Calculating the "Big Kill"
Posted by Kent C on Monday, 14-Jan-2008
I read an article recently by that title in Regulation magazine - a Cato publication. It goes into how smoking related deaths are guessed at. Here's an online link:
[link]
Lots of statistics, but some interesting stuff some of which I knew - they use computer models based on a survey back in the 80's, rather than outright counting and that neither the Cancer society or the CDC which does the 'guessing' will open their methods or numbers totally to the public.
One of the things I didn't know (or forgot) was that they counted as 'former smokers' anyone who had smoked 100 cigarettes (5 packs) in their lifetime. So you could have the case where some 14 year old experimented with cigarettes, found out they weren't for him and then at 93 dies of congestive heart failure and that death could be counted as 'smoking related'.
As far as second hand smoke related deaths, I've considered offering my property as a free graveyard for any they can prove that second hand smoke was not just the only reason but a primary cause of death - no junk science allowed. Iow, bring me a body and the evidence and I'll dig the hole.
Comments [ new ]
- Re: Calculating the "Big Kill"
- Posted by Taxucks on Monday, 28-Jan-2008
The nanny-State tobacco-nazis have billions in funds extorted from the tax-payers to attack private industry.
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No wonder so many people are bitching about out-sourcing of formerly U.S.-based-businesses to foreign countries, the United States Government has declared war on the entrepreneur and their investors.
Now with their zeal to prosecute blasphemers, apostates, and infidels dis-believing in Global Climate Change, the anti-tobacco freaks can punish the average non-smoking American citizen under penalty of law with tax money.
Eventually I'll figure out the sig, "I love my country, but I despise it's government."
- Re: Calculating the "Big Kill"
- Posted by Wazmo Nariz on Tuesday, 15-Jan-2008
You're (and the Cato Institute) are correct; the same methodlogy is used for many such bogus studies, such as alcohol-related traffic fatalities, gun-related deaths, etc.--whenever the need for artificially inflated numbers are required in an effort to sway public opinion.
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In Central Florida (and I'm sure in other areas, but I know this first hand), if you have had a beer within 48 hours of being involved in an accident, it's an alcohol-related accident. The person you run into is counted in that category as is the guy who slows down to rubberneck and has someone hit his back bumper. And so is the persons who get involved in a fender-bender as a car swerves over to allow the first-responders to go by on the way to the accident scene and hits the car next to him.
All anyone really needs to know about enjoying tobacco is: "Everything in moderation."
- Re: Calculating the "Big Kill"
- Posted by mike c on Tuesday, 15-Jan-2008
and until Americans (and the world, apparently France is on the right path, to an extent) realize the UFO secret is the big one, it's baaa baaa baaa sheeple
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probably never happen, the masses are IDIOTS who either don't care, or are caught up in survival
to me, society is one big bad joke
((<*>))
- Re: Calculating the "Big Kill"
- Posted by Kent on Tuesday, 15-Jan-2008
mike c wrote:
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"and until Americans (and the world, apparently France is on the right path, to an extent) realize the UFO secret is the big one, it's baaa baaa baaa sheeple"
mike - can you give me a hint at what you're responding to and how that relates to what either Wazmo or I said?
Perhaps it's just me misunderstanding something here. Anyone else get it?
- Re: Calculating the "Big Kill"
- Posted by mike c on Wednesday, 16-Jan-2008
yes I can
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do I feel an obligation, no
- Re: Calculating the "Big Kill" (way off)
- Posted by mike c on Thursday, 17-Jan-2008
Dear Kent + all
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I feel I made a mistake going too far off on a limb, but since I did and you wondered about my point, here it is: to me, in MHO, scientist is a word too generally used to sway public opinion, when in fact scientists (again IMHO) are only human beings educated and learned by teachings and writings of more (eyeroll) human beings- until scientists "at large" take the problem I am presenting as a science fact and accept it across the board, then whatever they issue to me is suspect, and subject to :human flaw
while not perfect, the following link sums it up fairly well
[link]
- Re: Calculating the "Big Kill" (way off)
- Posted by Kerry on Thursday, 17-Jan-2008
Mike, I am seriously taking back what I recently said about you being an asset and returning to the 3/5's "joke".
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You need to stay on the medication. When you don't, it is obvious.
Take care...
- Re: Calculating the "Big Kill" (way off)
- Posted by mike c on Friday, 18-Jan-2008
it's sleeping medicine (you know, if you're lucky, you get, well, sleepy), and I have it now while I didn't when I wrote that. (which means less than nothing)
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I do not respond to any of the anti-depressants and they took me off of them ages ago. (my mom was taken away and died, never got to speak to her again, this is what triggered depression, and yes drug abuse was at the root)
I am not a psycho schizo, etc (have a music friend in Norway who is, what a strange disorder, voices and such, but he's brilliant)
don't be too sure of yourself, or better stated- if I were you I'd be careful in writing things off as a joke.
I have been a student of the above subject since I hit the ground
The only point I was making with it is that the average man is not considered worthy of knowing the truth concerning his very place in the universe, so all other BS trickling down should be of no great surprise.
I will end any discussion of this topic here, as I know it won't ever fly with many people for reasons I cannot comprehend but have learned to accept. (plus it's pretty far away from tobacco conversation)
unless I find myself in an argument, etc...
- Re: Calculating the "Big Kill" (way off)
- Posted by Hua Kul on Monday, 07-Apr-2008
mike c wrote, "The only point I was making with it is that the average man is not considered worthy of knowing the truth concerning his very place in the universe, so all other BS trickling down should be of no great surprise."
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That having been said, I am still continually amazed at how gullible the gov't thinks we are. Like the e. coli. contaminated lettuce deaths of a couple of years ago, traced to some fields in California. We were told by the gov't it was feral pigs pooping on the crops. 1. If indeed feral pigs are pooping on the lettuce they have been doing so for decades with no deadly outbreaks of disease. 2. A much more likely source was from the new practice of irrigating the crops with semi-treated human sewage piped in from urban areas.
Speaking of your sleeping medication, the best I ever used was GHB, a safe amino acid that used to be available in any health food store. It worked great and was not like normal sleeping pills in that the sleep rythms were normal and one could wake up from normal stimuli like loud noises. There is no chance of being harmed by an overdose, there are well documented cases of accidental massive overdoses which resulted in only more sleep time and maybe a headache. (Drinking a large quantity of alcohol at the same time as taking a large (abusive) dose of GHB can be fatal because both GHB and alcohol are metabolized by alcohol dehydrogenase and when that is used up by GHB a person can die of alcohol poisoning, but it is the alcohol, not the GHB, that is toxic). It is used globally by doctors for everything from aiding childbirth to helping kick alcoholism, but our gov't cooked up the story that it is a killer date rape drug, to get it off the market just prior to the FDA approving a new type of sleep drug, Sonata. As a humorous aside, here is a news release title: "Sonata(R) (zaleplon) C-IV Now Used by Astronauts in Space." Here is a side effect of Sonata, "In December 2006, FDA sent letters to manufacturers of products approved for the treatment of sleep disorders requesting that the whole class of drugs revise product labeling to include warnings about the following potential adverse events: Complex sleep-related behaviors which may include sleep-driving, making phone calls, and preparing and eating food (while asleep)." I wonder if NASA is concerned about sleep driving by astronauts.
--Hua Kul
- Re: Calculating the "Big Kill" (way off)
- Posted by mike c on Monday, 07-Apr-2008
I appreciate this
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first time I had heard anything positive of GHB
all I previously knew, is that it was used in some way by atheletes, originally available in health-oriented shops, and had become something widely abused that was highly dangerous
I swear I saw the stangest televison program years ago about a "dad" GHB "junkie" and the hell his son was going through...oh it was the weirdest thing I've ever seen....
do you know about the "aquadots"??
more strangeness!!!!