FORUM
Don't make strong women targets
Emie Pitt
This &
That
I'm not sure if 1 spot a trend
beginning here regarding female
leadership, but it certainly
smells like it. Most recently, the
president of the Greater Win
ston-Salem Chamber of Com
merce (Gayle Anderson) has
been unfairly criticized for if not
causing all or most of the city's
economic woes, being at least
partially responsible for most.
Of course that's baloney, but
when someone of influence
wants you out. most of the time
it is out you'll be.
That situation reminds me
somewhat of the situation a
short time ago regarding the
female head of the Experiment
in Self-Reliance. Twana Well
man. She was blamed for every
mistake made even before she
got there. In fact, many of the
minor discretions were known
about prior to her being hired.
But she's a classy and strong
lady just like Anderson, and
Wellman has prevailed. I'm
hoping that we've seen the last
of the bogus attacks on Well
man.
Which brings me to the next
female who may be in distress
or on the way. I'm speaking
about Leadership Winston
Salem's female director. Annette
Scippio. Man! What a great job
she has done and is doing to
keep that program going.
I was a member of the first
class of Leadership Winston
Salem, in 1985. A lot of my
classmates have been supporters
of Leadership Winston-Salem
and continue to do so. Scippio
has been at the helm for some 11
years now and, from what I'm
told, has done a tremendous job.
I certainly hope that she contin
ues to get the support needed to
carry the program forward.
I know money is scarce as
hen's teeth, but that program
needs to continue. It is the most
economical and most expedient
way to accommodate 30 to 40
leaders in several different cate
gories at the same time. It has
proven to be the best way to
make those persons aware of the
issues facing the city as a whole
as well as the many different
segments.
Winston-Salem has become
a truly diverse community in
many ways. We have African
Americans, Hispanics and
females in many important posi
tions here. That is something for
us to build on, not destroy. Our
police chief is female, our assis
tant county manager is African
American. our city secretary is
an African-American female,
etc. That is truly remarkable. We
should continue to build on that.
The next big hurdle is a
more equitable business rela
tionship between these diverse
groups. I believe it will happen.
In fact. I believe it is happening
as we speak. I am encouraged,
especially since The Chronicle
is coming up on its 30th
anniversary next year. That, my
brothers and sisters, is a long
time. Isn't God good to us?
Amen!
Ernie Pitl is the publisher of
The Chronicle and the chairman
of the Housing Authority of Win
ston-Salem Board of Commis
sioners. E-mail him at
erpilt@ wschronicle.com.
II ? !? I
Well man
Anderson
Scippio
Will the genie grant a cigarette-ban wish?
Tommy J.
Payne
Guest
Columnist
Surgeon General Richard
Carmona uncorked a genie's
bottle of political hypocrisy
with his comment before
Congress that he would sup
port banning the sale of
tobacco products.
Why didn't such a bold,
sincerely delivered statement,
coming from the nation's top
physician, win him praise
from the anti-smoking lobby
and politicians who have long
decried smoking?
Leaving issues of individ
ual freedom, adult responsi
bility, social engineering and
political correctness aside, the
answer may lie in that famous
piece of advice, "Follow the
money."
Carmona, perhaps unin
tentionally. revealed the ulti
mate game of wanting to have
it both ways. The government
is "addicted" to tobacco rev
enue.
Between 1998 and 2002,
the government collected
nearly $135 billion from U.S.
smokers, who have a median
annual household income of
about $35,000. Government
pockets more tobacco revenue
per minute than the average
working family brings home
in a year. About 47 percent of
the cost of an average pack of
cigarettes goes to The govern
ment. (R.J. Reynolds Tobac
co's profit per pack, in con
trast, is about 3 percent.)
State governments are par
ticularly dependent upon cig
arette funding. If the surgeon
general were to get his wish,
for example. California would '.
stand to lose $2.3 billion
annually. New York would be
out $2.1 billion. Texas would
fall short by $1.7 billion, and
Michigan, more than $1 bil
lion.
In 2002. 44 states faced
budget deficits. Twenty of
them increased cigarette taxes
to help make up the differ
ence. To date this year, nine
states have increased cigarette
taxes. It's a good thing that
the suggestion to ban this
enormous revenue stream to
the states came from a physi
cian: A number of state gover
nors might need CPR if they
were told they'd lost their
state tobacco revenues.
Ironically, even the anti
smoking lobby couldn't warm
up to the concept of banning
cigarettes. Given that rev
enues from taxes and the
Master Settlement Agreement
between the states and major
I ?
cigarette manufacturers have
provided more than $2 billion
in funding for youth non
smoking programs and other
tobacco-control activities,
perhaps that's not as surpris
ing as it might seem on its
face. h
Entirely apart from the
government's financial
dependence upon tobacco,
banning a product used by
neafly one-quarter of the
adult U.S. population is a
dicey proposal at best. Is it
realistic to believe more than
40 million Americans would
just quit smoking? The black
market created by such a
move would make the Sopra
nos look like a bunch of choir
boys.
So in supporting the aboli
tion of the government's
golden - if not platinum -
goose, did Surgeon General
Carmona lay an egg? Perhaps
not. He deserves credit for
raising an intellectually hon
est question of whether ciga
rettes should remain legal for
adults in this country. If so,
should they be operated by a
government monopoly, as
some nations do, or by private
enterprise? And if they are to
be operated by private enter
prise. how should the manu
facture and sale of a product
with universally known health
risks be regulated?
Current proposals to give
the Food and Drug Adminis
tration (FDA) authority to
regulate cigarettes would be
tantamount to granting Car
mona his wish. The U.S.
Supreme Court has already
ruled that as currently char
tered. the FDA would be obli
gated to ban cigarettes.
There are additional rea
sonable regulations that could
be placed on U.S. cigarette
manufacturers that could
serve the public interest - for
example, uniform good manu
facturing practices, consistent
standards for ingredients and
their disclosure, and rules for
communicating "tar" and
nicotine yields. But reason
able federal regulation should
not include restrictions that
restrain legitimate competi
tion between manufacturers
for adult smokers' business,
nor should it lead to de facto
prohibition by making ciga
rettes unacceptable to the
adults who choose to smoke
them.
Perhaps the best character
ization of the reaction to Car
mona's position is this: Bj
careful what you ask for. You
just might get it.
Tommy J. Payne is the
executive vice president -
external relations for R.J.
Reynolds Tobacco Holdings
Inc.
File Photo
Surgeon General Richard Carmona
Nigel Alston is on vacation. His
Motivational Moments column
will return next month.
Rep. Larry Womble
NC House of Representatives
71st District
Tel (336) 784-9373
Fax (336) 784-1626
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