I am a cartoon junkie, and they never once made me want to smoke. I never said "Hey mom, if Andy Capp smokes, why can't I?"
If they're going to re-edit smoking from cartoons, then they should also ban the Swedish Chef from spreading real butter on his toast. After all, both are responsible for rampant heart disease.
The notion of revising history does nothing to keep the next generation from repeating it. If they're so damn concerned that Jerry puffing a last cigarette will encourage kids to smoke, maybe the parents should spend more time with their kids instead of plopping them in front of the TV. And maybe MGM should run an anti-smoking PSA where they show a good lung and a tar-filled lung before the cartoons.