California's Proposition 28 voter initiative to repeal the 50 cents per pack cigarette tax imposed by the narrow passage of Proposition 10 in 1998 was overwhelmingly rejected by 72 percent of the votes cast on March 7, 2000. But democracy was betrayed for the second time with a pack of Reiner lies.

    Legacy-seeking Hollywood director Rob Reiner exploited children, demonized big tobacco and repeatedly lied to the electorate about secondhand smoke to get Proposition 10 passed. As a reward, Governor Davis anointed Reiner chairman of the commission created by Prop 10. Indeed, to protect his annual $700 million empire built with stolen money, Reiner exploited children and lied again to defeat Proposition 28.

    On behalf of his customers, discount cigarette retailer Ned Roscoe spent $1 million to get Proposition 28 on the ballot, however, there was no money for TV ads to support its passage. Big tobacco has been beaten into submission and was not involved. Philip Morris, which spent $20 million to defeat Prop 10, went so far as to take out ads saying they didn't support the Prop 28 tax repeal.

    Reiner put in $1 million and raised another $4 million for TV ads using children with voice-overs urging voters not to let the tobacco companies "put their profits ahead of our kids," and launched personal attacks against the cigarette retailer who got Prop 28 on the ballot.

    The big lie is this: Big tobacco companies and retailers do not pay the unjust taxes or multi-$billion settlements, smokers do. The bigger lie is people like Rob Reiner manipulating and betraying democracy for personal gain. He stomped on the little people, jerked around the voters, turned them against a class of people, and that's an ugly example of the tyranny of the minority.

    Drowning truth in the murky waters of selfish interests is deadly to society, yet the public is constantly submerged in lies by the usual suspects in the news media, television, movies, commercials, politics and elections. Democracy is self-destructive without the truth. The lack of truth has become a pandemic disease in America.