The dominoes just keep falling for Big tobacco. A Pensacola jury returned a $34M verdict against RJ Reynolds. Then the Canada appeals court orders the two largest tobacco companies in Canada to pony up into a settlement trust fund for a case they've already lost now under appeal. Then the FDA ordered RJ Reynolds to pull four new brands from the shelves for violating their rules for construction of new products. But now Big Tobacco has hit the big time, they're actually specifically listed in the Trans Pacific Partnership agreement, and they are mickle displeased with the spotlight. Follow me below the Orange Julius logo for the story following this word from our sponsors.
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This is going to get a little bit weird. Unbelievably, not everybody in the world is as soft and cuddly on Big tobacco as our own covered in tobacco pocket lint congress is. They've broken the PAC money habit just like they want citizens to break the smoking habit. Australia is a perfect example. From an article posted today on wired.com;
In Australia, every brand of cigarettes looks the same. All drab, all brown and black with plain white lettering. What really grabs you is the images: a gangrenous foot, a sick baby, mouth cancer—so gruesome that even Don Draper would have trouble working his magic. In other words, it works. Tobacco consumption in Australia has fallen 12.8 percent since its plain-packaging law went into effect in 2012.
Big Tobacco was to say the least less than pleased with the new law, and especially with the loss of revenue from the reduced consumption. One company in particular, Philip Morris Int'l. But here's where it gets weird, the way Philip Morris responded to this insult to the pocketbook. From the same article;
Philip Morris International, the cigarette and tobacco giant, sued Australia over the plain-packaging law. Yes, that’s right, a company sued a country. That’s a thing companies can do, thanks to a standard feature of trade agreements called Investor-State Dispute Settlement. Philip Morris International exploited those rules—which allow companies to challenge regulations they don’t like in front of a special tribunal—to sue or threaten to sue Uruguay, Togo, and Namibia in addition to Australia. The notoriously litigious industry took its antics to the international stage.
I don't know about you, but it had never even occurred to me that it was even possible for a private concern to sue an entire government, but then again that just goes to show the endless wellspring of ignorance that wells within me. But Philip Morris has just learned that being a loudmouthed, crybaby pain in the ass can earn you the kind of attention and scrutiny you'd rather not have;
But this week, the Trans-Pacific Partnership—the largest regional trade agreement in history—slapped tobacco back down. The TPP, which includes the US and 11 Pacific Rim countries, singles out tobacco as the one industry in which ISDS rules no longer apply. Tobacco companies won’t be able to use the the TPP to block public health-minded tobacco regulations.
So, take
that Philip Morris! No more pissy, whiny lawsuits for you! Now, go back to the corner, sit down and shut UP!
As Pink Floyd would say, this is "Just another brick in the wall" for Big tobacco. The thing that amazes me is that a bunch of government negotiators, negotiating a pact that is supposed to be beneficial for big business actually negotiated in something that was directly detrimental to a very big business. But I guess this is what happens when your reputation begins to resemble the results of using your product, dangerous, toxic, stink on your clothes, bad breath reputation.
Here's a link to the entire article, it's a little long, and occasionally wonky, but it provides more detail into how the processes work in these trade agreements.
http://www.wired.com/...
Thanks as always for reading!
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