Letters: Sharply Divided Views On Afghan War Crim

Your article "The Tobacco Sham" (Aug. 19) missed an opportunity to acknowledge the states that spend a large portion of the national tobacco-settlement money as it was intended. In July, Mary--land launched an aggressive $14 million, 18-month campaign called Maryland--Smoking Stops Here. Part of a 10-year effort to fight cancer, the campaign specifically targets our youth and is aimed at reducing tobacco use and exposure to secondhand smoke. Maryland has invested significant resources from the settlement to discourage smoking, enhance enforcement of tobacco sales to minors and educate citizens about the importance of cancer screening. Maryland has one of the nation's strongest bans on smoking in the workplace and has also raised the cigarette tax to discourage use. As a result of these and other efforts, Maryland's teenage smoking rate is declining faster than the national average. Maryland has also committed resources to help tobacco farmers' transition to more productive, life-sustaining crops. By using the settlement money to save lives, reduce public-health costs and promote a healthier lifestyle, Maryland's citizens will reap great rewards.
Parris N. Glendening
Governor, State of Maryland
Annapolis, Md.

Your article "The Tobacco Sham" missed an important point. None of North Carolina's share from the master settlement fund was used to defray the cost of new curing bins for tobacco farmers. However, part of the fund was used to defray some of the cost of replacing open-flame curing devices, located inside curing bins, with heat exchangers. It was recently revealed that the use of heat-exchange devices rather than open-flame devices dramatically reduces a major carcinogenic compound in cured tobacco known as tobacco-specific nitrosamine. Tobacco farmers and manufacturers have thus retrofitted all tobacco-curing barns with the heat-exchange devices, at a cost that exceeded $100 million. The Flue-Cured Tobacco Cooperative Stabilization Corp. (owned by the flue-cured-tobacco farmers) and the tobacco manufacturers pitched in more than $60 million to start the retrofitting process. In addition, more than $40 million came from North Carolina's master settlement fund. This was a major step in addressing the health risks associated with the use of tobacco. We will continue to seek any method that makes tobacco safer to consumers.
Bruce L. Flye
President, Flue-Cured Tobacco Cooperative Stabilization Corp.
Raleigh, N.C.

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