tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13152330611455813262024-02-08T10:29:44.537-08:00Stop Smoking with Banjo JonesThe smoking news, as compiled by a newly minted nonsmoker.Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.comBlogger42125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-26934471742676849132007-08-23T07:20:00.000-07:002007-08-23T07:22:49.558-07:00Cowtown widens smoking banBeginning in January, smoking in restaurants will be banned in Fort Worth, it says <a href="http://www.star-telegram.com/news/story/209868.html">right here.</a><br /><br />Bingo halls and bars will remain carcinogenic zones. <br /><br />It tooks the powers-that-be a year and a half to come to this decision.Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-80844887852726809902007-07-01T17:50:00.000-07:002007-07-01T17:54:47.226-07:00UK smoking ban irks Arabs who suck on hubble bubble pipes<a href="http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/B82A18EE-1DEE-4B2E-BC81-D01DE4A14634.htm">Al Jazeera,</a> who else?, reports that Arabs living in London don't like the smoking ban, saying it cramps the style of non-drinking Muslims who don't frequent the beer-soaked pubs but like the water pipe culture. Jesus.Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-71440111417864197622007-06-09T18:38:00.001-07:002007-06-09T18:40:57.817-07:00Slash under investigation for smoking on stage in WalesNot a lot happens in Wales. That's the way the people there like it. They can sit around and read the letters of Flaubert in peace and quiet. But when breaking news happens, the people of Wales hop to. <a href="http://www.pr-inside.com/slash-breaks-smoking-ban-r148805.htm">[link]</a>Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-42865653463764704012007-06-01T17:45:00.000-07:002007-06-01T17:49:46.050-07:00Anti-smoking pill approved in the UKIt's called varenicine and will be sold under the brand name Champix. <br /><br /><blockquote>The drug partially stimulates nicotine receptors in the brain, which helps reduce nicotine-withdrawal symptoms. It also partly blocks nicotine from attaching to these receptors, making smoking less satisfying and so curbing a person's desire to smoke.</blockquote><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070601.wantismoke0531/BNStory/specialScienceandHealth/home">[link]</a>Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-70015524441839650942007-05-22T20:34:00.000-07:002007-05-22T20:42:19.777-07:00Smoking and depressionLong-time smokers may be more prone to depression than those who never have smoked, <a href="http://psychcentral.com/news/2007/05/22/stop-smoking-lower-depression-risk/">new research</a> suggests.<br /><br />You long-times smokers will understand this.<br /><br />How many times have ya'll awakened in the morning, lit a cig the first thing, and then thought, "I <i>must be</i> insane." <br /><br />And then continued doing the same thing and having the same thought for many years after that? <br /><br />Yep, that's damn depressing, I'd say.Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-67577058002260680842007-05-06T15:49:00.000-07:002007-05-06T15:52:22.356-07:00Guvs to Walt Disney: Stop movie smokin'A bunch of governors signed <a href="http://www.attorneygeneral.gov/uploadedFiles/Press/Disney-Smoking-Letter.pdf">this letter</a> that was mailed to Walt Disney Studios asking that the depiction of smoking in movies whose audience includes children be stopped. <br /><br />Is your governor on the list of signees? <br /><br />Mine isn't.Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-53082025280150922752007-03-17T11:40:00.000-07:002007-03-17T11:57:24.995-07:00Smoking bans: easier said than enforced<a href="http://static.flickr.com/91/234363545_2b4bfe097a.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://static.flickr.com/91/234363545_2b4bfe097a.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br />It's one thing to ban smoking. It's another thing to make it stick. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-070316smoke-ban,1,3167536.story?coll=chi-news-hed">In St. Charles, Ill.,</a> the powers that be backed off the no-smoking campaign when neighborhing towns wouldn't go along with the idea.<br /><br />And in <a href="http://www.klas-tv.com/Global/story.asp?S=6239747">Southern Nevada,</a> enforcing new smoking regulations are being applauded by many, but an idea to increase the penalties for violators is being scrapped.<br /><br />But the handwritin's on the wall. When <a href="http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-03/17/content_829986.htm">Red China</a> starts talkin bout a public smoking ban, you know there's a trend afoot, though that far away land better grits its teeth to deal with 350 million very jittery and irribable people if the ban ever comes to pass.Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-84075552097321467912007-03-03T08:40:00.000-08:002007-03-03T08:46:29.381-08:00Puerto Rican smoking ban takes effectNo more smokin in Puerto Rican bars & restaurants with that rum punch in your hand <a href="http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/03/03/news/CB-GEN-Puerto-Rico-Smoking-Ban.php">it says here. </a><br /><br /><blockquote>The law was approved early last year over the objections of some in the tourism industry. It also prohibits smoking in private cars with children under 13 inside.<br /><br />Violators face a penalty of US$250 (€190) for a first offense and up to US$2,000 (€1,520) for repeat violations.</blockquote>Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-76766235986772496252007-02-25T19:32:00.001-08:002007-02-25T19:44:12.916-08:00"Harry Potter" actor gets ripped for smoking on stage<a href="http://www.stuff.co.nz/images/277321.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px;" src="http://www.stuff.co.nz/images/277321.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br />The guy who plays "Harry Potter" in the movies is playing a stage role in the London production of "Equus," and it just so happens that the role calls for him to smoke a cigarette.<br /><br />This has caused a world of shit to come down on the thespian's head by the anti-smoking lobby. <br /><br /><blockquote>"It is regrettable that he is smoking, whatever the circumstances. "He is a role model for young people and if he decided to take up smoking in real life that would be of great concern. Even though it is an act, nicotine is highly addictive and he could find himself hooked." </blockquote><br /><br />So said an anti-smoking crusader in London. <br /><br />The play's producer said that smoking is a key element of a scene in the play and that the actor doesn't even smoke in "real life."<br /><br />Since art's supposed to reflect life, and since people in real life smoke, we'll side with the artiste on this score.Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-7369529399515245622007-02-21T15:20:00.000-08:002007-02-21T15:21:14.165-08:00Smokin' "like cocaine and heroin"<a href="http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/107894.aspx">So says a study...</a>Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-76895634541136316272007-02-15T20:25:00.000-08:002007-02-15T20:28:14.935-08:00EU Parliament says `To hell with this no-smokin' crap, everybody light up!'It's kinda like what Barack Obama said about smokin' ... <a href="http://www.playfuls.com/news_10_14422-EU-Repeals-Smoking-Ban-After-Only-43-Days.html">the flesh is weak</a> ...Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-30879841437175869772007-02-06T21:27:00.000-08:002007-02-06T21:32:37.961-08:00Times jumps on insula storyWe noted a few weeks ago stories about the prune-sized part of the brain called the insula, whose mysteries could hold the key to unlock addictive behavior, including the nasty cigarette habit that kills so many people.<br /><br />The NY Times has now weighed in on the insula.<br /><br /><blockquote>The insula also reads body states like hunger and craving and helps push people into reaching for the next sandwich, cigarette or line of cocaine. So insula research offers new ways to think about treating drug addiction, alcoholism, anxiety and eating disorders....<br /><br />...If it does everything, what exactly is it that it does?<br /><br />For example, the insula “lights up” in brain scans when people crave drugs, feel pain, anticipate pain, empathize with others, listen to jokes, see disgust on someone’s face, are shunned in a social settings, listen to music, decide not to buy an item, see someone cheat and decide to punish them, and determine degrees of preference while eating chocolate.<br /><br />Damage to the insula can lead to apathy, loss of libido and an inability to tell fresh food from rotten.<br /><br />The bottom line, according to Dr. Paulus and others, is that mind and body are integrated in the insula. It provides unprecedented insight into the anatomy of human emotions.</blockquote><br /><br />Here's an idea ... instead of our government spending a lot of money <i>to go back </i> to the moon, how 'bout we put that money into figuruing out the insula? <br /><br />Here's the rest of the NYT <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/06/health/psychology/06brain.html?em&ex=1170997200&en=2f385455b82b0034&ei=5087%0A">story.</a>Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-36439660553464373422007-02-03T17:22:00.000-08:002007-02-03T17:24:35.865-08:00Possible new cure for smoking<a href="http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Palace/5424/pictures/bencigarette.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px;" src="http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Palace/5424/pictures/bencigarette.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br />Dramatically increase your consumption of cigarettes. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.andhracafe.com/index.php?m=show&id=18260">That's how Ben Affleck kicked.</a>Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-35235936544299441802007-01-30T20:57:00.000-08:002007-01-30T21:06:21.798-08:00SF suburb pushing smoking envelopeBelmont, Calif., may ban smoking in apartment complexes. and the like.<br /><br />The LA Times reports: <blockquote>Twenty years ago, a proposal to prohibit smoking in condos and apartments "would have been a radical and crazy idea," said Matthew Myers, president of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. "Today, it's an idea that's gaining growing acceptance, precisely because the science has evolved and changed."</blockquote><br /><br />Background: <blockquote>In the late 1940s, '50s and most of the '60s, people could smoke virtually everywhere they went, with a few minor restrictions related to fire hazards, he said. When smoke was recognized at the very least as an irritant and temporary health hazard, segregated smoking and nonsmoking sections cropped up everywhere, from airplanes to offices.<br /><br />That was during much of the 1970s, '80s and '90s, he said, a period underscored by the idea that "smokers have rights." Then California banned smoking in restaurants and the workplace, and the boundary for permissible smoking tightened. Suddenly it was not OK to smoke indoors in public places.<br /><br />When Calabasas voted last year to effectively ban smoking outdoors, the boundary moved again. But the city, Banzhaf said, deliberately chose not to address the smoke that drifts from private home to private home in the close confines of apartment buildings and condos — at least for the time being.<br /><br />Which brings us to Belmont, "which is taking the lead," he said.<br /><br />It is unclear just what the City Council will do when presented with the first draft of its new ordinance, whether the anti-smoking fervor on display in November will survive, what kind of history will be made, where the line will be drawn.</blockquote><br />Expect lawsuits, eh. <br /><a href="http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-belmont29jan29,0,7656220.story?coll=la-home-local">[link]</a>Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-48822559510734378192007-01-30T16:25:00.000-08:002007-01-30T16:28:55.856-08:00In Wales, a smoking ban in public placesIt's scheduled to take hold the day after April Fool's Day, April 2.<br /><br />The health minister says violators will be shot on sight -- just kiddin. Here's what he really said: <blockquote> “Long term exposure to second-hand smoke can cause lung cancer, heart disease and ban respiratory illness among non-smokers. <br /><br />“The most compelling reason for introducing the as soon as possible is that experts estimate at least 400 non-smokers die each year in Wales as a result of exposure to second-hand smoke.<br /><br />“We know that many smokers want to quit but find it extremely difficult. There has never been a better time to give up for good when the ban comes into force in April."</blockquote><br /><br /><a href="http://www.24dash.com/health/15909.htm">[link]</a>Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-74818168530246656072007-01-29T20:09:00.000-08:002007-01-29T20:12:10.484-08:00If you want the seed to find purchase, put away the smokesSmokers are more likely to be infertile that non-smokers, says a doc, citing studies. <br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16874634/">[link]</a>Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-71638202219826179162007-01-28T19:48:00.000-08:002007-01-28T20:00:25.583-08:00French smoking ban to take effect, stage smoking under fire and would you believe a THIRD of the world population smokes?The French love to smoke. Almost as much as they love to make love with their faces, as the saying goes.<br /><br />The big question now is will the country enforce the ban on smoking in public places, which takes effect Thursday. <a href=" www.27525windingway.com">[link]</a>.<br /><br />United Press International, which I thought had gone outta business (since you hardly ever see their wire copy in the papers), is carrying story that says the growing trend of banning smoking may well extend to actors performing on stage. Some get around such prohbitions by employing herbal smokes (presumably not <i>that</i> herb) but even some laws extend to non-tobacco smokes. <a href="http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/view.php?StoryID=20070128-083826-6663r">[link]</a><br /><br />According to a guy with an international group dedicated to helping people quit smoking, ONE-Third of the world's population smokes. I'm not sure I believe that. <a href="http://www.focus-fen.net/index.php?id=f1262">[link]</a>Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-1782879048034500842007-01-27T12:52:00.000-08:002007-01-27T13:10:24.921-08:00Smoking popular in Bulgaria<a href="http://www.womenlifestyle.com/images/fregthb.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px;" src="http://www.womenlifestyle.com/images/fregthb.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br />Look for a lot of people in Bulgaria to get real irritable real soon if that country joins the European Union, whose health commissioner wants new EU-member countries to adopt a smoking ban in public places.<br /><br />Have you ever met a Bulgarian? <br /><br />If so, and that Bulgarian happened to be male, chances are he smoked. The ladies there love to smoke, too, but not as much as the fellers.<br /><br />They are a surly and smelly lot, to be sure. And they don't give a shit. You can cite all the Surgeon General studies under the sun, and they'll keep smokin'. Or shove a shiv between your ribs when you insist they stop. <br /><br />Bulgaria is scheduled to join the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Union">EU</a> this year. Don't hold your breath if this smoking edict passes. On second thought, hold your breath, if you happen to live in Bulgaria, cause it's likely full of secondhand smoke!!<br /><br />Furthermore, if Bulgaria is one of the places you always hoped to visit before you die, our suggestion is you go there before the smoking ban. It'll be smellier in the cafes, restaurants and transit stations, but the people will be happy -- while they can legally smoke in public.<br /><br /><a href="http://international.ibox.bg/news/id_1761279916">[link]</a>Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-20958120174364792242007-01-26T09:57:00.000-08:002007-01-26T10:06:56.678-08:00Blame it on the insula<a href="http://www.anaesthetist.com/icu/pain/images/insula.gif"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://www.anaesthetist.com/icu/pain/images/insula.gif" border="0" alt="" /></a><br />The part of the brain that may unlock the whole problem of addiction is about the size of a prune,<br /><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/26/science/26brain.html?pagewanted=1&ei=5088&en=4fb33b6d42f477d6&ex=1327467600&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss">the NY Times reports.</a><br /><br /><blockquote>“This is the first time we’ve shown anything like this, that damage to a specific brain area could remove the problem of addiction entirely,” said Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, which financed the study, along with the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. “It’s absolutely mind-boggling.”</blockquote><br /><br />...<br /><br /><blockquote>“In a sense it’s not surprising that the insula is an important part of this circuit maintaining addiction, because we realized some years ago that it was going to be a critical platform for emotions,” Dr. Damasio said in a telephone interview. “It is on this platform that we first anticipate pain and pleasure, not just smoking but eating chocolate, drinking a glass of wine, all of it.”<br /><br />This explains why cravings are so physical, and so hard to shake, he said: they have taken hold in the visceral reaches of the body well before they are even conscious.</blockquote>Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-53315049468135624922007-01-25T21:59:00.000-08:002007-01-25T22:01:25.192-08:00New smoking cure discoveredIt's got its pluses and minuses. <br /><br />On the plus side, you completely lose the urge to smoke.<br /><br />On the minus side, you must first suffer a stroke<br /><br /><a href="http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/4499169.html">Read More</a>Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-15543638498561604702007-01-24T09:16:00.000-08:002007-01-24T10:01:20.530-08:00Relapse!I just got off a three-pack bender.<br /><br />(That's 60 cigarettes, for the uninitiated, but I doubt any readers of this "micro blog" didn't know that. )<br /><br />My intial thought, as it related to this blog, was to not say anything and continue aggregating the "smoking news," as I call it, since I decided during the relapse I'd get back on the program ASAP (as soon as I had smoked the 3 packs I purchased at a local convenience store (Gold Coast 100 regulars, one of the cut-rate brands.)<br /><br />Then I realized how stupid and dishonest that thinking was cause, really, what's the use of a no-smoking blog if you don't deal with relapse? <br /><br />So here I am fessin' up.<br /><br />Right now, as I type on Wednesday morning, I've entered Day 2. <br /><br />So what happened on the relapse? Why'd it happen? <br /><br />The short answer is I got angry. <br /><br />So I was pissed and decided, fuck it, I need a cigarette!!<br /><br />Why'd my brain tell me to do that? <br /><br />Cause it told me I "needed" it, I guess. Cause it'd make it better, I guess? I knew on some level of rationality that this was nonsensical thinking, but on a baser level, that's definitely the message I was experiencing.<br /><br />The 1st pack wasn't all that great. The 2nd pack was OK. By the third pack, I was enjoying it -- sort of, I think.<br /><br />When the 3 pack stash was gone, I had a decision to make. It's the same old decision all smokers go through. Do I buy more? <br /><br />I came close to re-upping, but decided, crap, I'm just delaying the inevitable (and making it worse) by continuing. I guess I better get back on the horse now, before I go another few years without quittin' again. <br /><br />So here I am on Day II.<br /><br />Let's get back to the cause of the relapse.<br /><br />I got angry. <br /><br />OK, that's something we all do, some more than others. We get angry. It doesn't matter why. (Wait! It does matter why, but that's a whole other topic for another time.)<br /><br />Anger is an emotion, right? <br /><br />So it's emotions I have to watch out for, eh, so far as it relates to stopping smoking.<br /><br />OK, I'll buy that. <br /><br />But there's something else going on at a different level. It's not just emotion. Or anger. It's fear. Yep, that's what I think goes on with addicts. <br /><br />It's the fear that, "Oh my God, I won't be alright unless I (fill in the blank)" ... smoke, or whatever your addictive behavior may be ... when actually, I <i>will</i> be alright; I may be uncomfortable for awhile, but in due course, I'll be OK. <br /><br />I guess that's what I have to keep in mind.Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-34475928322425478452007-01-21T19:59:00.000-08:002007-01-21T20:07:08.275-08:00Smoke still gets in their eyes (in their craw) despite anti-smoking law in Baytown, Texas<a href="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/40859000/jpg/_40859798_texasrefinery203apb.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px;" src="http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/40859000/jpg/_40859798_texasrefinery203apb.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br />Bidness is down at Cowboy's Cedar Lounge.<br /><br />And some say that local waterin holes are being targeted in favor of churches and the like.<br /><br />It's all over the city's smokin law.<br /><br /><a href="http://stories.baytownsun.com/story.lasso?ewcd=a7f23f77dc2f712f">(link)</a>Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-50633045035233766012007-01-20T22:26:00.000-08:002007-01-20T22:28:19.352-08:00Bangor, Maine: Roger Miller once mentioned it in a songIf you're ever driving through Bangor, Maine, and have a child in your vehicle, whatever you do DON'T SMOKE. <br /><a href="http://www.wistv.com/Global/story.asp?S=5962827">(link)</a>Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-58706864712855253802007-01-20T07:48:00.000-08:002007-01-20T07:59:06.816-08:00Is Obama's vocal magic smoking related?Our friend Slampo sent us this piece from <a href="http://www.slate.com/id/2157523/">Slate</a>, which poses the question of whether Sen. Barack Obama might make smoking acceptable again. <br /><br />Wouldn't it be a trip to see a presidential candidate crushing a stogie under his wingtip and blowing a final gush of gray cigarette smoke out before he assumed the lecturn to weave his magic?<br /><br />Kinda like a rock star.<br /><br />The piece makes note of something one our other friends, H. Brute of Sharptown, made note of in a comment the other day, which is how Dylan's voice changed when he tried to quite smoking before he recorded Nashville Skyline.<br /><br />As for the Slate piece, it says of Obama's rich voice: <blockquote>"<br />There are plenty of reasons for Obama's magic voice: where he grew up, how his parents talked, how he breathes. But perhaps most important is one Obama doesn't want to talk about: cigarettes. Obama is an occasional smoker.<br /><br />Smoking over time transforms a person's voice by thickening and drying out the vocal chords. The vocal chords vibrate as your breath passes through them, so their texture and shape helps determine what your voice sounds like. David Witsell, who directs Duke University's Voice Care Center, notes that the nodules on Johnny Cash's vocal cords that stemmed in part from his smoking habit helped create his unique sound. "Many famous voices in history have pathologies that are part of their vocal signatures," Witsell says."</blockquote><br /><br />Slate poses this question: if Obama gives up his smokes for good, will it negative affect that sexy voice of his? What if he ends up sounding like Urkel? Or talkin' like Dyno-Mite Jimmy from "Good Times"?Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1315233061145581326.post-53378085369853967632007-01-18T08:08:00.000-08:002007-01-18T09:09:20.121-08:00Smoking ban sought in Texas<a href="http://www.afterimagegallery.com/evanssmokingman.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px;" src="http://www.afterimagegallery.com/evanssmokingman.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br />A state senator plans to seek a smoking ban in the entire state of Texas that would include prohibiting firing up in restaurants, bars and workplaces. <a href="http://www.statesman.com/news/content/region/legislature/stories/01/19/19smoking.html">(link)</a><br /><br />This will threaten one of the cornerstones of Texas mythology -- that of the smoky Texas roadhouse, where some o that downhome Americana roots C&W supposedly can be had in any small town.<br /><br />So, Texas should be a big battleground in the fight over second-hand smoke, but not because of the aforementioned roadhouse myth, but simply cause it's a huge market where a lot of cigarettes are sold, and, of course, where people like to say they have certain inalienable rights -- even if it'll kill them and their nonsmoking fellows!<br /><br /> Texas just tacked on a $1 tax on a pack o' smokes, so addicts are still highly agitated over that. Hell, if I still smoked, I'd be PO'd too! But I quit, what?, 18, 19 days ago! Yippie!! I feel TERRRIFFFFICC!!!! So keep on smokin if'n you want, suckers, but a friendly word of advice -- give some serious consideration to givin' it all up. It's not as difficult as you may think.Banjo Jones http://www.blogger.com/profile/10112841663290890325noreply@blogger.com1