Chapter 19: Smooth Characters Summary

By the late 1980s, smoking had become unpopular enough to be considered deviant behavior by a majority of Americans. Another wave of smoking control laws swept the state legislatures. The right to a smoke-free environment was seen as obvious to most. Although not conclusively proven by science, 75 percent of people thought second hand tobacco smoke was harmful. Boeing Aircraft was the first large company to ban smoking outright on its premises. Other companies provided free resources to help smokers quit. Diehard smokers were ostracized more and more. Peer pressure had reversed itself. The tobacco industry called out for tolerance. Their goal was to neutralize local ordinances by passing statewide legislation so that their lobbyists could effectively pool their resources. This was successful in Pennsylvania, where a mild state law superceded harsh anti-smoking measures in Erie and Harrisburg. The industry...