Opinions on Smoking

[Denim&Venöm 18,968]

Just like heroin, cocaine, and meth, smoking and anything containing nicotine should be made illegal. Smoking is a public health hazard. Anyone who is forced to put up with your dirty habit will suffer the ill effects second hand. Heck, a persons health can be put at risk form third hand smoke (from clothes, carpets and other surfaces). 

 

Unless you are smoking in your own private room, alone, it should be illegal to smoke. Also, anyone who smokes shouldn't be allowed to collect on disability, food stamps or other social programs due to them knowingly spending precious money on something so self destructive. If you're going to be so disregarding of your own health, than why should anyone feel pity for you?

[Blique 211]

I dislike smokers who think second-hand smoke has little to no effect on other people and thus smoke anywhere they want. People with asthma and breathing difficulties exist...Plus people who smoke around kids, causing them to develop permanent respiratory issues, ugh...

 

In regards to "scare tactics" towards smokers, I agree that misinformation is bad. A lot of smokers are well-informed, but factual information can help reach out to smokers who haven't had a proper education (honestly, I don't think most Americans have had a "proper education" with our school system...). A woman who visited my college's anatomy lab happened to be a smoker, and seeing a healthy lung vs a smoker's lung motivated her and her husband to stop smoking, so factual information does help in some cases. I personally dissected someone who smoked and died from COPD, and her lungs looked nothing like lungs at that point, there's no way they could function.

 

On another note, my asthma seems to act fine with second-hand vaping, so I won't complain if smokers go ahead and switch to that. I still have to do thorough research into the second-hand effects of that stuff though.

[MLPFanatic34 3,234]

I don't smoke nor do I want to smoke, but at the same time I have friends and family members that smoke so I don't mind it, as long as they aren't forcing me to do it.

[Pripyat Pony 2,608]

Just going to post this here, doubt any of the fanatical anti-smokers will read it, but oh well.

 

http://www.forbes.com/sites/danielfisher/2013/12/12/study-finds-no-link-between-secondhand-smoke-and-cancer/

 

Oh yeah, and if someone came up to me in the street and rudely started to lecture me on smoking, I'd tell them to mind their own damn business. Why on earth do anti-smokers think that basic manners don't apply to them, just cuz they feel that their moral crusade is worth more than other people's right to courtesy and politeness?

 

Those cars, buses, vans etc driving past you are giving you far more cancer inducing pollution than the five second whiff of cigarette smoke you might breathe in. The reason why cancer levels are higher today than they were fifty years ago is cuz there is more traffic on the roads, in the air and on the tracks. Don't believe me? Well, in China, where there is zero effort to reduce pollution, cancer is the biggest killer in the entire country. And it's down to the high levels of air pollution which are so bad, that people walk around wearing face masks to try and protect themselves. The levels aren't nearly as bad in America and the UK, but they're certainly enough to have an impact on people's health. More people who live in urban areas suffer from lung cancer than in rural areas, and that is cuz of the increased amount of pollution in the air.

 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/10646593/Toxic-smog-threatens-millions-of-Chinese-lives.html

[EquestriaGuy 1,074]

I'm a few years away from losing my father because of a lifetime of smoking. The biggest regret I'll ever have in my life is that 20 years ago I didn't have the presence of mind to beg him to quit. Losing him is going to destroy me.

[Guest]

I do smoke, nobody gives me any shit about it, I really don't have any urge to quit, I am addicted but I don't smoke so often it's become a big problem, I go through about a pack a week.

[ThatOneComrade 1,091]

It really isn't your business though. Smoking is heavily regulated and you can't smoke in a majority of public areas. Where are you going to where you are being exposed to second hand smoke so much? Not to mention second hand smoke is not nearly as deadly as people originally thought.

 

Also by that logic we should go to every bar and downtalk anyone having a beer because of how bad it is for you. What others do with their bodies is no ones business and if you are going to claim it is because of second hand smoke, I don't know where you're hanging out but clear

Y you should stop going to places where people smoke...

The difference between smoke, beer, and fast food is that smoke hurts everybody in the direct vicinity of the smoker. My dad drinks wine and beer. I might not like the smell, but I can deal with it because that smell isn't going to give me cancer. If I go in a McDonald's and am surrounded by the scent of grease, I'm not gonna get cancer. If second hand smoke isn't as dangerous as originally thought, that doesn't change the fact that it's still dangerous.

 

People downtalk smokers because it's not fair for you to ask them to risk their health to spare your feelings. What you do with your body isn't any of my business, and I agree whole-heartedly, but if you're smoking and that smoke gets near enough to me to impact my health, you've made it my business.

 

I live in a place where people smoke. Believe me, I'd love to leave, but I can't. I go to the park; there's a smoker. I go to town; there's a smoker. I won't do anything because it's a public space which allows that, but I'll be damned if I don't complain when a smoker hurts my health. I have just as much a right to not inhale smoke as they do choosing to.

[Trixie Heartstrings 434]

I'm not old enough to buy tobacco products, and I don't plan to even when I'm old enough. If someone decides to smoke, I don't care that much. As far as vaping goes, most studies say that it's safer than tobacco cigarettes, mainly because the nicotine itself isn't what makes them harmful, it's the tar along with the chemicals added that make them harmful. I'm in favor of cannabis legalization since it has medical benefits, isn't as harmful as tobacco or alcohol, and there's no reason to make it illegal because it just puts more people in jail, and most people who want to smoke it will smoke it regardless of its legality. My grandparents on both sides of my family used to smoke, but 2 of them decided to quit. One died 9 years before I was born because of cancer. My other grandparent was able to smoke into her 70s, but passed away a few months ago. Even though studies have shown that smoking is mostly harmful, I don't care as long as they aren't trying to hurt someone else.

[Guest]

 

 

The difference between smoke, beer, and fast food is that smoke hurts everybody in the direct vicinity of the smoker.

 

 

Very marginally. You're more likely to die in a car accident related to drunk driving than from second hand smoke. You're also more likely to get diseases connected to obesity than die from second hand smoke.

 

 

 

If second hand smoke isn't as dangerous as originally thought, that doesn't change the fact that it's still dangerous.

 

 

Unless you are inhaling insane amount on a daily basis the effects on your health are about the same as eating a big mac.

 

 

 

People downtalk smokers because it's not fair for you to ask them to risk their health to spare your feelings. What you do with your body isn't any of my business, and I agree whole-heartedly, but if you're smoking and that smoke gets near enough to me to impact my health, you've made it my business.

 

 

I am all for keeping smoking in designated areas. After that, if you enter my designated area and your lungs get smoke in them, that's your own fault. Not to mention by that logic I need to stop wearing body spray because someone outside may be allergic. So no, it's not fair. If you have a health condition it's your job to take care of yourself, not random strangers. I certainly am not about to live my life not smoking in front of my own damn house because someone on the sidewalk that is walking by might have asthma.

 

 

 

I live in a place where people smoke. Believe me, I'd love to leave, but I can't. I go to the park; there's a smoker. I go to town; there's a smoker. I won't do anything because it's a public space which allows that, but I'll be damned if I don't complain when a smoker hurts my health. I have just as much a right to not inhale smoke as they do choosing to.

 

I am calling BS on how close proximity you are to smoke on a regular basis. I am quite certain you're exaggerating to an extreme. I smoke and I live in a place where there are lots of smokers and even I do not run into them smoking in places where I inhale smoke that I did not intentionally inhale. It's easy to claim this when there is no way to back it up. I feel like you're just using this as an excuse to downtalk smokers when in reality the amount of second hand smoke you are probably exposed to is not even having an effect on your health at all.

 

Hell your health is probably being affected more by regular air pollution, are you going to sue the city for the detriment health? Smoker already are required to pay insane taxes on cigarettes, not smoke in public buildings, near hospitals, in places around or anywhere close to children, within 100 feet of a school, and come next month in YOUR OWN CAR. We can't smoke around anyone under 18 in some states now and we are obligated to huddle in small designated smoking areas.

 

We can't help that there are a few pricks who break the rules, but I'll be damned if I am going to have someone whine to me because they got exposed to seven seconds of smoke that ruined their day that day. The M & Ms you ate probably did worse on your body than a few second of cigarette smoke. There are additives in processed food that you buy that can cause cancer. Plants in the store are treated with pesticides that could kill you.

 

Choose your battles: everything around you is going to kill you, don't act like I suddenly sped up the clock.

[Lost 1,410]

I used to smoke, i started a few years ago after hanging around with smokers, smoked for a little over a year but never a lot.

 

I found that it helped me cope with stress, however quitting proved to be incredibly stressful, far worse than the stress i used smoking to cope with. Its a bad habit and no matter how much stress you're under i would recommend never getting into it. I Vape now to get my fix of nicotine but you shouldnt get into that either, many studies show that its not bad for you at all while it is certainly not as bad for you as smoking and there is no second-hand smoke from it, you should also be aware that smoking was originally advertised as healthy, we dont know what the future studies hold for Vaping, it could be bad for you, but for smokers it is definitely better to move from smoke to Vape.

 

 

 

Going to Edit here to add some small views on "Real" smokers -

We cant tell someone not to smoke just because we dont like it, im of the firm belief that if someone is an adult and it is perfectly legal to do something they are well within their rights to do it, just leave them to it, it is their life and we should let them live it how they want.

 

Second-hand smoke is not as bad as most people think, a small wiff if someone's cigarette is not going to kill you, you are well within your rights to ask someone to stop smoking if you're trapped somewhere inclosed with them though, a car for example, i also believe that people shouldn't smoke around babies too, its not going to kill them but its not healthy for developing lungs at all.

 

Some people are saying that the smell of smoke is revolting and that people shouldn't smoke in public so that they are not subjected to the smell, to that i say, i have worked retail and come across some truly revolting smelling people, but i dont expect them to be locked in their house and separated away from the world just because i dont like the way they smell.

 

Actively avoiding smokers just because you dont smoking them is like actively avoiding people who drink just because you dont like alcohol, its a futile practice, as i said before, just leave them to it, its their life and they honestly are not hurting you unless you're in a confined space with them for a prolonged period of time.

[Pripyat Pony 2,608]

Some people are saying that the smell of smoke is revolting and that people shouldn't smoke in public so that they are not subjected to the smell, to that i say, i have worked retail and come across some truly revolting smelling people, but i dont expect them to be locked in their house and separated away from the world just because i dont like the way they smell.

^This. I have encountered people who drench themselves in cheap perfume. Inhaling it makes me feel physically ill; I have to rush out back to avoid vomiting all over the customer. Plus it brings on headaches. Do I lecture them on how much their perfume stench is affecting my health? No. If they want to bathe in perfume, they can cuz they're paying for it.

 

Also, yet again since I see that anti smokers are ignoring the facts, second hand smoke is not dangerous and the so called "study" has been debunked. It's air pollution that's detrimental to health. In fact, vehicles as a whole are more deadly than cigarettes. I've had two close friends killed in traffic accidents in which neither was at fault, yet you don't see me attacking drivers and demanding that they stop driving for my sake.

[Blique 211]

PSA to the ones here arguing for the smoking side: you should avoid using misdirectional logical fallacies. That is, statements like "Smoking isn't as bad as drunk driving or obesity" shifts the topic to a completely unrelated "big boss" topic to try and shadow the current topic and avoid talking about it. It would be beneficial for your side to be logical and on-point if you want others to understand your views.

 

Also, I haven't noticed anyone explain their views of second-hand smoke around people with respiratory problems, especially since it can trigger asthma attacks (and potential death). I rarely see anyone talk about it, so I'd be interested in reading your responses.

 

Thank you, and good luck in your debating, both sides.  :grin2:

[PonyWaifu 559]

Smoking is gross and will kill you. Don't do it.

[Lost 1,410]

 

Also, I haven't noticed anyone explain their views of second-hand smoke around people with respiratory problems, especially since it can trigger asthma attacks (and potential death). I rarely see anyone talk about it, so I'd be interested in reading your responses.

 

 

 

I knew an asthmatic who smoked, and i've never seen someone with asthma have an attack as a result of someone smoking near them, i would go back to my previous statement of it being a case of someone in a small confined area with a smoker to do them harm, smoking in public places would seem to me as being something that shouldnt trigger an attack, it would be an extreme case of asthma for it to trigger somewhere where they are trapped with a smoker with no choice (a public area outside), if they were with a smoker in a closed area it would have to be a private residence, to which i would say why would someone with asthma or any other respiratory problem choose to put themselves in that environment with someone. 

 

 

 

Smoking is gross and will kill you. Don't do it.

 

While i do agree mostly, just for the sake of facts i will state that its not guaranteed to kill you, technically it just increases your chance of cancer, my grandmother smoked for a good 50 years straight and never had a single medical issue related to smoking. I would state that it is entirely not worth the risk though.

[PonyWaifu 559]

While i do agree mostly, just for the sake of facts i will state that its not guaranteed to kill you, technically it just increases your chance of cancer, my grandmother smoked for a good 50 years straight and never had a single medical issue related to smoking. I would state that it is entirely not worth the risk though.

 

Smoking is gross and *may* kill you. Don't do it.

[WarpSpeed 34]

I have been against smoking for about 3 years (not meaning to offend smokers here, sorry if I am) and from seeing it, alot of people have been dying because of it. Not only that, but cigarette packs are expensive, and the money adds up over time. Not to mention the risk of cancer, which usually leads to death.

 

And most importantly, is that after you try to quit, its very tough as your body is acting like you need it. And it can take many times, because eventually, you may go back to smoking.

[Sugar Pea 2,682]

Bottom line, smoking kills, stinks, and harmful to those who do not smoke.

"If you don't like it, move away." Well smarty-pants, it's hard to when your smoke keeps blowing in my general direction. Otherwise, I may as well live in a bubble because I can't effing avoid it. My dad and his fiance smokes, and when I go over there and come back, my clothes and backpack smell to high heaven. Some of my family smokes half a pack or more a day (makes me worry they'll end up on oxygen tanks...). And do you know how much money can be saved from not buying cigarettes every week? Keep guessing. So do i like smoking? NO. ​It's pointless, because you're basically slowly killing yourself with those cancer sticks. If it's a stress reliever for you, cool, but people seriously need to be more aware of the problems that can come from even one cigarette.
Second hand is especially​ harmful to kids. It can cause SIDS.
​WebMD.com/smoking-cessation/effects-of-secondhand-smoke

Edited September 7, 2015 by Sugar Barrel

[Celli 4,338]

Cigarettes smell nasty, taste nasty(I've smoked a couple and regret it), and it makes me feel sick to my stomach when I'm around it. At home it's no problem because my brother chews dip(still nasty, but no smoke), but at work we have a designated smoking area, yet people seem to smoke wherever they like, and it's disgusting. I don't want to tell them off, and I can't exactly tell customers off because they can whatever the fuck they want, and they'll complain, like "go somewhere else if you don't like it".

Cigarettes are the worst thing on the planet.

Marijuana on the other hand...

[CT-1138 3,182]

It's a nasty, dirty habit, I can't stand the smell of cigars, and it's terribly unhealthy. Thst said, if you want to smoke, be my guest, but just don't stand up wind of me.

[Blique 211]

I knew an asthmatic who smoked, and i've never seen someone with asthma have an attack as a result of someone smoking near them, i would go back to my previous statement of it being a case of someone in a small confined area with a smoker to do them harm, smoking in public places would seem to me as being something that shouldnt trigger an attack, it would be an extreme case of asthma for it to trigger somewhere where they are trapped with a smoker with no choice (a public area outside), if they were with a smoker in a closed area it would have to be a private residence, to which i would say why would someone with asthma or any other respiratory problem choose to put themselves in that environment with someone. 

 

I also knew an asthmatic who smoked, caused his daughter to develop asthma as a child and kept smoking around her anyway until she was old enough to leave the house. Hopefully that's not a common occurrence though. Some people with asthma can indeed smoke, it just means that their lungs will go to ruin faster than a smoker without asthma. They may also have to be more selective about what days they allow themselves to smoke.

 

I think it does depend on the severity of the respiratory problem, but also how severe it is that particular day. In my case, I have very mild asthma, but I have and have nearly passed out a few times just because it was particularly difficult to breathe that day (usually humidity gets to me). So if it was a really humid day, under the worst circumstances, and I'm near a smoker for maybe 30 seconds, I can see myself having an asthma attack despite having mild asthma; it's a tipping point thing. Whether I die from the attack depends on whether I'm carrying a rescue inhaler with me (or if anyone around me has one), as I often leave mine at home since, again, my asthma is mild.

 

A lot of smokers are pretty bad about following the rules too, so it's not a simple matter of "just avoid them"...At my college, there were strict rules about where you could smoke, but no one cared, and everyone smoked in front of doors, which meant I had to hold my breath for about 30 seconds (smoke has a pretty wide range, and being downwind doesn't help) and run just to go in or out of a building. And obviously, holding one's breath and running isn't great for people with asthma. And this occurrence applies to any place outside the college too, since there doesn't seem to be any laws against smoking outside of doors (or if there are, people don't care). Not to mention, if I'm walking behind someone who is smoking, I'm forced to stop and wait for them to get far ahead of me before I can continue.

 

As for smoking and dying of smoking, though it can take a while to actually kill you, smoking reduces the quality of life as the years pass - most notably, it becomes harder and more painful to breathe, coughing becomes a regular thing, etc etc. How long it takes to die can depend a little on luck too, and how well your body can adapt to the gradual destruction of your lung tissue. Nutrition probably has a big effect on your body's fight to keep your lungs working. One thing I know for sure is that there is no known way to reverse the damage that smoking does to your lungs, so it's always good to quit sooner rather than later.

 

On the upside, if a scenario ever arises where you know that you're gonna die in a year or two anyway, then yeah, smoking probably won't have any effect on you, so go live it up (just away from me). 

Edited September 7, 2015 by Blique

[Vertigo_95 572]

 

 

I don't know where everyone is finding these people who apparently just blow smoke in their faces on a regular basis, but as someone who does smoke, I don't even find other smokers who do that like... Ever. I am wagering either you guys are exaggerating how often this happens or you're leaving out details that would valid explanations as to why you're exposed to second hand smoke so much. I find it odd that other smokers don't even want to blow smoke in my face, but supposedly a lot of people here are claiming they get rudely exposed to it on a semi-frequent basis. I would like some explanation please.

 

I can assure you that here in New York City, it is as common as it is breathing. I don't know about any place else, nor do I care, but I know where I live, which is the largest populated city in the US, there is at least one person on every other street corner smoking. Heck I even live in a ghetto neighborhood, where crackheads and drug dealers flourish, so that further ups my chances of running into someone who smokes.

[QuirkyUsername 1,576]

I'm not a smoker but it doesnt bother me. The risks have been put there for years and its personal choice whether someone starts or not.

 

There could be a few better regulations on where smoking is allowed in general (you smoke in front of the entrance of a public building you're a dick) but I don't see the point in demonizing those who decide to take it up

Edited September 8, 2015 by QuirkyUsername

[Guest]

 

 

I dislike smokers who think second-hand smoke has little to no effect on other people and thus smoke anywhere they want. People with asthma and breathing difficulties exist...Plus people who smoke around kids, causing them to develop permanent respiratory issues, ugh...

 

I never said people should be allowed to smoke "anywhere". I approve of designated areas and keeping it away from the young. If you have respiratory issues, then I advise you to steer clear of smokers. It's really not that difficult.

 

 

 

In regards to "scare tactics" towards smokers, I agree that misinformation is bad. A lot of smokers are well-informed, but factual information can help reach out to smokers who haven't had a proper education (honestly, I don't think most Americans have had a "proper education" with our school system...). A woman who visited my college's anatomy lab happened to be a smoker, and seeing a healthy lung vs a smoker's lung motivated her and her husband to stop smoking, so factual information does help in some cases. I personally dissected someone who smoked and died from COPD, and her lungs looked nothing like lungs at that point, there's no way they could function.

 

Okay and? Still sounds like scare tactics to me. 

 

 

I can assure you that here in New York City, it is as common as it is breathing.

 

 

I am from NY... I can assure you that it's not like that at all.

 

 

 

Heck I even live in a ghetto neighborhood, where crackheads and drug dealers flourish, so that further ups my chances of running into someone who smokes.

 

So your argument is based upon an area with insanely high level of criminals and people who wouldn't follow the law even if you put it place? Those people would be doing it even if it was illegal and with as little care as before. They aren't like that because they're smokers who are inconsiderate of your well being; they're like that because they are in an area with a high crime rate, extreme poverty and most of the population there needs to survive by illegal activities because the employment rate is low so they couldn't give less than half a shit about anyone but themselves.

 

I've been to NYC, I lived in NY my whole life around the other cities and next door to the bad parts of town for years. I know what it's like and frankly I find your scenario a rather big exaggeration. I rolled with people from the hood before, and so long as you respect them, they respect you. A simple "Hey man, can you stand down wind?" does wonders. Don't act like people are trying to fill your lungs with smoke when you haven't even tried your manners yet. 

 

 

 

PSA to the ones here arguing for the smoking side: you should avoid using misdirectional logical fallacies. That is, statements like "Smoking isn't as bad as drunk driving or obesity" shifts the topic to a completely unrelated "big boss" topic to try and shadow the current topic and avoid talking about it. It would be beneficial for your side to be logical and on-point if you want others to understand your views.

 

 

Actually it's demonstrating that there are far worse things that are out there for your health that are not only perfectly legal, but ignored and even ENCOURAGED. You can't call someone fat or say you're worried about their obesity because that's "body shaming" and we have a new media that is encouraging obesity and pride in being overweight. It's pointing out a double standard that is ignored in favor of attacking an invisible enemy.

 

You want facts? Here are some:

 

• Obesity kills more people than smoking every year.
• Smoking is illegal to many, and heavily restricted.
• There is little evidence actually linking any negative health effects to non-smokers.
• Obesity is revered to many and encouraged, smoking is not.

So when you go on this crusade to stop smokers because of the health effects, you are attacking a little problem that isn't hurting as many people as you think it is.

 

 

 

Also, I haven't noticed anyone explain their views of second-hand smoke around people with respiratory problems, especially since it can trigger asthma attacks (and potential death). I rarely see anyone talk about it, so I'd be interested in reading your responses.

 

 

Exhaust out of car tailpipes can cause the same attacks. Perfumes can cause them. Body sprays can cause them. Do we need to put heavier regulations on those things too? We invented inhalers and asthma medication for a reason because we can't just police the world and expect everyone to be on their toes for some  random medical problems someone else may have because of some fairly common thing that goes on in the outside world. We can't just ban perfumes, body sprays, cigarettes and exhaust can we?

 

I hate to say this because you'll probably write my argument off as me being a jerk or something, but you are responsible for your own wellness in this case. Unless someone is PURPOSELY walking up to you and blowing smoke in your face intentionally, it's on you.

 

 

 

Smoking is gross and *may* kill you. Don't do it.

 

Being obese may kill you, don't/stop doing it.

 

 

 

A lot of smokers are pretty bad about following the rules too, so it's not a simple matter of "just avoid them"...

 

Were you not the one who just said don't base arguments on logical fallacies and then generalize the opposing side? 

[MLPFanatic34 3,234]

I can assure you that here in New York City, it is as common as it is breathing. I don't know about any place else, nor do I care, but I know where I live, which is the largest populated city in the US, there is at least one person on every other street corner smoking. Heck I even live in a ghetto neighborhood, where crackheads and drug dealers flourish, so that further ups my chances of running into someone who smokes.

It's interesting you say that, when I went to New York with my family I remember eating in several restaurants where people were smoking like chimneys.

[Sugar Cube 4,843]

Let's see. My dad was a chain-smoker who ended up with horrible oral cancer that went untreated, causing him to have some nasty face surgery that made him look like a monster. He died when I was 14. My mother still is a heavy smoker to this day and has serious breathing issues at 55. My grandma recently passed away this year due to lung cancer. She too, smoked for many years.

 

Whether or not smoking was the actual cause of these tragedies or not isn't the point, because I know it's done absolutely no good to any of my family members. So no, I don't like smoking. I have never smoked anything in my life and I don't intend to start. I have nothing against people who do smoke. They are welcome to do whatever they like to their bodies. I'm sure I eat and drink all kinds of awful substances myself, so I'm not about to judge or ridicule. But smoking is detrimental to the people around you too, and that is why I personally am against it. I can't stand the smell of it for one thing.