want to smoke a small Iraqi child."
huh?????
He had my vote
So Sorry
July 10, 2009 - 22:58 ET by DoktorFrankenFor the Rio Linda folks, it was a joke. You can never keep those kids lit.
No need to apologize
July 10, 2009 - 23:21 ET by shawn228I was not offended. I did not understand the joke, but I get it now. Congratulations on quiting smoking, its been about 3 years for me now, but I still have break down once a year when I go to the Oakland Raider season opener.
He had my vote
LOL shawn!
July 11, 2009 - 09:45 ET by RukusYour smokin' while the Raiders get smoked! The Raiders need to get The Snake back! What happened to the great Raider teams of the past? I've always been a fan but damn! Oh well. Go Raiders! : )
Gary
I want my country back!
Good morning Gary
July 11, 2009 - 10:28 ET by shawn228My friend comes in from Vancouver every year and the home opener always seems to be a night time game and almost always a Monday Nighter, Fly byes and all.
The Tailgate, then the anticipation, The cheerleaders, The national anthem, you get goosebumps, then opening kickoff, then The Raiders get killed and we leave a little after halftime.;-(
I know I might be thinking with my heart, but I think it might be different this year, The Broncos lost their star quarterback and their best wide receiver, The Chiefs are in disarray and San Diego barely made the playoffs last year.
He had my vote
I'll be rootin' for ya shawn
July 11, 2009 - 11:16 ET by RukusMaybe if the team stopped moving around so much and just settle down in one town things would turn around. We'll see.
Gary
I want my country back!
Okay!
July 10, 2009 - 21:00 ET by DoktorFrankenGuess who in the photo might be the first to die because of a terrorist bomb???
Yeah, let's worry about cigarettes.
Exactly Dok....nail on
July 10, 2009 - 21:04 ET by bigtimerExactly Dok....nail on head.
Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea. ~Andrew Breitbart
Get the pink panty-wearing panzies the hell out of the Pentagon
July 10, 2009 - 23:02 ET by R D HelmSounds like that former LAT reporterette wench (what was her name?) that took a job as a Pentagon advisor is behind this.
No doubt a calculated move to drive the true hardasses out of the military.
-Dave
"Obama's health care 'reform' plan is to blow up the building in order to fix a leak in the roof." - Herman Cain
The Vet pipes in.
July 11, 2009 - 00:48 ET by JWFI spent 20 years in the Navy, smoker the whole time.
My response with drippy drippy drippy sarcasm - good luck with that!
The military is an age pyramid. The vast majority of the people in the military are 18, 19, 20-something year old guys. You know what young men in their teens and twenties do? They smoke. They drink. They visit houses of ill repute. They look at porn. They engage in other risky macho type behavoirs. Why do they do this? Because they are young and healthy and they can. The military did ask for a certain type of individual that may be predisposed to risky behavior. They are asking for volunteers that don't mind the risk of getting shot at.
You know what happens when the military bans smoking and drinking and porn and visiting houses of ill repute. They still do it, they just move the behavoir further off base.
It is not that you need to stop doing it, just don't get caught.
Sincerely,
a Veteran of a 1000 psychic wars.
Ulterior motive?
July 11, 2009 - 03:08 ET by sic721Hey JWF, maybe I'm being cynical, but the first thought I had when I read this story was, there is no sales tax on base!
Could be for liberal 'health' reasons, but I'm more inclined to think they see another sh-load of tax dollars they're not getting their paws on.
'Good people sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf.' —George Orwell
No sir. There is no tax for alcohol and cigarettes on base.
July 11, 2009 - 07:04 ET by JWFYou might think, wow, that would save those low paid military guys some dough.
Bzzzzttttt.
Someone, somewhere, likely a democrat complained that our sailors, marines, airmen and soldiers are getting a break.
So they raised the prices to match the price in the local market and give the difference to MWR. (Morale Welfare & Recreation)
Yea, you might spend and arm and a leg to get a carton of cigarettes and a six pack of beer. But hey, rentals on canoes are dirt cheap! (yes that was sarcastic)
Sincerely,
a Veteran of a 1000 psychic wars.
We will all pay for it.
July 11, 2009 - 01:07 ET by JWFThe more the military bans risky behavoir that young men consider fun, the harder time they will have retaining the people they have and recuiting young men to make up for the ones that leave.
The only remedy for that is raising the pay to make up for it. Pay that comes from taxpayers.
Sincerely,
a Veteran of a 1000 psychic wars.
jessieH
July 11, 2009 - 07:51 ET by jessieHjessieH I am so fed up with the govt. telling me what I can & can't do. I am going to grow my own, & to hell with the govt.
Just wondering...
July 11, 2009 - 08:06 ET by Roger the ShrubberWhy is the American flag on that soldier's shoulder backwards?
The Vet is here Roger. It is your lucky day.
July 11, 2009 - 08:22 ET by JWFThe field of stars faces the front of the soldier. It is regulation. (meaning required to be that way)
Think of it like this. The flag is mobile as the soldier is mobile. If the soldier were moving with the flag on a pole. How would the flag be oriented? blowing in the breeze - field of stars forward whether you look at it from the left or right.
Sincerely,
a Veteran of a 1000 psychic wars.
Roger, Maybe this will help
July 11, 2009 - 08:46 ET by upcountrywaterstuck on you
most excellent example sir.
July 11, 2009 - 11:15 ET by JWFNo matter which side you view the flag. The field of stars is always to the front. Just as if he were carrying it into battle.
Sincerely,
a Veteran of a 1000 psychic wars.
Another smoking ban?
July 11, 2009 - 08:42 ET by CobraManJust after I join the military in the 80's Congress banned all smoking on federal property, including in military buildings and vehicles. My first reaction was: "They've got to be kidding! You think that, as a member of the military, my greatest risk is smoking? What about the people who SHOOT as us? Isn't that a greater risk? Why don't you ban the use of bullets, too? Ya freaking morons!"
Now those same freaking morons want to ban the use of tobacco altogether? Hay, idiots, the military is a DANGEROUS profession. I guarantee you that the "health effects" of tobacco is far less of a risk than just walking around an active military airfield (those rotors can kill you before you even are aware you're too close), the company motor pool (ever inflate a military truck tire? They're put in steel cages for a reason, as you really don't want that split-ring to come off and kill you during inflation, as has happened many times in the past), or even just going on a 4 kilometer PT run in the summer (Heat Exhaustion, anyone?). So, you freaking morons, smoking is about the LEAST hazardous thing you can do in the military, so why the hell are you trying to ban it?
The Citizens of each State shall be entitled to all Privileges and Immunities of Citizens in the several States.
The US Constitution
Unless you're a fetus.
The US Supreme Court
Oh my gosh, they want to
July 11, 2009 - 09:37 ET by msh1973Oh my gosh, they want to take their cigs? Tabacco, perhaps is their only means of "outlet"; what a stupid thing to do.
My take on this is that it
July 11, 2009 - 11:33 ET by jdhawkMy take on this is that it has little to do with the military. What is going on is a trial ballon. If the liberals can get the military to ban smoking, they will see it as a green light to do the same thing to all those that dip from government coffers for health care. That is about 50% of the population at present and is destined to be 100% is this socialist Congress and president have their way.
But, hey, they won't stop there. Do you skydive, SCUBA, or fo what others may consider risky behavior like I do? Well, don't be surprised if that is ruled verboten as well. Never mind that I already pay higher health insurance due to the above. It will simply be proscribed.
Plan on eating that pizza? No, no, no. Yogurt with blueberries you freakin drain on our public coffers!!!
That better be...
July 11, 2009 - 11:46 ET by CobraManThat better be organically grown blueberries inside of that rBGH free yogurt or the food Nazi (Obama's Food Czar) will have your a$$ for lunch.
The Citizens of each State shall be entitled to all Privileges and Immunities of Citizens in the several States.
The US Constitution
Unless you're a fetus.
The US Supreme Court
I think you are probably
July 11, 2009 - 16:15 ET by Chris NormanI think you are probably right about smoking and the general use of any tobacco products being banned under nationalized health (non)insurance, but probably not the other things. I think the only things targeted will be the socially incorrect activities and habits the liberal elites don't like to see the peasants engaging in. Who knows, they may find a way to ban guns as being "risky to one's health". I think this is one huge reason the liberal elites are salivating over national health insurance - they know it's a way to get all kinds of control over individual behavior - something they have been acquiring over the years anyway. National health (non) care will give them control in one fell swoop.
The "Mainstream" Media: By liberals. For liberals.
Incompetent generals,
July 11, 2009 - 15:36 ET by RR GOPIncompetent generals, little support from your countrymen, the Leftists politicians actively working against you and now this...
Stuff like this and spending millions to redo the Army's slogan, and changing uniforms (complete with snazzy berets) according to the whim of some general is obviously more important than quickly figuring out ways to keep our troops from getting hit with the same tactics time and time and time again, securing the Iraq-Iran border, ferreting out terrorists, etc.
One of the 34% who thinks George W. Bush was a great President. One of the 61% who wants to bring back the stock and pillory (yep...approval for Congress now at 39%...do you believe that!?).
They just can't leave
July 11, 2009 - 16:17 ET by Chris NormanThey just can't leave anybody alone, can they? If the guysdefending our country want to smoke, I say they can damn well do it. Who are these couch nannies to tell them not to do this? Grrrrrr.
The "Mainstream" Media: By liberals. For liberals.