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Times Advocate, 1999-06-23, Page 6J Exeter Times -Advocate Wednesday, June 23, 1999 sig Editorial&Opinion 4-, r TIMLsJ\I )VOCATE I PUBLICATIONS MAIL REGISTRATION NUMBER 07511 Jim Beckett Publisher and Editor Don Smith Deb Lord General Manager Production Manager Published by J.W. Eedy Publications Limited 424 Main Street South, P.O. Box 850 Exeter, Ontario NOM 1S6 • (519) 235-1331 EDITORIAL Teens wit money to bum are the targets Certain government leaders -have sug- gested that one way to curb the teen smoking problem would be to raise the price of cigarettes beyond the financial reach of most teens. It is definitely time- for a reality check. Teenagers with part time jobs have more spare cash than a lot. of adults do. Por, the most part, they are supplied' with free rim and board, do not pay automobile expenses apart from the occa- sional tank of gas for the family car, and have all medical and dental expenses covered by their par- ents. Who buys all those designer label jeans, hair mascara, butterfly hair clips, shoes with 14 -inch. soles and Spice Girls tapes? Who buys all the Back Street Boys magazines and videos? Who buys any video featuring Leonardo? Teens. They spend a fortune on candy, pizza, concerts and CD players. They spend a fortune on collector anything, makeup and video games. There is a specific group of middle class teens old enough to have part time jobs and generous allowances, but too young for responsibilities like paying college and car expenses. These kids have money to burn, and that is just what cigarette manufacturers want them to do. In truth, it is not only cigarette manufacturers; a lot of businesses have targeted this particular group for sales campaigns. Why? Because they have money. Attempts to curb teen smoking by raising taxes will not work. The last time this was tried, surveys. - indicated some people did cut back. Or did they simply cut back buying from conventional outlets? As the price of cigarettes rose, so did thefts of tobaccofrom stores. Cartons of smokes were right up there,._with CDs, almost as good as cash, in erms. of popular items to steal. Smuggling from the States" increased. And cigarette outlets on the reservations did a booming business because of quirks with tax Iaws. Nicotine is highly addictive, and raising the price as a deterrent to consumption is relatively ineffective. If anything, the price jump serves only as a powerful stimulant to what has been called "the alternate economy". It also sends a conflicting message to.the. target group, teens. The youngsters ask the questions, "If cigarette smoking is so bad, why is the govern- ment so eager to make money from cigarette taxes? If smoking is so bad for you, why does the governlrnent allow it?" They do not get straight answers, because there are none.. 7: x4;;..�.=, ,, :; g.. :Lit:'�S�y 4;;44 :. The hypocrisy of cigarette "sin taxes" might be eliminated by ensuring the funds from such taxes would not go into general revenue, but into a spe- cial fund for treatment of lung cancer and other disoases directly_ related to cigarette smoking. This is unlikely to be the case. There is an ambivalence here that the kids can see quite clearly. Buying cigarettes is illegal, but smoking them is not. Smoking at school is against the rules, but smoking at a lot of restaurants is not. Smoking is bad for you, but the growing of tobacco, and man- ufacture and sale of tobaccoproducts are impor- tant to Ontario's economy. If our government wants to send a clear and honest message to teens regarding smoking, officials are going to have to make some difficult decisions about cigarettes, sin taxes and attitudes toward a multi-million dollar industry. Upping the taxes on cigarettes to stop teens from smoking looks like a desperate, and futile response to a complex problem. Using my new talent for the good of the worts Call 4t a talent. Call it a:gift. Call it mysterious and strange fodder for the tabloids. E. I have discovered washing my vehicle brings rain within 12 hours. I can't predict the exact hour the rain will fall but, I can guarantee it falls within 12 hours. One afternoon, I washed my truck at the north end of Exeter and it rained before I reached Huron St. Last Sunday, there wasn't a cloud in the sky when 1 washed the truck. By early Monday mgrning, it was raining cats and dogs. I think this gift has potential and if used judi- ciously, could do the world a lot of good. But so many questions need to be answered. I think I need to do some research. It's beyond a science fair` project and must be at least a Master's the- sis. If it's obscure enough, I could do a Ph.D. on the topic. There's got to be grants out there for something this unique. I admit I haven't been doing any real research thus far. I just wash my vehicle and it rains. So far, I've been consistent with the car wash venue but my clothing, what -I eat for breakfast etc. has been random. Here's the research I need to do. Will rainfall regardless of whether I wash my vehicle at an automatic car wash or with a bucket in my drive- way or at the do-it-yourself commercial establishments? Does the rainfall follow my truck or does it rain in the location I washed the truck. For example, if I wash my truck in Chatham and then return to Exeter, will it rain in Chatham or Exeter or both. How wide ail area will the rain cover? • What if I hide my .truck in my garage following its bath, will it still rain? Is my truck the magic entity or is it me? If someone else washes my truck, will it still rain? What if I washL someone else's vehicle? f t; Can I hone my skills so I can also influence the amount of rainfall? You probably have many questions about this phenomenon as well. It's going to take some time to answer all the questions let alone work my way through the bureaucracy to obtain the grants. Maybe 1, could get some of Exeter's Special Circumstances Fund council doesn't know what to do with? Perhaps I could be part of The: Weather Network's information. There could be a little blue 4Runner on the weather map. Lows, highs, temperatures and the 4Runner. I can hear it now. "The chance of precipitation is 10 per cent in Toronto, but the 4Runner is being washed in Exeter at 4 p.m. today and there will be a 100 per cent chance of rain by tomorrow morning." . The Ministry of Tourism would surely want to get in on this. Probably even the agriculture and environment folks as well. Think of all the water that can be conserved. A $4 car wash can save the Hydro Electric Commission hundreds of dollars in water charges. It's something the town should.stand behind and the chamber of commerce should pay attention as well. I can see the town signs now. Exeter: Home of the white squirrel and Kate the rainmaker. But why wait for grants. Let's start using this power for good immediately. Do you have a special occasion coming up and not want it to rain, let me know and I won't wash the truck. Soybean field looking a little dry? Call me and I'll head to the car wash a.s.a.p. The possib' 'ties are limitless. KATE MONK KATFS TAKES About the Times -Advocate Address & Office Hours Times -Advocate, 424 Main Street South, P.O. Box 850, Exeter, Ontario NOM 1S6. Our office is open Monday to Friday, 8:30 am to 5:00 pm. . Contact Us By Phone or Fax Classified ad & subscription sales ....(519) 235-1331 24-hour automated attendant (519) 235-1336 Fax number for all departments (519) 235-0766 Subscription Rates One year rate for addresses in Canada: $35+GST Two year rate for addresses in Canada: $63+GST One year rate for addresses outside Canada: $102 Call (519) 235-1331 to order a subscription. 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