Peter Nichols-Sixteen-year-old kid walks into a convenience store, grabs a 12-ounce can of Dr Pepper, a bag of Doritos and walks up to the counter. "Pack of Marlboros." The clerk scans the soda, bag of chips and the cigarettes. "That's seven twenty-eight." Kid hands the clerk four bills, collects his change and exits the store.
A similar but more eye-popping story unfolds in the city of Watsonville. A store owner willingly sells switchblade knives and brass knuckles at his chain of discount cigarette stores, in a city plagued by gang violence. Parents shudder at the thought of kids cruising their neighborhood strip malls buying soda pop, candy and Michael Jackson posters over the same counter gang members buy implements of mayhem.
Without the gang hardware, the scenes aren't really different. They play out time and again in this and many other communities.And what is it that should alarm parents? The switchblades? Brass knuckles? Imitation assault rifles? Well ... yes and no.
Stores like these have no business in any community, mainly because youth will inevitably have access to tobacco. A cigarette smoker is far more likely to die from smoking than from being stabbed or bludgeoned to death by brass knuckles. In fact, smoking kills more people in the United States every year than AIDS, illegal drugs, alcohol, car crashes, suicides and murders combined Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
According to a 2008 survey by the Tobacco Education Coalition, a county group dedicated to reducing tobacco sales to minors, underage youth can expect to be successful buying cigarettes in one out of every six local stores. Any 16-year-old kid who is carded and turned away by a responsible retailer won't have far to go to find an irresponsible one sympathetic to his wants.
From the point of view of that retailer, the kid's going to get his cigarettes one way or another, and someone's going to get that $5. And there's little downside. Law enforcement everywhere is understaffed and overburdened with higher-profile crimes. At this time there are no resources available to support enforcement of laws against selling tobacco to minors. It's not a priority, unless switchblades are involved.
Tobacco companies know youth are the future of their profits. Creating opportunities to introduce young people to the glamour, excitement -- or whatever -- of smoking is an ongoing strategy. The more governments act to control tobacco sales, the more creative are the marketing schemes to sell it. So the Watsonville store owner tried to create an environment youth could relate to. One with pop culture posters, imitation guns, candy, soda pop, forbidden toys ... and forbidden cigarettes. Youth are drawn to the sweet and forbidden.
To address the concern of sales to youth, the coalition proposes an ordinance, proven successful in over 60 California counties and cities. It requires sellers to be licensed. The Tobacco Retail License fees would provide resources for sting operations to ensure retailers operate within the law. Violators would face fines and suspension or revocation of their licenses.The county Alcohol and Drug Abuse Commission unanimously passed a resolution in 2009 and unanimously reaffirmed it this month, urging the Board of Supervisors to adopt such an ordinance.
It's time the county of Santa Cruz took action to protect youth from clever tobacco marketers, and irresponsible retailers. And in the city of Watsonville, it's time to put one of them out of business.
Peter Nichols is the chairman of the Santa Cruz County Alcohol and Drug Abuse Commission.
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