NY Man Agrees to Pay $2,000 Per Cigar Smoked in His Own Home

By Jason Beahm

From http://blogs.findlaw.com/

Smoking can be an expensive habit.

It can be really expensive when you have to pay an extra $2,000 every time you light up. But that's just what Harry Lysons, 70, of Manhattan, New York has been ordered to do, the New York Post reports.

The Post obtained papers filed in Manhattan Supreme Court which state that he must pay his neighbors, Russell and Amanda Poses, $2,000 every time he smokes a cigar in his apartment, and if he doesn't pay within 15 days, he will have to pay another $1,500.

I suppose that beats $2 million, which is what Harry Lysons' neighbors were been suing him for.

Despite all that, it's possible Lysons is getting off cheap. The court order brings to an end a $2 million lawsuit Russell and Amanda Poses brought against him. His neighbors complained to the housing authority of foul and noxious odors, saying that the strong was so pungent that "you can't eat dinner."

An unpleasant odor is one thing, but the Poses took it up another notch by alleging that Lysons' cigars gave their children breathing problems and ear infections.

Lysons' attorney said that his client had no plans to quit smoking cigars: "I think when you're in your 70s you're entitled to some of the remaining pleasures in life. He's earned the right to smoke a cigar and have some brandy at night. He'll just have the cigar on the street." said attorney Jeffrey Marcus. The street may be one of the few remaining places where it is legal to smoke.

So what do you think? Should Lysons have to pay a fine to smoke in his own home?

Obama yet to kick smoking habit, should eat better

By STEVEN R. HURST (AP) – 1 day ago

From: http://www.google.com/

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama hasn't kicked the smoking habit, takes anti-inflammatory medication to relieve chronic tendinitis in his left knee and should eat better to lower his cholesterol, his team of doctors concluded Sunday after the 48-year-old's first medical checkup as commander in chief.

The hoops-happy chief executive, who has endured an exhausting White House run and yearlong battles with congressional Republicans, was otherwise declared in excellent health and fit for duty.

The White House physician, Navy Capt. Jeffrey Kuhlman, said Obama should stick with "smoking cessation efforts," the use of nicotine gum, and come back in August 2011 after he turns 50.

Obama cholesterol levels have crept up to borderline high and he should alter his diet accordingly, according to a report the White House released after the 90-minute examination at National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md. While at the facility, he visited 12 military service members receiving treatment and rehabilitation for injuries suffered in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The president is the picture of health, eats modest portions and exercises regularly. He is an avid basketball player and golfer. The slightly elevated cholesterol levels, tendinitis in his left knee and occasional smoking were the only negatives noted.

Obama said at a June news conference that he still had an occasional cigarette. It was his first public acknowledgment that he hadn't kicked the habit. He chews nicotine gum to avoid regular smoking, and his doctor said that should continue.

Kuhlman also said the president should modify his diet to bring his LDL, or bad cholesterol, below 130. At the time of his last exam, Obama's total cholesterol was 173, while his LDL was 96 and HDL, or good cholesterol, was 68.

This time, total cholesterol was up to 209, with HDL down slightly at 62. LDL was up to 138. Borderline high cholesterol starts at 200, with LDL considered in the same category at 130.

Kuhlman said Obama last checkup was in July 2008 when he was seen by the attending physician to Congress when Obama was an Illinois senator. During the 2008 White House race, his campaign released a statement from his longtime Chicago doctor saying Obama was in excellent health when examined January 2007.

Sunday's report said Obama is 6-foot-1 and weighs 180 pounds in shoes and exercise clothing. His pulse rate is 56, which is very good, as is his blood pressure — 105 over 62. The doctor said Obama's vision was 20/20 in both eyes for both distance and near vision.

The president was checked for and found free of colon cancer with a virtual colonoscopy, a scan that avoids the more invasive visual inspection with a camera device that is passed into the large intestine.

The tendinitis that Obama suffers in his left leg could be the result of his regular basketball playing.

Kuhlman said that there was mild popping and grinding in Obama's left knee and "some weakness" in his left hip, also possibly a result of rigorous and extended periods on the basketball court.

The doctor said Obama should:

_Have another exam for colon cancer in five years

_Continue smoking cessation efforts, a daily exercise program, a healthy diet, moderation in alcohol intake, periodic dental care, and remain up to date with recommended immunizations.

_Keep up a modified exercise regimen to strengthen his legs to ward off more difficulties with his knee.

_Modify his diet to lower his LDL cholesterol below 130.

Copyright © 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

Photo 1 of 10
President Barack Obama returns to the White House from the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., following a medical exam, Sunday, Feb. 28, 2010, in Washington. The 48-year-old commander-in-chief signaled a thumbs-up when asked about his health. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Map

Cameron Answers Critics Re: Smoking in ‘Avatar’

By Edmund Mullins

From: http://www.blackbookmag.com/

Avatar is taking on very special distinction for me. Of all the films I’ve never seen, it has, in a very short time, become the one that I seem to know the most about. There’ve been so many blogs, so many conversations and so many appurtenant behind-the-scenes stories, exposés and think-pieces that I almost feel like an expert. Now, two-plus weeks after its release, Avatar is still punishingly ubiquitous and the news keeps coming. The latest item concerns cigarette smoking. It seems that Sigourney Weaver’s character, an environmental scientist, is seen during the pic taking some loving drags on a cancer stick. No big deal, right? Well, it is if you’re part of anti-smoking watchdog group. The New York Times reported today that Stanton A. Glantz of the Smoke Free Movies Initiative announced he’d soon be mounting an informational campaign to counter what he perceives as the film’s pro-smoking message. Still worse, Scenesmoking.org, another group that monitors cigarette use in films, awarded the film its “black lung” rating. What does James Cameron think of all this? He very nicely and patiently calls bullshit.



In a statement given to the Times, Cameron defends himself as follows:
“I wanted Grace to be a character who is initially off-putting and even unpleasant. She’s rude, she swears, she drinks, she smokes. She is not meant to be an aspirational role model to teenagers, in fact our young protagonist, Jake, through whom we experience this story, finds her to be obnoxious at first. Also, from a character perspective, we were showing that Grace doesn’t care about her human body, only her avatar body, which again is a negative comment about people in our real world living too much in their avatars, meaning on-line and in videogames. In addition, speaking as an artist, I don’t believe in the dogmatic idea that no one in a movie should smoke. Movies should reflect reality. If it’s okay for people to lie, cheat, steal and kill in PG 13 movies, why impose an inconsistent morality when it comes to smoking?

I do agree that young role-model characters should not smoke in movies, especially in a way which suggests that it makes them cooler or more accepted by their peers. In the same way that I would never show lying, cheating, stealing, or killing as cool, or aspirational, I would never portray smoking that way. We need to embrace a more complex set of criteria than simply the knee jerk reaction “smoking is bad, therefore cannot be shown.” It should be a matter of character, context, and the nature of the portrayal. I think the people who are earnestly trying to do some good in this area would be more supported by the artistic community if they were less black and white in their thinking. Smoking is a filthy habit which I don’t support, and neither, I believe, does Avatar.”

Cameron’s argument is perfectly reasonable and sound, but I’m certain it won’t deter any of the afore-mentioned anti-smoking campaigners. Mr. Glantz likened the smoking scenes in Avatar to someone putting “a bunch of plutonium in the water supply.” This is an aggressively ridiculous assertion which neatly underscores the extremity of his views.  I’m almost sorry that Cameron felt obliged to answer back at all, as it suggests a willingness to be part of this trivial and trivializing conversation. He doesn’t owe the art police a thing, but now they’ll know he’s listening. That’s usually their cue to get louder.

Former top banker goes to deserted island to quit smoking

Retired senior banker Geoff Spice is to live on a deserted island for a month in a last ditch attempt to quit smoking.

By Simon Johnson

Mr Spice began smoking 43 years ago as a paperboy, when he stole some cigarettes from the shop where he was working.

Mr Spice, 56, from Surrey, will become a castaway on Sgarabhaigh, a 40-acre uninhabited island in the Outer Hebrides.

The former managing director for NM Rothschild, the top London investment bank, will have to camp as there are no houses.

Sgarabhaigh, which means Cormorant Island in Gaelic, also has no electricity or water supply, so he will rely for fires from driftwood and a camp stove and bottled water.

He does not want to fish for food, but the island is also free of rabbits. However, there are plenty of sheep to keep him company.

Mr Spice, who smokes 30 cigarettes per day, said: "I'm a bit apprehensive now that the time is almost here about spending the month on the island by myself but I'm determined to see it through.

"Today I'm going to have one last cigarette and give the rest of the packet to my wife and get on the boat to the island.

"This is my last chance. I've been smoking 30 a day as usual but I think I can crack the habit.

"I am taking plenty of midge repellent though ironically they say that smoking helps keep the insect away."

To fight boredom, he hopes to learn to play the guitar and will take with him an iPod that contains the text of 120 books.

He will take with him a mobile phone and a computer, both powered by a photo voltaic solar cell. It will also have a wind-up handle as a back up to generate electricity.

Dave Hill, the island's owner, has arranged for Mr Spice to be dropped off on Sgarabhaigh and picked up a month later.

"If he rings to say he cannot stand it without a cigarette we will ignore it until it gets to three calls. He must have time to reflect on his decision," said Mr Hill.

Mr Spice began smoking 43 years ago as a paperboy, when he stole some cigarettes from the shop where he was working.

He has previously tried nicotine patches and gum, a self-help book and going cold turkey in an effort to kick the habit, but nothing worked.

The former banker first considered staying on an uninhabited island a decade ago, when he was living in Australia, but was worried about the spiders and snakes there. He found Sgarabhaigh by Googling 'Uninhabited Scottish Islands'.

"I will miss my wife Elena, my children and my family very much but I understand that my mobile phone will work on the island so we can speak that way," Mr Spice said.

"I'm hoping that my plan will work, I'll stop smoking and my month on the island may lead to many years of extra life that I'll be able to spend with them."