Anti Infecting the Truth - Why Thetruth.com Is Hypocrosy

Want to guess what drives me up the wall? Thetruth.com ads.

Now, I have no problem with people "educating" people on the dangers of anything. Smoking is indeed dangerous. There are many ways to get that point across to someone. I am a promoter of consumer awareness.

I have a respect for people who are about exposing sleazy tactics major corporations use to market.

What upsets me about thtruth.com then, is that they do so in an annoying, extremist, ridiculous way.

Several ads or "facts" on thetruth.com relate to the ways that big tobacco companies use racial slanting to reach target audiences. They also over indulge in pointing out the ignorance of some marketing ideas. Yet "shocking" and in your face ads, in which some of the facts they state are worded in a manipulative way, is as equally deceptive. That honestly is the way to reach people, get peoples attention, the whole point of advertising. I just think it's mighty hypocritical to go after the wolves when you yourself are wearing sheep's clothing.

An example of word twisting is the fact: "As late as 1999, tobacco companies places in-store advertising at a child's eye level." Um, stores place advertisements at the level they decide. Also, children can look above and below their eye levels anyways.

Sketchy statistics are not the most honest way to educate people. How is something determined a tobacco related death? Is it that they died from physical problems that were likely to only have stemmed from tobacco use? Someone can die of old age, and have been a smoker or been exposed to second hand smoke, and their death is labeled as "tobacco related". This could very easily be an overused cause of death.

However, let me get to some of my favorite commercials I've seen that use said sketchy statistics and illustrate them in a very radical way.

Truth advocates (actors in a commercial) are scurrying frantically around the city. With chalk and body cutouts in hand, they scour the sidewalk for empty space to draw on cement, giving the appearance of a murder investigation scene. (Is this vandalism?) Civilians, minding their own business and leading their important lives, look in shock and confusion as they take notice of these outlines amongst them. I think that reaching people in this way is unnecessary. Cut to the orange fact: "Tobacco kills over 20 times more people than murder."

So ignoring the fact that this number could be very exaggerated due to inaccurate statistics, shouldn't we be glad that tobacco kills that many more people than murder does? I would hope that a conscious decision that millions of people make everyday is going to affect them at a greater rate than outside threats. I prefer knowing that I have a higher chance of dying if I choose to use tobacco, then encountering a murderous death.

Another ad displayed ice sculptures in the shapes of women. In each sculpture was a baby doll. The sculptures were outside, in the heat. What happens to ice in the heat? It melts. Citizens strolling by are horrified when the baby dolls tumble to the concrete (some busting plastic heads or other parts) after the ice has melted to a certain point. I think this mode of stating something is over the top. Once again, an orange card states the "facts", regarding cigarettes killing 33 mothers a day, leaving 12,000 kids motherless a year.

What does 33 mothers a day mean? Mothers of small children, or mothers that have children of any age? I doubt that all of them are mothers of infants, which is what the inappropriate ice sculptures were supposed to convey. Either way, it doesn't clarify that fact. Is it in the whole world? Or the US? Or another country?

According to whudafxup.com, which is what "thetruth.com" turns into, tobacco was depicted in 3/4s of youth rated movies, and over 90% of R rated movies as of 2006. Is this all movies ever made? Because a long, long time ago, everyone smoked. You could smoke in the doctor's office or at school conferences. This was reflected in cinema. Watch I Love Lucy sometime. Even if not, I don't know how it is depicted in youth rated movies. Youth rated movies may include PG-13. I understand the concern for smoking in kids movies. But rated R? Who cares. Those movies are for adults, who can make their own decisions, and they have an R rating because of other offensive material as well. Lay off the freedom to see or put something in a film. Especially something legal.

I could go on for a long time about the philosophy of coming up with the numbers thetruth.com conceives. My point is, they are almost the PETA of the anti-smoking movement. It's not your point that wins me or losses me, it's the way you express it. Don't feed me wild statistics that are sketchy and vague. Don't present them to me in a manner that is so outrageously dramatic. I can calmly read these and get the same idea.

Smoking is not healthy. We know this. It may be more or less than what you are told. Research things. It's not wise to use sources coming only from people that are devoutly opposed to anything and rampantly trying to expose it. The moral of the story is, question everything, and don't smoke.