Reynolds American Reaches New 52-Week High (RAI)

Reynolds American (NYSE:RAI) hit a new 52-week high Tuesday as it is currently trading at $52.17, above its previous 52-week high of $51.76 with 352,089 shares traded as of 10:50 a.m. ET. Average volume has been 1.9 million shares over the past 30 days.

Smoking Higher – Tobacco Trumped

Why do people smoke?  There are apparently lots of reasons.  Some enjoy smoking as a social recreation, others use smoking to ‘hide’ from their problems.  It has been recognized that smoking fulfills certain oral fixations including childhood memories of breast-feeding.  Smoking feels ‘sophisticated’ to some people and to others it is medicinal or just plain addictive.  Tobacco itself is known to be highly addictive, especially with all the chemicals and additives put in commercial cigarettes these days.  Other herbs are being used to replace tobacco which offer not only a nice, soothing alternative, but some are so great it almost feels like smoking got trumped by the way certain herbs can ‘take you higher’, and I’m not talking about marijuana.
‘Rolling your own’ is an enjoyable part of the experience for numerous smokers.  In this case, reducing tobacco quantity and starting to increase other ‘replacement’ herbs can be a nice transition to get off regular cigarettes.  Herbs like lavender blossoms, mullein, skullcap, sage, blue lotus flowers and bulbs(or blue lily) and mugwort can be mixed up in various combinations in order to produce the desired effect and taste experience.
Lavender blossoms create a lovely taste in the mouth, counteracting any of the ‘burn’ flavor when starting to experiment with other herbs.  Lavender is calming and relaxing and can simulate the ‘chill factor’ received from tobacco.  Mullein leaves come from the road-side ‘weed’ mullein with long stems speckled with sweet yellow flowers.  When fresh, the leaves are soft and often referred to as ‘nature’s toilet paper’ due to their pleasant texture.  Mullein leaves act as an expectorant and are actually one of the few things you can smoke that are good for your lungs, helping to expel black tar and clear you out.
Skullcap is a nervine, meaning it helps to calm the nerves.  It’s a little stronger than lavender, though not as tasty.  Sage is often smoked as a clearing, cleansing herb and can facilitate clarity of mind and removal of ‘negative’ thoughts and feelings.  Mugwort can help to intensify dreams and has often been known as the ‘prophetic plant’, also inducing lucid dreaming in those who already remember their dreams.  With mugwort added to the smoking mixture, one can really start to take their experience ‘higher’ and find there are greater climaxes to be reached than can be found with tobacco alone.
Blue lotus flower and bulbs, also known as blue lily, was used in ancient Egyptian times in order to open the third-eye and enhance intuition.  The effects of blue lotus can be euphoric and tranquil, especially if drank along with tea of the same herb.

Because of the mythological, cosmological, symbolic, and artistic significance of the blue lotus, many feel that the ancient Egyptians used the blue lotus for its inebriating effects. Because of its mythological and cosmological symbolism, the blue lotus flower was seen as an elite flower that produced shamanic effects.

Over time of mixing different herbs with a small bit of tobacco, one can start to eliminate the tobacco all together and find the addictive qualities have started to wane, comforted by the beautiful properties of these other herbs.  Eventually, smoking will be just a choice and not a need.  Feeling higher than ever before, herbal smoking mixtures can ‘trump’ tobacco and even marijuana effects to produce clarity and consciousness like never before.  At this point, the user can claim control over their reality and choose from a place of power whether or not to engage in smoking – and if it benefits their reality or not.  This is a higher evolution of smoking, the experience of which can trump not only tobacco, but all addictive substances and emotions in life!  If you are going to smoke – smoke smart.

Massachusetts Residents Who Smoked Marlboro Cigarettes Could Be Part Of A Lawsuit Against Philip Morris.

The following is being released by the law firm of Phillips & Paolicelli, LLP.

A class action lawsuit has been brought against Philip Morris. The lawsuit seeks to have Philip Morris pay for medical monitoring in the form of a low-dose computed tomography (CT) scan.  Medical monitoring is a potentially life saving screening technique, which can often detect lung cancer at an early stage, greatly increasing the chances of survival.

The Court ordered this notice and decided that this case should be a class action. There are no benefits available now and no guarantee that there will be.

About the Case:  The lawsuit claims that Philip Morris designed, marketed, and sold Marlboro cigarettes that delivered excessive and dangerous level of carcinogens, cancer causing substances, in violation of Massachusetts state law.  This lawsuit does not include current or future personal injury claims involving smoking related diseases. Philip Morris denies these claims and denies it did anything wrong.  The lawyers for the Class will have to prove their claims in Court.

Who is Included:  Class Members include residents of Massachusetts as of February 26, 2013 who:

• Are 50 years of age or older;
• Have a smoking history equal to at least a pack a day of Marlboro cigarettes for 20 years (e.g., one pack a day for 20 years; two packs a day for 10 years; a half pack a day for 40 years);
• Currently smoke Marlboro cigarettes, or quit smoking Marlboro cigarettes on or after December 14, 2005;
• Have not been diagnosed with lung cancer and a doctor does not suspect that you have lung cancer as of the date of any judgment entered, or relief obtained, in this lawsuit; and
• Have smoked Marlboro cigarettes within Massachusetts.

For more info about Marlboro cigarettes please click here.

Law Firm Representing the Class:  The Court has appointed Phillips & Paolicelli, LLP, as well as Thornton & Naumes, LLP; Arrowood Peters, LLP; and Todd & Weld, LLP, to represent the Class as "Class Counsel."  You do not have to pay anyone to participate.  Instead, the attorneys will seek an award of fees and costs from the Court, to be paid by Philip Morris, or out of a fund created for the Class, if one becomes available.  You may hire your own lawyer to appear in Court for you, but if you do, you have to pay that lawyer.

Class Member Options

Stay in the Class:  Class Members do not need to do anything to stay in the Class. Class Members will be notified about how to ask for medical monitoring if benefits are obtained.  Remaining in the Class will not prevent Class Members from bringing a lawsuit against Philip Morris , producer of Chesterfield cigarettes for damages in the event that they contract cancer or another condition as a result of smoking.

Get out of the Class:  Class Members who want to keep your rights to sue Philip Morris on their own over the claims in this case need to exclude themselves by mailing a letter to the address below stating that they do not want to be included in this lawsuit.  However, Class Members who exclude themselves will not get medical monitoring from this lawsuit if it is awarded.  The deadline to ask for exclusion is August 19, 2013.