If you eat meat or junk food, drive an SUV, own a gun or enjoy a beer now and then, what has worked in the anti-smoking campaign will work against you.

A small group of dedicated individuals who truly believe the majority of us are not capable of making the "right decisions" concerning some of our life style choices is winning right now.

We need your help and support.

I urge you to have the courage to stand with smokers when you see harassment going on.

It doesn't take much. Just stand next to a person being harassed and look the harasser in the eye. When they realize you are not intimidated and you are paying attention they will usually stop.

Remember you are dealing with a basically cowardly person who gains self esteem by the amount of discomfort they can impose on others. Bullies fit that description, don't they?

YOU CAN write letters.

To local and regional newspapers, to City, County, State and Federal agencies and representatives, to state and Federal Health Departments, national and international Health Societies and Associations. Need some ideas? Take a look at these sources.

As difficult as it is, the shorter the letter, the better for chances at publication.

You should find enough ideas on these pages to write a dozen letters. Don't like to write letters or e-mail?

Invest in a small stack of post cards. Keep a list of city, county, state and federal representatives in an address book. A postcard with a single line like "NO MORE TOBACCO TAXES", or "REAL SCIENCE not JUNK SCIENCE in our health departments" counts.

Is it worth it? Each letter or postcard counts as the opinion of approximately 100 registered voters.

Be sure to put a minimum of contact information like your name, phone number and address.

Not sure where to start? Check your states webpage or the list of state governors addresses you can find at Write Your Governor

YOU CAN Register to vote. Voters are the ultimate bosses.

Many cities and counties allow on-line registration and voting. You can also check the online sites for the major parties, they will usually have links to your state or county

YOU CAN take pictures of yourself with friends, standing in front of YOUR local Restaurants, Bars, Bowling Alleys, ALL those places they want to kick us out of.

Let them see for themselves what a smoking ban will actually look like. Pass out the pictures in the places you took them. Ask how you can help them fight these foolios.

Check to see if there is an retail owners group or association that is fighting the bans as well. Volunteer your time and effort, show up at meetings, make phone calls. Do you need to organize? Naa, just make yourself available.

YOU CAN distribute info sheets to YOUR local tobacco shops, bars & taverns, bowling alleys, liquor stores and corner stores.

Where ever you go to buy cigarettes. Remember, they are losing money too.

To find excellent, well organized libraries of articles and information, please start with these pages.

YOU CAN calmly respond to fellow workers that much of the current anti-smoking propaganda is SMOKE AND MIRRORS, point out that much of the so called proof has been discredited or thrown out of court. Be prepared when they approach you with the ever present question "Ready to quit yet?" Need some facts to make notes from? Start here.

YOU CAN point out that in the past year alone, there have been Health Alerts issued by the National Institute of Health concerning the safety of HRT (Hormone Replacement Therapy); changed guidelines downgrading the importance of cholesterol overall in evaluating heart risk; women who have certain genetic markers are no longer being told to have their breasts removed as a precautionary measure against cancer; Vitamin A which is currently being recommended at a level thought necessary to protect vision, may actually cause calcium loss in the bones.[NOTE: This section was written in 2007. The facts don't change, just the time variable]

Take a look at this page OhioHealth for a quick overview of vitamin and anti-aging therapies, including Vitamin A and HRT.

I am not saying ignore good medical advice. I am saying evaluate; discuss with doctors you trust; don't allow yourself to be pushed on the current bandwagons.

If you are uncomfortable with something, get a second opinion. Researcher "upward mobility paths" too often depend on the number of publications, not competence.

Studies are cheaper to do than verifiable research, and will be accepted by an unquestioning media.

Point out that the same folks responsible for the anti-smoking campaign are pretty much responsible for much of the junk science and apparently dangerous recommendations we've been given for the past 30 years or so.

We need to be able to trust health groups and government health agencies, not worry about their private agendas.

Point out that groups like the National Lung Association, American Cancer Society, and National Heart Association do depend on contributions, personal and governmental.

Think I may be overstating the problem? Please take the time to read this article found on The American Council on Health and Safety.

Suggest to your friends they no longer contribute to these organizations.

If you think that won't work, ask yourself a single question.

When was the last time you heard anything from the PTA?

There was no national movement against the Parents Teachers Association.

When the National Council no longer represented the viewpoint of the average parent, people just stopped joining.

YOU CAN Start petitions or write letters asking for investigations into how much "Research Money" is spent on propaganda, based on junk science, for our own good.

Insist that all public policy has undergone independent peer review and has been verified as well grounded and accurate. Public Law 105-277, known as the Shelby Amendment, mandates that scientific data and methodology used to pass public law be available for public review. Put pressure on state and local officials that only data accepted and verified by independent review be considered valid.

Point out the sole purpose of these propaganda campaigns is to scare the living hell out of, AND CONTROL, the general public.

As the old saying has it, if you torture the data long enough, it will confess to anything.

Let your representatives know you expect laws to be based on verifiable research, not manipulated study results being used for our "Own Good".

Good public policies must be based on old fashioned hard science, not junk.

YOU CAN Sign petitions, get copies and distribute them, or just let your friends know there are petitions online. You can begin with this page.

If you know of other petitions or pages I should have here, please let me know.

YOU CAN buy and wear SmokersTees.

Divided among a group, they become a reasonably priced tool to help you make your point, as will our buttons, caps, mugs and bumper stickers.