Smokin Ban...

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sky2979

Tejanita Caliente
Pentagon Considers Military Smoking Ban

Dena Richardson/KFOX News Reporter
Posted: 6:15 pm MDT July 12, 2009Updated: 8:46 pm MDT July 12, 2009
EL PASO, Texas -- The Pentagon is considering a full ban on tobacco in the military following the findings of a recent report by the Institute of Medicine.
The report found tobacco use costs the Pentagon nearly $850 million a year in medical care and lost productivity costs. And according to the report, tobacco use impairs military readiness. So the Institute of Medicine recommends prohibiting anyone in uniform from using tobacco and stopping the sale of those products on military bases.
But some El Pasoans do not agree with the proposed ban.
"Our soldiers are giving their lives out there to protect our freedoms," said George Barraza, of northeast El Paso. "And we're trying to take one of their basic freedoms from them, which is their choice to smoke or not to smoke."
According to the report, about one-third of all active military personnel smoke, and troops often rely on cigarettes as a stress reliever.
"During the war in Vietnam, the government used to supply them with marijuana," said Marcia LeGendle, of Chaparral. "Why can't they have a legalized substance?"
Profits from tobacco sales on base, up to $90 million, pays for a majority of military recreation and family support programs.


The report recommendation calls for the full ban to be in effect within 20 years.
Copyright 2009 by KFOXTV.com​




Why can't they just let our soldiers be happy for once??? lol...sad...too sad...BTW,..(I'm a non-smoker) :rockin:
 
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sky2979 said:
"During the war in Vietnam, the government used to supply them with marijuana,"
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Now that is a good stress reliever.

It makes sense to ban tobacco in your military... but only if people aren't already addicted to it. After all, nicotene has no psychoactive effect unless you're already addicted; satisfying the addiction is what makes you feel relaxed.
 
major liability said:
It makes sense to ban tobacco in your military... but only if people aren't already addicted to it. After all, nicotene has no psychoactive effect unless you're already addicted; satisfying the addiction is what makes you feel relaxed.
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Not from my experience!
I can smoke after a 2 year absence and it feels REALLY good. I won't even have a craving... then one particularily bad day I'll have one and it feels great.
 
Okay, from where did that nitwit lady conclude that the government gave US servicemembers marajuana during Vietnam? First, I can't find anything that supports that claim, and second, the government wouldn't give out something that was illegal in the first place. Finally, Vietnam was 40 years ago -- we've learned a lot about healthcare cause and effect since then.

Also, when you join the military, you've signed away most of your civilian freedoms. The military isn't a democracy. Maybe I'm just old school -- but if DoD implements a policy that you're personally against, then leave when your enlistment contract is up or resign your commission. Full stop.

[rant off]
 
It appears that it's not going to happen in the combat theaters...

Officials Won't Ban Tobacco for Deployed Troops, Morrell Says
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, July 15, 2009 - Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates has made it clear he does not plan to restrict tobacco use among troops in war zones, the Pentagon's press secretary said today.

Gates has yet to see a report commissioned by the Defense Department that proposes a ban on smoking in the military, Geoff Morrell said.

The National Academy of Sciences' Institute of Medicine completed the study last month, which reportedly recommends strict controls to limit new users from entering the military and to curtail use among those already serving.

The secretary is likely to consider some of the report's recommendations, but none that ban tobacco use among deployed forces, Morrell said.

"[Gates] has been very clear to me up front that one of the things he is not prepared to do is to restrict use of tobacco products in combat zones," he said.

"We are fighting two wars right now using a force that we are demanding more of than we ever have before," Morrell said. "They are under enormous stress and strain, and the secretary does not want to compound that stress by taking away one of the few outlets they may have to relieve that stress."

The secretary shares the concerns of those who prepared the report about the health and well-being of the force and understands the administration's goal of a smoke-free America, Morrell said.

"Obviously, it is not our preference to have a force that is using tobacco products," he said.

Morrell noted the enormous cost to the department in terms of health care. "By some estimates, it costs us nearly a billion dollars a year in tobacco-related health problems," he said.
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http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=55139
 
Never met him, but I like him a lot, too.

I was at an unclassified Pentagon briefing a couple of years back where I heard that he bounced the initial/draft personnel billeting system for AFRICOM because it was too DoD-heavy -- he wanted more "soft" (i.e., non-combatant) personnel from other Federal departments/agencies and non-governmental organizations because he recognized that Africa will require a more diplomatic presence than a military presence.
 
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