April 8, 1987
By Jan Travers/Editor
Have We Come
a Long Way,
Baby?
I was talking to my friend Maggie the
other day. She's just irate because the state is
trying to adopt legislation telling her where she
can or cannot smoke. She doesn't think it's fair
to spend so much money to come to college to
get away from her parents nagging about
smoking only to find that an even higher
authority may prevail. But maybe the pending
law will do her a favor.
According to a federal study released in
July 1986, college females are twice as likely to
smoke as college males. Dr. Lloyd Johnson,
director of the study for the National Institute on
Drug 4buse, offered a reason for the
discrepancy. He said the tobacco industry has
spend a lot of money and time convincing
females that smoking is okay by 1) linking it
with an image of independence, success, and
glamour, and 2) giving the subliminal message
that smoking helps women stay thin.
If you think about it, there are ads such
as this. The one that comes specifically to
mind is "You've come a long way, baby." It
uses both themes in one ad. It emphasizes how
a woman now has the independence to live life
to its fullest and it invariable shows a tall, thin,
beautiful woman smoking a long thin cigarette.
What people fail to realize is that these
ads have more influence on us than we like to
admit. Those who bend to the influence could
end up as one of the 350,000 Americans who
die each year because of smoking.
We can't nag people into quitting
smoking. But just maybe the new law will
make it inconvenient enough to the smokers
that they will reevaluate their need to smoke.
Do You Think Smoking Should Be Banned in Public Buildings?
Rebecca Seib
American Studies
"It should not be totally banned. I
would not be against designated areas but
a total ban would be unfair because of
individual rights. At least designated
areas would take everyone's rights into
consideration."
Asking AroundlSmoking
Kay Holtzman
Management
"It shouldn't be banned, but there should
be separate sections so non-smokers
don't get their lungs polluted."
Capital Times
OK CHIEF, THIS
ONES ' OUT !
Nadine Armstrong
EET
"It should not be banned but there should "No, because it is a legal activity and it's
be restricted areas where employees can one of my few remaining vices. I feel
smoke. This is because of the danger of the danger of second hand smoke has
secondary smoke." been greatly exaggerated."
WHEN RE COMES TO, BOOK KIWI.
ITS AGAINST THE LAW TO
SMOKE IN 'THIS BUIL.DINC, !
Pictures by Sylvia Johnson / Interviews by Alan Pincus
Ed Pitingolo
Accounting
Page 5
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