Just four months ago Wolfville, Nova Scotia became the first Canadian municipality to ban smoking in cars with kids. Now, the entire province is going to snuff out this dangerous practice. A quote from the Globe and Mail story appears below."I'm optimistic that in 2008 we're going to have several provinces join Nova Scotia. We now have unstoppable momentum on this issue," said Rob Cunningham, senior policy analyst at the Canadian Cancer Society.

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Jessica Larscheid of Baldwin, WI wrote a letter to the Hudson Star-Observer asking why Wisconsin has fallen behind Minnesota in going smoke-free. The letter appears below. Living in St. Croix County I often have reason to cross from Wisconsin into Minnesota to see friends, get groceries or go out. This “pilgrimage” from one state to the next has always been part of my life, but what’s new is the intense amount of ribbing from my Minnesota...

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The Chicago Tribune has a great piece about legislators like Dick Durbin who are calling on the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to regulate tobacco. Durbin points out the absurdity of not regulating a product that is both harmful and being marketed to children."Tobacco is the only product in America that is not regulated," Durbin said. "It's time for us to restrict their marketing techniques because their target is our kids."You can read the entire...

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Every beach in San Diego county is now officially smoke-free. In a move that will mean fewer cigarette butts polluting San Diego's beaches and cleaner air for everyone, beaches in Encinitas have gone smoke-free. Encinitas was the last city in the county without a ban on smoking at beaches.You can read more about this story at the San Diego Union-Tribune.Photo from Flickr.

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For the first time since its introduction in 1913, Camel cigarettes has a new permanent design. While Camel has introduced countless campaigns redesigning their packs in order to appeal to younger and younger audiences, this redesign is for keeps. The new look will hit stores in late March. Now that R.J. Reynolds has agreed to stop advertising in consumer magazines, they clearly feel like they need to attract a younger audience through packaging and in-store...

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The Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids has released a new report which outlines the latest tactics of the tobacco industry. This "new generation" of tobacco products and tactics should be interesting to anyone concerned about the future of addiction and death.An excerpt appears below, along with links to the full report.Cigarettes, smokeless tobacco and cigars havebeen introduced in an array of candy, fruit and alcohol flavors. R.J.Reynolds' Camel cigarettes, for example, have come in more...

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A Maine law that sought to protect minors has been struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court. The law would have made shipping companies, (UPS, FedEx, etc) intercept packages with tobacco that may be on their way to minors. This is a huge victory for the tobacco industry as it is now much easier for kids to buy cigarettes online. You can read the whole story here. 

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Thanks to everyone who took part in the first Catalyst podcast at the summit. Check it out here. You'll need to quicktime to listen to it. Grab it here.  

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 This is a video produced by the Tobacco Institute, a front group for the tobacco industry, talking about how advertising doesn't make people want to smoke. "Just like an advertisment about bathing doesn't make me want to take baths." It's rich.

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