Words cannot express our disappointment at seeing the full-page ad for Camel tobacco in the March 11 issue of The Source Weekly. Whatever money has been paid to you to display this ad cannot cover over the stain on an otherwise fine publication. Consider the damage done to individuals, families and whole societies by the tobacco industry. Ponder the misery and death resulting from their addictive products, whether smoked or smokeless.
We recognize that turning away R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company might not be an easy decision, considering the kind of money they are able to pay for a page in your paper. We have enjoyed reading The Source Weekly for free since you began publication, but starting today we can pay our share to convince you to send Camel and its ilk packing. We are sending $75, your annual subscription charge, and we encourage every other reader who cares about the health of our community to do the same. It will be a bargain.
Don't worry about mailing; we'll keep picking up the paper from the blue box so as to save you the postage. If enough readers will join us, then perhaps you can remove the tobacco advertising from your pages without losing the revenue. The sooner we can do this, the better.
