.... the brain is not a vessel to be filled,
It is something to be IGNITED

BURNING BRAIN NEWSLETTER - February 2006

Do parents have the right to kill their children?

On  many different  issues, an important question pops-up again and again. “What is the limit of one’s privacy?” “Where does one’s personal preferences end and to what limits the state has a right to enact legislations?”

In most of the cases and especially for enactment of legislation: the overall interest of the society; the maximum good with minimum limitations; protection of the rights of people against identified and agreed upon evils and aberrations, etc. are some of the parameters.

In many developed (and most of other) countries there are many laws restricting one’s rights in the interest of the society as a whole. In all responsible societies, protecting the children from variety of abuses has been a major issue and a source of several legislations. It has been recognized that children of human beings, unlike many others, are not nidifugous and therefore can be subjected to many forms of abuses against which they need protection.

In many countries, it is illegal to physically beat or even verbally abuse one’s own children for what-so-ever reasons. It is also illegal to withdraw them from the school or prevent them from going to school. Making children drink alcohol, having sex with them or risking their life through any act including negligence is also a crime in most of the civilized countries.

To tell about some personal experience I had on my recent visit to an acquaintance with a ten months old baby.

The father of this ten month old happens to be chain smoker. Smoking around 3-4 packs a day. The family lives in a small two room apartment where the child is dangerously exposed all round the day to over 4000 harmful chemical compounds, which the second hand smoke has.

I just wondered, what options the ten months old child has against his father? Does he have any choice at all? Is the child aware that this act of his parents can kill him and/or severely reduce his quality of life? What would be the effect on him by the time he reaches adolescence?

Compound all this with the fact that after I talked to the parents about the problems their child is likely to have; both the parents rejected my admonishment. Negating all the science (thanks to the propaganda by some tobacco companies in collaboration with some corrupt newspapers and journalists), they firmly believed that all the things mentioned about Second Hand Smoke/Involuntary Smoke are nothing but plain noise and it may not be that harmful. The father of the child mentioned that his father was also a chain smoker (and nothing happened to him. This person’s age is 31 years and his father died of cardiac arrest at the age of 58. Looks like, that since the death certificate read “Cardiac arrest” so presumably he believes that tobacco had no role to play in his fathers death.). He thought that opening the window of the house was enough despite being told that it will not make even an iota of difference. The fact that tobacco kills around 50 lakh people every year was also of no consideration to the parents. Neither was the fact that smoking is one of the major causes of cot-deaths among children.

Do people advocating against restricting exposure of youngsters to second-hand smoke in their home (Private space) suggest that we can allow such children to lose their life or at-least the quality of life for no fault of theirs? Can ignorance be an excuse to kill someone?

Who will protect these children? Is it not the responsibility of the society? Do parents have the right to kill their children? Can we allow this just because some children are not born to us?

In 18 of the USA states, smoking can be raised as an issue in child-custody disputes this is despite the fact that USA has the worst track record on tobacco laws.

I think the time is now ripe to understand that exposing children to tobacco smoke in home amounts to child abuse of highest order against which children need protection.

“Tobacco Free Homes” is the right of every child. Every child has the right to breathe smoke-free fresh air. It is the need of a civilized society. Protecting our children is our responsibility. And “Our Children” does not mean just your or mine genetic children; it includes those who have no voice, and those who have no means, and those who have no education. India has over 700 million such people.

You have to be a voice for them because It’s our responsibility.

Yours

Hemant Goswami
Chairperson,
Burning Brain Society

The tactics of the tobacco Industry

Understand the tactics adopted by the tobacco companies in subverting tobacco advertising ban's. Download the PowerPoint (ppt) presentation by Hemant Goswami. The presentation was used as a support  during the talk on "Tactic of Tobacco Industry in Subverting Advertising and Promotion Bans" at the "First National Conference against Tobacco" held at Mumbai in January 2006.

 Download from http://www.burningbrain.org/other_files/mumbai_natocom.ppt

Anbumani Ramadoss speaks

Listen to what Anbumani Ramadoss, the union Minister for Health has to speak. The audio of his speech at the "First National Conference against Tobacco" held at Mumbai in January 2006.

Download the .wav speech from http://www.bigupload.com/php/download_frame.php?id_file=CA8CB9E7
(Go to the link, wait for 20 seconds, scroll down and press download)

Reply back

Some journalist are too comfortable with the logics supplied by the tobacco industry. Just because some big companies (Who also sell tobacco) advertise a lot in their newspaper often becomes a reason for them to put their brains and conscience in cold storage. Hemant Goswami reverted in response to a badly written article (Written one day before the court case of tobacco in movies was to come up) devoid of any logic and in negation of all the known scientific facts by a seemingly corrupt journalist. As was expected the article did not get published (in that newspaper) but it is here to be shared with you all.

Tobacco ban in Indian movies and the right to mislead people

by Hemant Ramtirth Goswami 

In fifty seven years of its foundation, World Health Organisation (WHO) came up with only one global public health treaty and that’s not on HIV, AIDS, TB, Malaria or Polio; but on Tobacco. The first ever............... READ THE COMPLETE ARTICLE AT http://www.burningbrain.org/replyback_article.htm

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Research Report on "Tobacco In Movies"

The report on "Tobacco In Movies" have been released now. We are thankful to all of you who provided valuable inputs and helped on the project. You can download your copy from http://www.burningbrain.org/tobaccoinmovies or read the report online.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Watch how Hindi Movies are pushing chemical addiction

You can download a 7 minutes film (Projection quality) from http://www.bigupload.com/php/download_frame.php?id_file=E50498CC  and see the result of the survey of Indian movies in 2004 and 2005.

You can also watch a 32 minute movie on "Tobacco in Hindi Movies." You can watch the movie online (on the internet without downloading it) at http://www.burningbrain.org/tobaccoinmovies/playmovie.htm
 

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