Dr. Samet’s examination concluded this morning. He seemed to score a win for the DOJ not only for his position in the scientific world, but for his apparent integrity, intelligence and sober judgement. His answers were so consistently exacting and considered, that they seemed to exemplify the accolades and estimations cited by DOJ’s Eubanks in […]
The afternoon session considered data on smokers’ behavior when switching to a lower-yield brand of cigarette. The Defense pointed to evidence that low tar cigarettes had contributed to a major decline in lung cancer rates among middle-aged men in the CPS-II cohort (approx. 1971-91).
Details will follow.
The tobacco industry used Dr. Samet’s testimony to launch its attack on the science of secondhand smoke this morning.
The morning session began with DOJ’s Sharon Eubanks taking the astoundingly accomplished Dr. Jonathan M. Samet–Senior Scientific Editor for the 1994 Surgeon General’s Report–through a brief history of smoking and the major scientific reports on smoking […]
After lunch, Wells attacked Brandt’s Direct Testimony on Philip Morris’ Helmut Wakeham. He made the point that 3 of the documents Brandt cited do not support the conclusion that Wakeham “recognized in numerous internal memoranda the cancer-causing effect of cigarette smoke”
In a 1962 document, Brandt identified Wakeham as the author of a 1962 document that […]
David Bernick finished his cross examination of Allan Brandt today, scoring no major David Kessler-style hits.
He continued presenting documents meant to portray the CTR in a more beneficent light. The SAB, he claimed, approved– and the CTR funded — a wealth of studies in the full 3-circle areas Brandt had talked about–including the area of […]
Dr. Allan Brandt was sworn in. Brandt was dressed in a dark suit and dark tie; he comes off as quite intelligent and very composed– like a more handsome but certainly less theatrical Richard Dreyfuss. He is extremely knowledgeable about his subject. His Direct Testimony was powerful and clear, detailing development of a consensus in […]
When I first became interested in tobacco I soon saw that there were 2 views on the subject:
1. Either tobacco was killing 400,000 people a year
OR
2. There was a worldwide, monolithic conspiracy by virtually everyone in the non-tobacco-paid medical and scientific communities to unfairly vilify tobacco, this one thing out of all other substances and […]
In all, Bernick attempted to establish that Kessler did not have enough scientific knowledge to judge much about nicotine, that his urge to regulate cigarettes as addictive delivery devices came not from science but from his own personal agenda, which included sheer status-seeking.
In the afternoon:
Bernick determined that DK did not select the documents in his […]
B&W attorney David Bernick fiercely grilled ex-FDA Chief Kessler on nicotine, Ph levels, nicotine delivery and the Y-1 project, apparently aiming — and partially succeeding — in making DK look as if he really doesn’t know much about the science of nicotine and has a personal agenda. The implication: DK’s testimony is worthless.
Bernick made […]
David Bernick, the lawyer representing B&W, questioned David Kessler today about his state of mind while serving as the FDA commissioner, referencing the following quotes from Kessler’s book: “to GOAD Congress” and “we moved to circle the White House.” Bernick asked Kessler if he thought it was the statutory responsibility of the […]