http://www.perlmonks.org?node_id=387377

Vote on this poll

Regularly
[bar] 152/13%
On occasion
[bar] 124/10%
I plan to quit
[bar] 37/3%
I'm trying to quit
[bar] 36/3%
No, but I use gum/patch
[bar] 4/0%
I struggle not to
[bar] 24/2%
I crave it no more
[bar] 143/12%
I plan to start
[bar] 33/3%
I tried it
[bar] 160/13%
I haven't yet
[bar] 22/2%
I never will
[bar] 474/39%
1209 total votes
Replies are listed 'Best First'.
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by davido (Cardinal) on Sep 01, 2004 at 04:53 UTC

    Tobacco is a filthy weed,
    That from the devil does proceed;
    It drains your purse, it burns your clothes,
    And it makes a chimney of your nose.

    -- Benjamin Waterhouse
    Pioneer of the Small-Pox vaccine.

      Which of course leads us to

      Tobacco is a dirty weed. I like it.
      It satisfies no normal need. I like it.
      It makes you thin, it makes you lean,
      It takes the hair right off your bean
      It's the worst darn stuff I've ever seen.
      I like it.

            - Graham Lee Hemminger, Tobacco

      - another intruder with the mooring of the heat of the Perl

        I'm honestly not trying to one-up anyone, but...

        Don't smoke, don't smoke
        the official dope\.
        Nicotine is too obscene\.
        Suck c..k, suck t..?t,
        but don't suck that sh.t\.

        Alan Ginsburg, 1991, quoted from a reading at McCabe's Guitar Shop, Sta. Monica

        *evil grin*

        --
        Damon Allen Davison
        http://www.allolex.net

Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by gloryhack (Deacon) on Sep 01, 2004 at 05:12 UTC
    I smoked for 24 years, then quit. I was off of nicotine for over three years, when a combination of events caused me to take it back up in April. In less than a week from now, I'll quit again.

    I've toyed around with other addictive substances that shall remain nameless here, and had no trouble at all after the decision to leave them be. Tobacco is tougher than all of them combined.

    I could be fooling myself, but I don't expect to have too much trouble kicking the habit this time. Practice makes perfect, eh?

      Quitting tobacco is indeed very difficult--if there's anyone considering smoking, maybe go build a bong, but don't smoke tobacco. People need to know how addictive the stuff is. More addictive than heroin and cocaine, and even worse, it's so heavily advertised that people overlook the damage it has on people's lives.

      The advertising is particularly scary. Since nicotine is such a powerful substance, tobacco companies can trigger a nicotine headache with very subtle and simple advertising. Since you'll feel like shit until you get you get your cig fix, it's very effective. Whoever posted the comment about clarity--the clarity they're talking about is that very fix. Clarity from the grips of the nicotine headache. The headache that never goes away.


      So.. uh.. don't do it. Try something productive.. like LSD
      David

        Yep. When I was at college, I smoked quite a bit of weed. Before I started, I read a lot - basically that it was non-addictive physically, can be psychologically addictive in large amounts, but is generally not that bad.

        Of course, in the UK, everyone smoked their joints mixed with tobacco, and I became addicted to it.

        Now? I'm addicted to tobacco, but haven't smoked weed regularly in years. Probably been 2 years since my last toke at a party. It just doesn't appeal anymore - I value being able to think.

        My attempts at quitting are sporadic. It's got to be the nastiest addiction out there. The longest I've lasted is 6 months until a very traumatic event triggered using it again.

        Nasty stuff from evil companies.

        I'm currently lasting a couple of days at a time, but am thinking of trying hypnotherapy and acupuncture soon as a double whammy.

        Guess I need to walk around with a picture of my kid dangling in from of my face all day ;-)

        cLive ;-)

        Quitting is EASY, I know people that quit smoking 15-20 times a day. Not lighting the next one is HARD.

        g_White
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by csuhockey3 (Curate) on Sep 01, 2004 at 03:49 UTC
    I have been known to have the occasional cigar on a nice summer evening -- with a Perl book on my lap of course! I can't stand cigarettes, and it's a good thing because they are now banned in all public places where I live (including bars). It's nice to go out to eat and not have dinner with a side of cigarette smoke.
      I also yearn for smoke-free places. Since January they made train stations and trains non-smoking. Some people still flout the rule, but it's not too bad in the stations. However, on the platforms...there are smoking areas at the end of the platforms, but most smokers seem to believe because they are 'outside' (in a small, enclosed area) their smoke won't bother anyone. Officials are not especially good about enforcing the rule either. Also when I walk in to the station I have to walk through people clustered by the door to smoke.

      So I still have to take a shower every night if I've gone to work, to get rid of the allergins. If I want to go out to eat, I have to take an allergy pill. And of course I still carry my inhaler.

      I think perhaps these people don't realise that their smoke carries because they are no longer capable of smelling it. I, on the other hand, could probably be used as a drug-sniffing dog if they ever make smoking illegal. At work I have to repeatedly remind people that if they smoke by the (open) basement door the smoke is pulled in to the building, and I really can smell it on the second floor.

      I really don't have a problem with people taking whatever drugs they like, provided others aren't forced to take them in the process. I don't understand how so many pill-form drugs can be illegal in many countries, while something that affects everyone around can be considered socially acceptable and legal.

      I wish I lived (and grew up) where you do. I'm allergic to tobacco and the response I get when I ask people not to smoke around me is usually along the lines of, "It's my freedom to smoke, it doesn't hurt you, you're just whining." Of course, even though the official policy of the U.S. military is against tobacco use, the majority of soldiers and sailors still smoke.

      I once took the cigarette out of the guy's hands and broke it open, rubbing the tobacco on the backside of my forearm. As a rash quickly spread he started to apologize. Of course, the hospital visit wasn't worth it, but I was young and stupid once. I'm no longer young. :)

      - - arden.
      update: I guess I didn't openly state that in the case where I took the guy's cigarette he was in a no-smoking area and my first action was to point that out to him and ask him to stop smoking. As for the suggestions that he should have punched me, I'm a big, fast, and well-trained guy; go ahead and try!

        I'm not allergic to tobacco, but I have pretty bad asthma and so does my son. It's not usually a problem at work, but nearly everyone in my family smokes. I manage to avoid them for weeks at a time, and my visits there consist of little more than my wife talking to them while my son and I go play with toys in another room. It's great for bonding with my son, not so great for my relationship with the rest of them. On the other hand, spending my life in another room allowed me to spend all of my time at the computer, leading to a decent career.
        Ireland where I live is the first coutry to have a smoking ban.
        ie. No smoking in an enclosed work place.
        This includes shop, pubs, restaurants, offices, all public transportion (even taxis).
        There are exceptions - long term residental homes, prisons etc.
        Norway has since taken it up

        There is approx 98% compliance with the ban
        It works because it not up to individuals to enforce the ban
        Those (ie pubs) who continually flaut the law are subject to large fines and possible prison sentances.
        Already there is a drop in tobacco smoking and alot of Irish have given up.

        There is a major difference in going out without having to smell like an ashtray coming home.
        And alot of pubs etc have smoking shelters or beer gardens to accomodate the hard liners.

        It certainly is nice to have the smoking ban. I didn't realize how thick the smoke is in a restaurant/bar until I go to the next town over (without a smoking ban). I can't stand it anymore -- you really notice it much more once you have the luxury of being smoke free.
        I'm sorry you've faced such stupidity and inconsideration. I've support anti-smoking efforts for years and there are a growing number of folks even in a die-hard tobacco state like my own Virginia that believe breathing is a right and smoking is a choice. Sadly smoking is also a very tough addiction and that deserves some consideration too, but most folks capable of consideration seem to recognize that breathing is a much more important right to protect than smoking.

        I was in California when the smoking ban went into place. I know a number of folks with sensitive allergies and they were able to go into pool halls comfortably for the first time in years. At least in my unscientific survey business didn't seem to have slowed down either, so everybody wins including the wait staff having a lower chance of cancer and no ashen mess to clean up at the end of the shift. :)

      A reply falls below the community's threshold of quality. You may see it by logging in.
      Nice to know I'm not the only one :-) I like a good cigar on occasion, and since both my wife and daughter have some allergy problems, I take it outside when I do. I tried cigarettes when I was younger, and I couldn't stand the taste.

      TStanley
      --------
      The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing -- Edmund Burke
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by snookmz (Beadle) on Sep 01, 2004 at 04:05 UTC
    Used to smoke.. There's something about smoking that clears my head and focus's my attention (niccotine plus ritual?). Or used to for that matter. Fortunately nowdays I get the same effect from exercise, and it's a lot healthier (And cheaper).
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by PotPieMan (Hermit) on Sep 01, 2004 at 04:43 UTC
    I tried a cigarette once, shortly after my father passed away. (He smoked >= 1 pack a day before getting cancer.) I'm glad to say I didn't like it.

    --Daniel

Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by tune (Curate) on Sep 01, 2004 at 07:31 UTC
    You forgot the option "I am smoking other people's smoke".

    --
    tune

      Let me guess, you recently quit smoking yourself and now root for the anti-smoke zealots? yuck ... live with it. People smoke and it's not going to change much anytime soon. Same with people who always bitch about other people smoking... I wonder what's worse for your health: smoking or bitching all day long.

      --
      b10m stopped smoking last week, won't become anti-smoke zealot!

      All code is usually tested, but rarely trusted.
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by Scarborough (Hermit) on Sep 01, 2004 at 09:37 UTC
    Have never smoked, my vice is Belgium Beer, Leffe,or any beer come to that, and in pursuite of this vice have some great friends who smoke. I wouldn't change them for a smoke free pub.
      Mmmm... Beer.
      Does that mean your friends mean more to you, then you mean to them? Because it seems they are willing to give you up for a pub where they can smoke.
        Good fun people aren't that Po faced about Life.
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by tbone1 (Monsignor) on Sep 01, 2004 at 13:21 UTC
    I don't smoke. I never have and never will. Both my parents were smokers, and let me tell you, the smell of a car on a cold winter's morning, with menthol cigarette butts crammed into the ash tray, is enough to stop any kid from ever touching tobacco.

    That said, I don't have to smoke. I just need to walk by the front door to my car to get plenty of nicotine.

    Besides, politics is my drug of choice. Addictive, warps the mind (though not as severely as quantum physics), makes you a social pariah, and expensive as hell.

    --
    tbone1, YAPS (Yet Another Perl Schlub)
    And remember, if he succeeds, so what.
    - Chick McGee

      I started with 11 and stopped with 18. It's all there. Now I really don't intend to start wasting mone like that again. :-)
        About the same for me. I was purely a habitual smoker, no more than a few cigarettes a day. Then sometime after starting college, it just didn't taste good any more. So, I quit. That's all there is to it.
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by pelagic (Priest) on Sep 01, 2004 at 07:23 UTC
    I often smoke one of those short thick Cuban cigars when I got enough time to finish it properly (i.e. 1 hour or more).
    My current favourite is Partagas Serie D, a socalled Robusto format ... delicious!

    pelagic
      Robusto is favorite shape as well. You also touched on the main reason I have a cigar every now and then -- it forces you to do nothing but sit outside and relax for an hour. I prefer to watch the sunset, and time my smoke just right so I am done as soon as the sun goes down. ahhhhhhh.
      Ahhh, a monk of excellent taste. The D 4 is one of my most common smokes, the other being a Cohiba Siglo V or VI.
        The D4 and Cohiba Sigs are nice (well, the best), but if you are on a budget I suggest something like a Kentucky Cheroot. It's a nice alternative when you want a shorter smoke -- I also like the shape of the cheroot (second only to robusto). They look ugly, but soooo good!
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by rinceWind (Monsignor) on Sep 01, 2004 at 12:07 UTC
    There is no option "Only as a means of ingesting other substances".

    --
    I'm Not Just Another Perl Hacker

Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by belg4mit (Prior) on Sep 01, 2004 at 15:07 UTC
    Let me just say, as a staunch environmentalist, tobacco is one species I'd like to see extinct.

    I've had nightmares were the only thing that really happened was a loved one took up smoking again.

    --
    I'm not belgian but I play one on TV.

      Now, as a staunch non-smoker, I will say that the tobacco plant has a nice scent when it is in bloom. Maybe it's just nostalgia because it reminds me of the summers of my youth.

      --
      tbone1, YAPS (Yet Another Perl Schlub)
      And remember, if he succeeds, so what.
      - Chick McGee

Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by blue_cowdawg (Monsignor) on Sep 02, 2004 at 14:18 UTC

    You know... I tried smoking some tobacco once. First I tried brining it but it just got slimey and so I threw that batch away. Then I tried dry rub and I smoked it for about 8 hours but it still didn't taste too good.

    I prefer smoking pork or beef...

    Then I tried smoking a trout and couldn't figure out which end to light.

      mmmm... smoked turkey, salmon, beef, pork, chicken...
      Dang! It seems I'll eat just about anything smoked; but still I cant stand the cigarettes!
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by feloniousMonk (Pilgrim) on Sep 03, 2004 at 17:58 UTC
    I ocassionally smoke a pipe, which I don't find addicting and hopefully not as harmful as cigs. McClelland Dark Star is some tasty 'baccy...

    I did smoke cigs for a while, quit 2 years ago and on very rare ocassions have one or 2 but don't crave them anymore.

    -felonious
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by radiantmatrix (Parson) on Sep 07, 2004 at 18:32 UTC
    I smoke on occasion, but have never become addicted.

    Like others here, I enjoy the occasional cigar -- I also have taken up the pipe, as it provides a cooler, cleaner smoke than many other methods. It also allows me to smoke just the amount of tobacco I wish, since pipes go out very quickly if not tended -- so if I just want a few puffs, I can do that without waste.

    I smoke only socially, and until recently only outdoors. This means that I only smoke when it's warm out -- glad I'm not addicted, or the Minnesota winters would be a killer... Other than outside, I smoke once a month when I meet with a writer's club: they all smoke cigars, and I find it intollerable unless I join them. This is analogous to listening to someone else eat cereal: it's only bothersome if you aren't eating. :)

    I support smoking bans in restaurants: I'd rather taste my food than my neighbors sidestream smoke. However, the smoking ban in bars is amusing -- you can sit on a stool and kill your liver, but don't dare light up a smoke! (Of course, I know it's for the employees). I don't typically smoke in bars anyway, for most have voluntary bans on cigar and pipe use -- so it doesn't affect me; still funny though. :-P

    --
    $me = rand($hacker{perl});
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by arc_of_descent (Hermit) on Sep 08, 2004 at 20:35 UTC
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by notsobright (Initiate) on Sep 09, 2004 at 17:32 UTC
    I started smoking for the most retarded reason ever. At the time, you had to be 17 in order to purchase tobacco products and I had just turned 17. I wanted to show off my ID but the only "privilege" one got at that age was purchasing tobacco. So I did. I bought a pack of cigarettes, and put them in my glove box. Well, I am the sort of person who doesn't like to let anything go to waste, so when I was cleaning out the car about a week later I decided to smoke them instead of throw them away. That started the downward spiral. I wish I had chunked 'em now, but I dont blame anyone except myself for my stupid addiction.

    As for smoking bans, I have mixed feelings about them. As a smoker, I am obviously biased BUT I feel that privately owned establishmenst should not be considered public places. It should be up to the owner to determine who they wish to have as customers.

    But again, I'm a smoker and addicted. I am sure I am biased ;)
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by poqui (Deacon) on Sep 01, 2004 at 18:18 UTC
    Tried cigarettes once when I was a teenager, didn't like it.
    Tried again in college, that time it was cigarellos. No sir, didn't like them unless I was drinking.
    Now, I can't stand the smell of smoke, cigarettes are the worst, cigars and pipes only slightly better.
    On the other hand, I like incense, go figure!
    Smoking (by others) has run me out of some restaurants, all bars and clubs, and bowling alleys. My wife and I used to enjoy bowling, but we had to stop when she was pregnant, and now we can't start again because we hate the smoke smell. Thank goodness that there are smoke free restaurants, because the segregated ones don't do a very good job of keeping the smoke from the non-smoking areas.
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by santa (Acolyte) on Sep 02, 2004 at 12:44 UTC
    I regularly smoke a pipe... Otherwise, how could I have a wreath of smoke around my head?
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by tekniko (Deacon) on Sep 09, 2004 at 16:35 UTC
    Tobacco is a crutch; not at all like my beloved coffee and tea.
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by bronto (Priest) on Sep 01, 2004 at 15:48 UTC

    Smoking costs a lot of money, hurts, and soils. And smells. If I have to smell tobacco, I prefer it when it isn't burnt

    I don't smoke, I never did, and I never will.

    Ciao!
    --bronto


    The very nature of Perl to be like natural language--inconsistant and full of dwim and special cases--makes it impossible to know it all without simply memorizing the documentation (which is not complete or totally correct anyway).
    --John M. Dlugosz
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by CountZero (Bishop) on Sep 10, 2004 at 18:20 UTC
    I don't smoke, never did, but I don't mind other people smoking, as long as they keep the smoke inside them!

    CountZero

    "If you have four groups working on a compiler, you'll get a 4-pass compiler." - Conway's Law

Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by Paulster2 (Priest) on Sep 02, 2004 at 11:36 UTC

    It's kinda surprising how many non-smoking Monks there are out there. I chose the "Never Will..." option.

    Paulster2


    You're so sly, but so am I. - Quote from the movie Manhunter.
      It's kinda surprising how many non-smoking Monks there are out there. I chose the "Never Will..." option.

      I was amazed at how many smoke or have smoked. The number for "Never Will" is only running around 40%. That means _more than half_ smoke or have smoked. In the circles I run in, the "never have never will" number would be more like 85%. Now, I know 85% is artificially high (for _never_), but by the same token 39% seems very very low; I am almost certain the number for "never" would be higher than that my geographical area (Midwestern US).

      I'm also surprised at how many people claim to have quit. I have AFAIK never personally known anyone who quit during my lifetime -- though I have known several older people who quit decades ago, usually as a direct result of a major life-altering religious decision. Both of my grandfathers are in this category. My maternal grandfather quit smoking when my mom's oldest brother was very young, and my paternal grandfather quit when my dad was in elementary school. Neither of them had ever smoked in the house, though, and like I said, quitting smoking in both cases was the direct result of a major life-altering religious decision that also had a wide variety of other implications.

      I've known plenty of people who tried to quit, and in a number of cases they were very serious about it. From observing people who use it, I have rated nicotine as the fourth-most-addictive thing in widespread use, after oxygen and caffein and water (in roughly that order). Then there's a wide and expansive gulf between those things and whatever comes out to number five, probably television (which I'm happy to say I have quit completely).


      "In adjectives, with the addition of inflectional endings, a changeable long vowel (Qamets or Tsere) in an open, propretonic syllable will reduce to Vocal Shewa. This type of change occurs when the open, pretonic syllable of the masculine singular adjective becomes propretonic with the addition of inflectional endings."  — Pratico & Van Pelt, BBHG, p68

        I have know at least a couple of people who have quit completely, people I never would have thought could. One of them is a friend of mine that said it was harder for him to give up coffee than it wsa to quit cigs.

        I know what you mean about those who never truely quit. Known plenty of them, also.

        Paulster2


        You're so sly, but so am I. - Quote from the movie Manhunter.
Quit it when my son was born
by htoug (Deacon) on Sep 02, 2004 at 11:52 UTC
    I started smoking at 15, and continued until my eldest son was born ... lets see ... 18 years ago - how time does fly!

    I still miss a good pipe when sitting with a fishing pole on the riverbank. But it's a disgusting habit.

Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by malaga (Pilgrim) on Sep 11, 2004 at 20:52 UTC
    started when i was 14 - started lots of stuff that year... quit four times - each time i was pregnant - with the last child i quit forever - 18 years ago. it wasn't easy even though it made me sick. i have respect for anyone who kicks any habit. my dad quit after 55 years with a patch. my boyfriend smokes. kissing a smoker isn't really like licking an ashtray but it makes him self-consious about his breath. it doesn't bother me too much. i'm just glad to be kissing somebody.
    Malaga
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by Anonymous Monk on Sep 03, 2004 at 15:57 UTC
    My wife is asthmatic. I've spent a lot of years outdoors smoking because of it. However, it should be noted that the smoking nazis are missing the point. While taking all their anger out on tobacco, and banning where it can be burnt; they really need to look after indoor air quality. Poor quality air can be created by a LOT of things besides tobacco, and they are usually NOT banned, and sets off my wife's asthma just as quickly as a puff of tobacco smoke. As for the bans forcing us smokers outside, well, it is generally still considered a legal activity, and there should be places where it is accepted. If a property owner of an establishment wants to have his pub smoke free, it should be on the door. ALSO, if we wants to allow it, that should be on the door as well. There are NO monopolies or requirements for the public to go to pubs, bars, etc. There generally are on government buildings, workplaces, etc. where a ban is reasonable. There just needs to be a better place for the smokers to go.
      There are NO monopolies or requirements for the public to go to pubs, bars, etc. There generally are on government buildings, workplaces, etc. where a ban is reasonable.

      A bar is also a workplace.

        Wile it is true that a bar is also a workplace, it is not required of bar employees to work there. They could just as easily get a job waiting tables/bartending/cooking, whatever, at a resturant where smoking is not allowed. It's not like you didnt get the job there if the first place. People know if a place is going to allow smoking before they get the job. If an establishment is a dedicated bar, and even mabye if its not. Smoking should be allowed.

        The air force is also a work place and I don't like killing but would love a job tazzing around in fast jet planes. I expect them to turn pacifist to respect my rights any time now.

Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by DrHyde (Prior) on Sep 01, 2004 at 08:14 UTC
    I smoke cigars and pipes.

    <advert> Kurt Huhn made both my pipes for me. </advert>

      Pipes are interesting .. and a lot cheaper than smoking cigars. Plus, I think it smells/taste better.. and you don't get a nasty wet cigar back if someone else tries it.

      Smoking in general is a nasty habit, I think bored ppl. came up with it! But, if I had the choice.. I'd rather smell a pipe/cigar than ciggerettes. Blech.
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by Plankton (Vicar) on Sep 01, 2004 at 15:28 UTC
    A good cigar and steamed Remy! Ahhhh!

    Plankton: 1% Evil, 99% Hot Gas.
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by QM (Parson) on Sep 11, 2004 at 23:02 UTC
    I can't wait for the followup polls:
    Do you use illegal drugs?

    Do you base jump?

    Do you phone prank Donald Rumsfeld?

    In the meantime, I'm waiting for my favorite restaurant to go from "Smoking or Non?" to "Cellphone or Non?".

    -QM
    --
    Quantum Mechanics: The dreams stuff is made of

      I had heard that in Israel, things are so bad (cell phones are more prevalent than land lines), that some places have active cell phone jammers, preventing signals from penetrating: like theaters and restaurants...
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by xorl (Deacon) on Sep 08, 2004 at 18:39 UTC
    My coworker took up pipe smoking not long ago. I have to say it's the first time I haven't been repulsed by tobacco smoke. He's almost got me to try it.
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by bwelch (Curate) on Sep 16, 2004 at 12:45 UTC
    I watched my grandfather die of lung cancer after years of smoking. The health dangers are high enough, and I'd rather my family never go through watching me struggle with the effects of smoking.

    It is about more than personal freedom and choices. If I chose to smoke, my wife and kids end up paying for it in various ways.

      Well, y'see, Polls are the only part of PM where you can post about non-perl, non-pm related stuff, without being booed at.. (apart from the CB, but Im not counting that, cos its not posting.. ) - And even here, people should stay on topic if poss..

      So theres no comparison, y'see? (Now if we had a poll about what to do with gmail invites, however.. )

      C.

Can't get enough of it
by Anonymous Monk on Sep 02, 2004 at 15:49 UTC
    I smoke, but only if there are non-smokers present, preferably children and their mothers. The only reason I smoke is annoy people. I love to smoke just next to the non-smoking section of a restaurant. Sometimes I add some wool or cotton to my tobacco to make it smell more. Anyone who requests me to stop I accuse of taking away my freedom.
      One day you'll meet someone who doesn't give a fig about your "freedom" to pollute the atmosphere because their freedom from breathing carcinogenic air is a much stronger argument, and will physically do something about it. And you won't like it. Not one little bit.

      rdfield

        Would that be someone who drives a car, or buys food that has been hauled to the shops in trucks using big stinking engines?
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by Anonymous Monk on Sep 02, 2004 at 22:55 UTC
    Does wacky tabackee count?
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by vili (Monk) on Sep 17, 2004 at 00:12 UTC
    It's a race to the end. Although it's already been won, its the participation that counts!
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by macPerl (Beadle) on Sep 16, 2004 at 12:55 UTC
    Started at 14 - quit before my first was born - managed to stay off for 3 years - been a recidivist for 4 years - every day I plan to quit.


    Some thoughts :
  • What the biggest disadvantage ?
      Cash spent ? No
      Health issues ? No
      Social Leprosy ? No
      For me (having been off them for 3 years, a while back) it is the psychological effects :
      Irrational anger, Listlessness, Lack of deep concentration, Sleeplessness, etc.


  • How come Tobacco companies do not have to list all the additives in the cigarettes
    Where I live all products for sale have to display "ingredients" - for some reason the tobacco lobby is still able to circumvent this.

  • Why are Cigarettes sold outside of Pharmacies/Drug Stores
    These products are highly addictive drugs (anecdotally, more addictive than heroin) and yet I can walk into any corner shop and buy them - as can any kid on the street.
    Get this: (in this Country) you can buy cigarettes in any shop but all Smoking Cessation products are only sold through Pharmacies !

  • Why are Cigarettes sold WITHOUT prescription ?
    see above

  • As there are no Tobacco Manufacturers in the country where I live, can I bring an action against the State as they are responsible for import licenses
    Maybe this would get them off their high moral geldings and get them to develop a strategy which goes beyond the current "token gestures" (no puns please :-]) which display action on their part but still allows them to collect all the taxes from the cigarettes.

  • My plan for National No-Smoking !
    Main Aim: to STOP anyone else STARTING

    Year 1: All cigarettes to be sold ONLY by Pharmacies/Chemists

    Year 2: All cigarettes to be on prescription only
    Repeat prescriptions cannot exceed 2 packs/ day and are not valid for longer than 2 weeks.
    All prescriptions recorded centrally.

    Year 3: implement a swipe card system which allows people to buy cigarettes without prescription (but still from Pharmacies Only). "Quota" is based on historical data collated from Doctors or GPs.

    Years 5+: Reduce tax on cigarettes by 20% p.a. This is necessary to choke off the black-market which will have been created for cigarettes in the previous 5 years
      Um, I don't smoke, but I respect your right to do so. You just won't do it in my house and you had better not throw your butts in my yard.

      We are losing (at least in the USA) entirely too many civil liberties to people who think it is their business to tell the rest of us how to live.

      You don't want your kids to smoke? Fine, teach them that smoking is bad for you. That's our job as parents. Government has no place in the matter.

        Hear Hear! ++ while (1);

        Too often an individual's choice, consequences, and personal responsibility are ignored as the government babysitter gets bigger and bigger. Stomp on the citizen to "save the country" some would say...

        - jbWare
        Civil Liberties
        So you think it is a "civil liberty" to smoke ?

        If you were to consider deeply the historical reasons for smoking, the environment factors that cause people to smoke, the weight and effect of marketing in driving sales, I think you mightn't be so fast to throw smoking into the over-used (abused) civil liberties argument.

        I agree with and subscribe to the defense of Civil Liberties. However, it does this cause no good to water down the concept with arguments such as yours.

        An extension of the argument you put forward is to legalise all narcotics. I wish I could be sure that you would baulk at such an idea.

        Parenting
        Kids, in spite of us, thank God, are not programmable. While we all strive to help them avoid horrible pitfalls, your statement Fine, teach them that smoking is bad for you. is glib to the point of banality. Two brief points to note:

      • Studies have shown that, after the age of 11, peer pressure has a stronger influence in children than parental guidance.
      • The average TV watching child is exposed to 10,000 adverts a year.


      • Government
        I think everyone has to concede that the cigarette industry is one in which a few people (Cigarette companies) do well out of and millions (smokers - active & passive) suffer from.

        Cigarette companies spend millions every year to promote their products.

        It is the duty of government to ensure that the individuals rights are protected against such producers.

        Believe it or not, there are times government passes legislation that is not part of some major Orwellian Plot to turn us all into proles.
      Why are Cigarettes sold WITHOUT prescription ?
      For the very same reason you can go to a McDonald's/Burger King/Wendy's and buy food that is proven to be bad for health.

      The citizen is mature!


      holli, /regexed monk/

        What an asinine response.

        Since when have those products become physically addictive ? Are they injected with chemicals to increase their addictive capacity ?

        In what way do cigarettes offer nourishment to the body ?

        If you were "mature" enough to read beyond the headlines/picture captions you would see that the health hazards associated with those foods relate to the frequency which they are consumed - as opposed to the actual content of the foodstuffs.

        If I coud have forgiven your rebuttal (which I obviously couldn't) , the line "The citizen is mature" is totally inexcusably crap. I am pushing 40, married with kids, lived in many countries, educated to post-grad level, worked in snr. mgmt in corporate world, self-employment, etc., etc., etc., (blah, blah, blah) and I still am so thick/stupid/immature that (among lots of other stupid things I do/say) I smoke. The trouble is I'm representative of a lot of my peers. Let's face it we are so far down the evolutionary scale that we are kidding ourselves if we think we have any more control of our lives beyond "what's for lunch" (and even that is just a chimera of control). The citizen is worse than "immature" ... we are "so immature we actually think we are smart". The only upside to the oft-cited "global warming"/armageddon/"sky- is-falling-in" scenario is that we should obliterate any traces of our own stupidity. I am embarrassed at how embarrassed my decendants would be of me.

        Maybe we should just agree to disagree ?

Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by jonadab (Parson) on Sep 10, 2004 at 01:28 UTC
    I can't even stand to be downwind at fifty yards from a smoker (and I don't mean just when they're actively smoking).

    "In adjectives, with the addition of inflectional endings, a changeable long vowel (Qamets or Tsere) in an open, propretonic syllable will reduce to Vocal Shewa. This type of change occurs when the open, pretonic syllable of the masculine singular adjective becomes propretonic with the addition of inflectional endings."  — Pratico & Van Pelt, BBHG, p68
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by mce (Curate) on Sep 01, 2004 at 08:21 UTC
    Smoking, I hate it
    All I breath is the air of Perl
    (isn't that poetic :-) ).

    ---------------------------
    Dr. Mark Ceulemans
    Senior Consultant
    BMC, Belgium
Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by nite_man (Deacon) on Sep 06, 2004 at 14:41 UTC

    Notice: smokers pollute the environment much stronger than cars!!!
    So, we should remember it when we set fire to next cigarette :)

    ---
    Michael Stepanov aka nite_man

    It's only my opinion and it doesn't have pretensions of absoluteness!

Re: Do you smoke tobacco?
by Anonymous Monk on Sep 25, 2004 at 05:03 UTC
    Hey kids, if you can't smoke, maybe you should try Glass Pops!

    Remember, they're only for adults!

View List Of Past Polls