Tobacco Industry's Impact on the German Government's Policies

**Galteron** · 04.11.2006, 00:00

Hello,

I was born in Germany but no longer live there. My German isn't as good as it used to be so I will write this post in English.

I think smoking is a personal choice and if educated adults make the decision to smoke I have no objections. However, it has recently come to my attention that the Tobacco lobby in Germany is extremely powerful and has been using immoral practices to advertise smoking and control government policies.

Here are some specific points that I think are worth mentioning (all of them are discussed in the links I have provided at the end of this post):
1) The heavy cigarette advertisement that is directed at young teenagers in particular, especially in youth-oriented magazines. According to the Spiegel article, "some companies have even hit ethical rock bottom by rewarding girls who buy cigarettes with free cosmetic samples." This is outrageous.
2) "Pseudo" scientists backed by the Tobacco industry are putting out misleading and biased studies on the effects of smoking. Interestingly, the directors of both the German Association for Public Health and the President of the Federal Health Office (among others) were put in their respective positions with the direct support of the Tobacco industry.
3) The Tobacco industry has spent $375 million on advertisement and lobbying. They made enormous sums of campaign contributions to all major German political parties (except the Green Party) to ensure the governments policies agree with their interests. The extend of their success can illustrated by the free availability of cheap cigarettes. The average cost of a pack of cigarettes is $4.90 in Germany. For comparison, prices in France are $6.58, in England $8.60, and in Norway $10. Even the Spiegel writes that "tobacco companies are political heavyweights" in Germany.

Smoking advertisements directed specifically at young people and government policies directed by "special interests" (private corporate entities) to their personal financial benefit at the expense of others...I find such policies dishonest and unethical. The large percentage of teenage smokers (even those below the age of 16) are evidence of the fact that tobacco education and prevention programs in Germany are not working. Worse still, I believe that corruption in the German government are causing these failures at the expense of the German peoples' interests.

Again, I want you all to keep an important fact in mind: If people that have been educated on the dangers and addiction of smoking still chose to pick up the habit, I have no issues with that if the persons in question are 18 or older. However, I am completely against the exploitation of adolescents and government corruption of any kind.

Despite of the fact that I no longer live in Germany, and probably won't move back there, I still carry some responsibility for what happens in the country as a German-born citizen. I do not have the means to support change in Germany with regard to this entire issue, so I thought I could at least provide some information and create a discussion.

Best regards,
-Galteron

http://www.lshtm.ac.uk/news/2005/germantobacco.html
http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/06/...ts/wcsmoke.php
http://www.spiegel.de/international/...329736,00.html

**Tobi_26** · 04.11.2006, 20:32

gratulation
20std und 32 minutenund kein oxy hat sich dazu ermntern können das zu lesen

sowas ist sicher nicht vielen gelungen

**olowain** · 04.11.2006, 21:03

also ich habs schon gelesen. bin aber ziemlich schlecht in englisch...

**Kebap** · 04.11.2006, 21:56

ich könnte es übersetzen, aber ich hab kein bock

es geht darum, dass die tabakindustrie sehr viel einfluss in deutschland hat
der autor ist dagegen, dass so viele jugendliche rauchen und fragt, warum

**channel** · 04.11.2006, 22:27

das thema interessiert mich nicht grade sehr krass, außerdem war die diskussion erst vor kurzem schonmal.

**Barett** · 04.11.2006, 23:16

Welcome to Germany!
Infact our country is ruled by a bunch of lobby puppets who like to call themselves politicians. Take a glimpse at the new reforms which are to be done to our starving health system. The only ones who profit are the pharma companies who bribed not only some of our politicians but whole parties. We pay insanely high prices -compared to the surrounding countries- for medicines and vaccations.

Our politicians only get busy before general elections. Afterwards we - the voting public- are left to lean back for 4 years and watch them breaking their voting programs and promises. Our voted representatives are so afraid of us that they don't dare to give us even the possibilty of a referendum, which is pretty usual in every other European country. The recent shocking nation wide survey showed:"The Germans are fed up with their democracy!". The (left)press tried to put up as usual the boogy man of brown totalitarian parties on the rise. Which is of course bullshit. The Germans are fed up with their democracy and not with democracy as a ruling principle,...