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Stogie News: Nazis Finally Beat Churchill

15 Jun 2006

Winston Churchill without a cigar is like a beach without sand, yet the anti-smoking Nazis are taking the cigar out of Churchill’s mouth:

Because of the ban on smoking in public places, Britain’s greatest wartime prime minister will be without his trademark cigar when he is portrayed on stage at the Edinburgh Fringe festival later this year.Mel Smith, the comedian and actor who will play him in a production of Allegiance, a play about a little-known meeting between Churchill and Michael Collins, the Irish revolutionary, could be forced to use a plastic replacement.

Producers believe Churchill’s lit cigar and the cloud of smoke which permanently surrounded him are so integral to his character that they plan to appeal to the Scottish executive for a special dispensation.

And when I say anti-smoking Nazis, I don’t just mean their general fascist tendencies towards government control of people’s private lives. Actually, Hitler’s beliefs about tobacco were nearly identical to that of today’s anti-smoking zealots, and he even advocated for the same public policy measures:

In Nazi Germany, for instance, abstinence from tobacco was a “national socialist duty” (Hitler gave a gold watch to associates who quit the habit, though this didn’t stop them from lighting up in the Berlin bunker once they heard the Fuhrer had committed suicide). Armed with such senior sanction, anti-tobacco activists succeeded in banning smoking from government offices, civic transport, university campuses, rest homes, post offices, many restaurants and bars, hospital grounds, and workplaces. Tobacco taxes were raised, unsupervised cigarette vending machines were banned, and there were calls for a ban on smoking while driving.

Hmmm… that sounds a lot like somewhere I live.

This also sounds an awful lot like that woman who was smoking at the Mayflower Hotel bar, but refused to give her name to the Washington Post reporter because she works on anti-smoking ballot measures.

Fortunately, unlike Hitler, today’s anti-smoking Nazis have democracy and the Constitution to slow down their assault on our personal freedoms, though you get the feeling they wish such obstacles didn’t exist.

In the end one thing is for sure: Somewhere, Churchill is rolling in his grave.

-Patrick S

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11 Responses to “Stogie News: Nazis Finally Beat Churchill”

  1. Mike Friday, August 4, 2006 at 11:38 pm #

    Oh dear.. it is getting to such insanity isn’t it?

    I recently saw a poster that stated: Remember Prohibition? It didn’t work.

    That pretty much sums this up. Our freedom of choice is being threatened.. and to compare the anti-smoking litigators to Nazi’s isn’t far off.

  2. Jeff's Garage a Thursday, May 31, 2007 at 8:17 am #

    Patrick – Amen to this. I posted something along these lines at my blog back in April. Copy and paste the link –

    http://jeffsgarageandalehouse.blogspot.com/2007/0…

  3. Augie754 Friday, October 30, 2009 at 1:39 am #

    I stumbled on this old story which reminded me of this "no smoking" sign I found online. I use it as a sarcastic reminder for my anti smoking friends.

    http://derekaudette.ottawaarts.com/images/NOSMOKI…

Trackbacks and Pingbacks

  1. The Stogie Guys » Blog Archive » Stogie Commentary: Smokin’ Halloween Costumes - Monday, December 18, 2006

    […] 11. Winston Churchill. Leading (and smoking) England through World War II, this prime minister is by far the manliest British dude ever. By far. […]
  2. The Stogie Guys » Blog Archive » Stogie News: Smoking Bans Hit 007, French - Tuesday, December 19, 2006

    […] Previously, we’ve covered anti-smoking zealots’ successful efforts to censor the cigar out of Winston Churchill’s mouth and to remove smoking from Ben and Jerry cartoons. […]
  3. The Stogie Guys » Blog Archive » Stogie Guys Friday Sampler XIII - Tuesday, December 19, 2006

    […] 3) Meanwhile, a smoking ban in Suffolk County, Long Island is so restrictive it even bans smoking in cigar bars! This prompts the question: Who exactly is being protected by banning smoking in a cigar bar? The workers who chose to work in a cigar bar? The patrons who chose to go there? Oh, right! Smoking bans aren’t about protecting people…They’re about imposing the will of anti-smokers on others and eliminating individuals’ choices. […]
  4. The Stogie Guys » Blog Archive » Stogie Commentary: Vote Smart! - Tuesday, December 19, 2006

    […] Health Nazis tell us that smoking bans are necessary to protect people from the dangers of tobacco smoke, both first- and second-hand, but the truth is everyone – employees, patrons, and owners – has a choice about being exposed to smoke. If people truly demand smoke-free establishments, then places will open to meet that demand, rendering government-imposed regulation unnecessary. […]
  5. The Stogie Guys » Blog Archive » Stogie Video: Fascism Healthier than Smoking?! - Tuesday, December 19, 2006

    […] Often, in the course of that coverage, we call the people pushing such bans “do-gooders” – along with other less flattering names – in reference to the fact that while wrong, we generally think that these are sane people who are well-intentioned. That characterization – which in no way is an excuse for their attempts to impose their misguided values on others – was challenged by the video below. […]
  6. The Stogie Guys » Blog Archive » Stogie Guys Friday Sampler XXIV - Friday, December 22, 2006

    […] 1) Hurray for the Germans who recently rejected a total ban on smoking. Europe’s largest cigar market continues to be more pro-smoking than its continental neighbors. Maybe that’s because smoking bans remind Germans of the Nazi regime, that last instituted a smoking ban in Germany. […]
  7. Stogie News: Smoker Persecution in Great Britain - Tuesday, June 5, 2007

    […] Now keep in mind that Britain has nationalized health care, and that the denial of care is by government doctors who are paid with taxpayer funds – particularly the billions collected in tobacco taxes. In Great Britain taxes have driven the cost of a pack of cigarettes up to £5.50, or nearly $11 U.S. But later in the article the health Nazis reveal their real reason for this denial of medical treatment: “Its plans were welcomed yesterday by health charities but condemned by smoking groups which said they were part of a drive to save money and turn England’s 10 million smokers into pariahs.” […]
  8. Stogie Guys Friday Sampler LIV - Friday, July 27, 2007

    […] 3) Well, the anti-smoking zealots have already gotten to Churchill and Tom and Jerry; it was only a matter of time before Mickey went smoke-free too. Disney’s chief executive announced this week that the company would be eliminating smoking from its films, as well as discouraging the act under its two other labels: Touchstone and Miramax. Is the best way to deal with an issue to censor it? […]