You might be confused by the subject, but thats on purpose ^^ Do you think SMOKING should be illegal? Please know, that I am talking about cigarettes, not bongs or anything. --- I believe smoking should be illegal because our society would function much better if people weren't addicting to things such as cigarettes because the average chain smoker spends thousands of dollars a year to keep up with their habit- money that could be used to help charities or the education system. Any thoughts?
Well I'm a seriously heavy smoker ... I don't think it should be illegal. If you completely outlaw smoking then you have to do the same for alcohol (I'm a tee-total btw). The stats for my country have consistently shown that alchol abuse causes far more damage to society than smoking. I'm afraid I don't agree with your argument that chain smokers waste thousands that should be spent on charities etc. If I didn't smoke I would spend the money on something else - certainly not charity (I give anyway) and education (that's why I pay taxes). I'm a grown adult and I make my own descisions. I WILL NOT stop until alcohol is banned as I honestly feel it does more damage. They are both addictive, destructive, antisocial drugs. Yet alcohol could be considered a mind-altering drug that is more potent than weed (and yes I have before you ask lol) Yes, smoking is harful to non-smokers through passive smoking (don't stand so close to me then). But then a drunk will run over your 3yr kid because he decided to drive. I agree with the ban in public places like pubs/clubs/bars etc. but not a complete ban. And anyway - the government makes to much £££ from the tax we pay on our ciggies = would never happen
I agree with sweetpea - that the ban in clubs etc. is completely okay (I'm a smoker myself) - and I don't have a problem with going outside smoking, I can see how it annoys other guests that don't smoke if I smoke in their faces. That said, I think it would be very wrong to ban it everywhere - I believe it's a human right to smoke, isn't it? - your own choice . It would be wierd to completely ban it, as it isn't hurting anyone (yeah, if you smoke them in their faces, but politicans is trying to stop that by banning it in public places) and when you say that the money could go to charity - huh? I don't think that if people had more money they would donate them - they would probably just spend them at something else . I think that the only way to cut down peoples smoking habits is to raise the cost on cigarettes - here I can buy 20 cigarettes for around 3.5 $ (the cheapest pack, we have packages for 5,5$ also) - I don't know how much they cost in other countries, but I think it's pretty cheap. If they doubled the price I would definately stop - they talked about putting every pack up to 9$ 0:
It's over $9 a pack here. And I don't think that smoking should be illegal, I just think that it should be illegal to grow, sell and buy tobacco. Then it would take care of itself - smoking would become more expensive and people wouldn't be able to afford to do it all the time. I faked athsma attacks for almost a year to get my mother to quit smoking, and I'd do it again. Though this time, since I am no longer ten and stumped for ideas, I'd probably be able to come up with a quicker, more effective way to go about it. It's a human right to smoke? Is it a human right to do cocaine? To steal? To murder? I don't know - I don't agree with that. To me, smoking impedes other people's rights far more than doing cocaine does. Edit: I had a typo. Oh noes!
$9 a pack • 2 packs a day for chain smoking • 365 days in the year= 6570 dollars cost I agree with surreptitious. Because it is legal, it becomes worse than some drugs.] --- I believe you are being somewhat greedy if you'd rather spend $6570 a year to smoking instead of helping out a charity or donating to a good cause like a cure for AIDs or Cancer...
were over-populating our planet..i mean seriously there are far too many people taking over the world were the dominant species and still its not enough for us..more people more people i hear..i say let them have there smokes for free..itll do the world alot more good in the long run.
Though I agree wholeheartedly that we are overpopulating the planet, I prefer other methods of population control. If I post them, you'll probably think that I'm a horrible person, so I'll make a thread about it shortly because there's nothing that I love more than causing a stir. I don't think that cigarettes are an effective form of population control: think of the financial drain that all those people slowly wasting away - choking to death on their own blood, emaciated bodies riddled with cancer - will cause. It would really generate more problems than it would solve. How's that for an upper? =)
I agree, it's far quicker to just let people get pissed and beat each other's brains out all over the pavement on a Sat night. ^^ that was sarcasm for those of you that didn't get it.
I can't say how it is in other countries because, to be perfectly honest, I don't have a clue, but here in the UK cigarettes cost just shy of around £6 per pack of 20 and a big chunk of that cost is purely tax. Tax is used to fund facilities for everyone, including education and to help pay for our National Health Service. In 2006-07, the UK goverment received over £10 BILLION purely from the taxation of tobacco. If cigarettes were illegal, where would the government recoup this huge loss in tax revenue?
It may have been sarcasm, but if taken at face value, it's true. It's far quicker to have them kill each other than to have them using resources: chemo, rad treatments, putting them in hospital beds, the biopsies, the surgeries, the pathological examinations, the checkups... Slow, painful process. Death by drunken bludgeoning is much more effective. Aside from the fact that as far as population control goes, how many people get lung cancer where one of the contributing factors was second hand smoke? That's not doing any good for the gene pool. If stupid people kill other stupid people, then that's far better - Darwin would be proud.
Okay, going with that logic, video games should be illegal. Think of all the money that people spend on games that could go to helping charities or the education system. Slight sarcasm. Do you realize what the taxes on cigarettes GO to? The same thing all taxes go to - INCLUDING the education system. I don't think it's your place to say what someone should spend their money on. I really, really doubt that someone who quit smoking because it was illegal would all of a sudden think, "OH! I should give this money to the blahblah association to help poor, unfortunate yaddayaddas." I already give a considerable amount to several charities. The money I spend on cigarettes would be spent on MORE pointless "stuff" if I quit smoking. Ex: Neopets premium. Which certainly wouldn't satisfy me quite as much as that first cigarette in the morning. Most people have an "addictive" personality. If I weren't addicted to cigarettes, I would be addicted to something else. Quite possible more harmful. You know what else should be illegal, then? Shampoo. There are KNOWN carcinogens in a lot of popular shampoos on the market today. Oh, and sunlight! Sorry if I'm being at all rude. I hate this subject.
Baby girl, I think you should post your opinion (which I share) on AIDS funding for Africa. I want you to do it so I don't look like a complete jerk! Thanks :*
The point I was going to make, you know the reason cigarettes are so expensive? The tax. They cost hardly anything to make. Where does the tax money go? To the government and is pumped into charities, education ect... so your selfish point isn't really valid.
Hmm. Whats the tax for cigs in the UK? I mean, if its like 9% then there are 90billion+ euros being spent on cigs. That money could cure cancer.
Thats very patriot of you. Why cure cancer and aids when you can sit back, play video games, watch tv, and take a puff?
It was an insult. You are saying people should smoke instead of cure major diseases that kill millions of people a year.