Smoking and Tobacco Use

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Proposition 29 Results Are Close Enough to Make You Want to Chain Smoke

It's all gotta be part of Big Tobacco's plan. Tobacco companies pumped more than $46 million into the campaign against Proposition 29, which would increase the tax on cigarette packs by $1.Perhaps they could have donated more money. Instead, they might have struck the exact minimum amount necessary ... More >>

Robbers Use Cigarettes to Lure Victims

Here's another good reason to quit smoking.Police say that three men were robbed last night -- two at knife point -- in separate incidents where the victims were distracted by a conversation over cigarettes.According to police reports, two men were walking along Hyde and O'Farrell at about 10:45 p.m ... More >>

Hilarious Campaign Video Bluntly Explains Why California Should Smoke Tobacco

Generally, we think it's safe to say that Big Tobacco has given people more reasons to cry than laugh.But we found ourselves chuckling a lot after watching this sorta depressing campaign video which uses gallows humor (our favorite!) to make voters -- and smokers -- smile and then think about all th ... More >>

Antismoking Bill May Mean the End of Hookah Houses

E-Cigarettes: How Long Before San Francisco Bans Them?

e-addictions can be regulated, too ​It wasn't enough to restrict smokers so much so that about the only place they can light up now is in the path of oncoming traffic. San Francisco is now looking at tossing out electronic smokers from their local bar.The FDA ruled today that e-cigarettes are in f ... More >>

Chris Daly Cited For Failing to Shout at Smokers

Chris Daly relishes his order from the city to start shouting at people again​In his recently concluded tenure as a public servant, Chris Daly was not one to avoid high-decibel, oft-profane outbursts directed at the public he served. In his current iteration as a barkeep, Daly has been loath to sp ... More >>

Safeway Sues Over San Francisco Tobacco Ban

Butt out, Safeway says.​Safeway Inc. has sued San Francisco over a law banning tobacco sales in stores containing pharmacies, claiming that the law gives an unfair advantage to markets that don't sell prescription drugs.The lawsuit calls the tobacco ban "arbitrary and capricious," and "a denial of ... More >>

Would Smokers Quit if Their Insurance Covered it?

This guy will have a hard time quitting alone​Last month, San Francisco's score on keeping the city smoke-free was elevated from average to slightly above average, thanks to Supervisor Eric Mar and his passion for nanny government.But here is an even better, less obtrusive way for the government t ... More >>

San Francisco Improves Its Antismoking Score, Nanny Government Is Working

San Francisco Puts Cigarettes Out ​This week, we wrote about San Francisco lawmakers and their compulsive need to intrude on residents' rights to be as unhealthy and wasteful as they want. Yet this prolific banning is starting to bear some benefits -- at least on paper. Just today, the American Lu ... More >>

Bouncer

Introverts and extroverts get along at the Residence.

Bouncer: No Mace Required for Drinking at the Residence

​Astute BART riders may have noticed those glossy new ads for Mace that are being displayed in the cars. "Protect your personal space with Mace," they read, showing a picture of a woman in a crowd with a five-foot circle of space around her. This is strange on so many levels. Firstly, Mace is so ... More >>

Big Tobacco's Big Ally: Inflation

Bucking the trend...​Regarding the recent California Adult Smoking Prevalence survey, Stanton Glantz isn't sure whether to take a pack half full or pack half empty approach. The director of U.C. San Francisco's Center for Tobacco Control and Research is, naturally, pleased that the state's smoking ... More >>

San Francisco Is Still Smoking

​County-by-county smoking data released Monday by the state Department of Public Health reveal ashtray-makers are still doing pretty good business here in San Francisco. According to the California Adult Smoking Prevalence 2008 survey, 13.5 percent of San Franciscans are lighting up. To put that n ... More >>

Will Gov Sign or Extinguish Smoking Bill?

​Does it make sense to pour money into smoking cessation efforts? A Sen. Leland Yee-authored bill that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger must either sign or spurn by Thursday would do just that. It'd be great politics -- Yee's bill would force all insurers doing business in this state to fund programs he ... More >>

Will San Francisco Ban Cigarettes at Pharmacies -- Again?

Your purchasing options at city pharmacies may be shrinking...​City may expand tobacco ban to all pharmacies It takes a mighty clumsy law to make clear-thinking people think like Big Tobacco's lawyers -- but San Francisco passed just such a law in 2008.The city forbade pharmacies such as Walgreen' ... More >>

Marijuana Guru Dennis Peron Suffers Stroke

Dennis Peron says he's on the mend. 'Don't count me out.' ​With the marijuana movement sparking these days, one of its seminal figures was just nearly snuffed out. Dennis Peron -- a longtime pot activist and the co-author of the 1996 medical marijuana ballot initiative, Prop. 215 -- on Sunday conf ... More >>

Move to Ban Smoking in State Parks Gains Steam. Guns in National Parks? That's Fine.

This may soon be illegal in State Parks. It's still kosher in National Parks, though -- as are firearms. ​ Smoking in the park? Perish the thought. A smoking gun in the park? Well ... that all depends on the park. Yesterday, the state Assembly passed a bill enacting a broad smoking ban in the sta ... More >>

Will Zeitgeist Have to Choose Between Letting Patrons Smoke or Eat Burgers?

Nicole N./YelpS.F.'s newly extended smoking ban could radically alter patio bars that serve food.​Yes, secondhand smoke is a bummer. But the expansion of the smoking ban in San Francisco could extinguish some really great places to smoke in the city. Zeitgeist's outdoor patio, for one. The ex ... More >>

The Definition of the World 'Incidental' To Determine Zeitgeist Smokers' Fate

​We informed you yesterday that the Zeitgeist outdoor patio, perhaps San Francisco's most appropriate place to slowly get cancer, might have to go smoke-free under the new extension of the smoking ban. Today, we got a call back from Alyonik Hrushow, the director of the Tobacco Free Project with th ... More >>

San Fran May Lose Some Really Good Places to Smoke

Mmmmm. Cigarettes.​Yes, second-hand smoke is a bummer. But the expansion of the smoking ban in San Francisco could extinguish some really great places to smoke in the city. Zeitgeist's outdoor patio, for one.The extended ban that supervisors passed yesterday includes restaurant patios, movie and A ... More >>

Is Sweeping Smoking Ban Headed for S.F.?

vanessa d./YelpMedjool would be seriously impacted.​We're proponents of smoking fish, swine, tomatoes, and peppers ― but Camel Lights? These days, not so much. There was a time long ago when a fog of cigarette smoke hanging up around the rafters of a dive bar implied authenticity, effectivel ... More >>

It's Your Friday Morning News Quiz -- Yes, There's a Prize

Lemme tell you what I can get for $72 million...​Everyone is familiar with the concept -- perform well, receive compensation. That's why Keanu Reeves pulls in the big bucks. Now it's your turn. Send your perfect scores on this quiz here and the first one to ace it wins a prize. It's tax free (so t ... More >>

Vega/Cento Owner Launching SOMA Coffee Kiosk at Harlot

Sort of how an espresso buzz makes you feel.​The owner of Lambretta-themed coffee kiosks Vega and Cento is adding a third to his fleet. John Quintos says Special Xtra ― which is taking over the glassed-in smokers' lounge in front of SOMA bar Harlot ― should be ready to launch next Friday. ... More >>

The Residence, aka Amber Redux: Less Smoky, More Homey

Denise FelthamPaging Mister Goodbarr. Mister Goodbarr? Oh, he's outside, smoking.​Peeking through the windows, the atmosphere at Amber often looked opaque -- or at least, translucent gray. The Castro bar opened seven years ago as a defiant smoker's destination; all of its workers were partner-owne ... More >>

S.F. Could Improve its Anti-Smoking 'Test Score' -- By Forbidding You To Smoke In Your Own Home

You're under arrest, mister...​Earlier this week, the American Lung Association released its annual "Tobacco Policy Report Card," grading cities on how effectively they limit smoking. The city of Richmond -- which is cursed with a reputation as a great place to have a cigarette shot out of one's m ... More >>