Welcome to Gaia! ::

Way follow the recent anti-tobacco mania and remove your tobacco items from the shops. Seriously. Way to be. *Eyeroll*

Anyway, that little rant aside, this is a general issue that has been (since I'm a smoker) really bugging me. Most recently, a bill was proposed in New York that aimed to make smoking prohibited in all public parks.

All. Public. Parks.

Myself and a bunch of my friends (yes, they smoke as well) have felt really... I dunno, discriminated against? I guess that's an appropriate term with recent anti-smoking legislation. Here in Wisconsin, a bill was recently passed that banned smoking in bars and restaurants, raised the tax on cigarettes 200% or so, and lowered the amount of money going towards programs designed to help people quit.

So, I guess, discuss. What do you all think of smoking, what do you think about Gaia's decision, but, mainly, what do you think of the way smokers are treated? If you don't want to discuss that, puppies and kittens are the fallback discussion topic. biggrin

Well, speaking as a person who smokes kittens I feel appalled at the recent discriminatory act of prohibiting my kitten smoking

now as we are in this economic crisis *which we've secretly been in for some years now* I think* that raising the tax on tobacco is one way of raising money to help boost our economy, that and gas

if we tax the hell out of things surely that will help, right?
and as we can find ways to minimize driving then that will work opposite
but since smoking is so addicting its less likely that they'll stop any time soon
especially if they cut down on the spending to help you quit smoking
see where i'm going with this?

and i think they banned it in the public parks because smoking kittens just seems so crass

that or they want another Prohibition era

soon you wont be able to smoke before 9 on a Saturday and after 10 on a weekday

its coming!

*i don't really smoke kittens, or anything else, i just wanted to be apart of the discussion*
*edit: I don't know anything for sure, I'm just speculating

Actually, as far as banning on Gaia goes, I think its similar to the reason why they don't have cigarette commercials on t.v.

we watch millions of adverts. a year and kids see that *especially since this is a younger based place* and they don't want to encourage kids to smoke
especially since they start when they're kids, because they think it looks cool

I really can't say how I feel about this, because I don't smoke.

I can say that Toboe is pretty upset with the recent laws and such that are popping up everywhere. He's a smoker, but he only smokes the 3 days that he works because of how stressful it can get. And he makes sure I can't smell the smoke because I can't stand the smell of it (no offense to anyone). The smoke messes with my nose and I start hacking.

He likes the cheap brand, but even now the cheap stuff is as expensive as the expensive stuff used to be, so he's not very happy about it. People can't smoke in ANY public place, including parks and resturants here in Colorado. It's like, the only place you can smoke at anymore in specified areas at Toboe's work and my sisters backyard ><

Like most who have posted so far, I don't like smoking at all.
I've had too many bad experiences with family members or
friends who've smoked or done other drugs. I also don't like
the smell and try to steer clear of it when I know it's coming.

I use to think that taxing cigs high was to help ppl to stop there by
making them quit. But if the government isn't even going to help
assist those ppl to get well but they will for harsher drugs is dumb.
It's still affecting your life, health and mental stability. But apparently
that doesn't matter when it's a cig. *eyeroll*

I agree with Gina in that it's not fair to nonsmokers to deal with
people who just don't care. So like Crim said, they should leave
that to the people who own businesses where people will smoke.
If I went to a bar where smoking as allowed and didn't like it, well
I know it was there so I should've avoided it. But if I'm just
trying to go past the mall entrance and some skanky mom with
her kid beside her is puffing up and blowing anywhere she wants,
I'm gonna wanna slap that woman for #1 blowing smoke in my
face and #2 puffing up right next to her kid who can get sick!
(it's happened many times, almost anytime I go to work)

But come on! A park?! If there's a family concert or something
else to crowd it, okay then! Do it for those moments! But a park
is so open air I can't see how that's bad unless someone plans on
burning it down!

And lastly, Gaia... *sighs* My poor pixels are crying on the inside.
I can pretend I killed someone with a gun but I can't pretend to smoke.
I'm soooo hardcore! *another eyeroll*

edit: AHAHAHAAA!! Just as I post this "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes"
by Billie Holiday starts playing on my playlist!! XDDDDDDDD

Gina described my own point of view well. I'll just add a bit from my own point of view.

I don't smoke, and I can't stand being around others who do. Most of it's from family experiences. There was this one Christmas in particular when we were all gathered at my maternal great-grandma's when I was younger and there was literally a cloud of cigarette smoke hanging over the kitchen the whole time. |: Ever since then I just can't stand the sight nor smell of cigarettes and their smoke; they make me gag. My maternal grandpa also had to have (at least most of) his vocal cords taken out because of the cancer he ended up with because of his smoking. ._. The cancer ended up killing him (rather slowly but painfully) too. I'm a bit biased when it comes to regulating where people can smoke because of all of this. They're welcome to do it if it's away from me though.

Pity they didn't think of something like what Crim came up with. I don't see how they didn't think this whole soulbinding and not selling them anymore in stores idea was going to NOT blow up in their faces.

I don't like smoking either. I think the new laws (other than Gaia, that's just kinda stupid) are a bit harsh, but at the same time I think they might be for the better. The smell gives me headaches, and everytime someone is smoking near me I feel like I have to hold my breath, so I'd love more smoke-free environments, and I'm sure I'm not the only one who's like this. I don't dislike people who smoke... but like Gina said, it's their choice and their life, so if they want to risk the diseases and all the fun stuff that comes with smoking often, they can go right ahead. But when their decisions affect others, like second-hand smoking, I find that really unfair.

Anyway, that's just my opinion. Not attacking anyone.

I know some of the laws are passed these days for the sake of the health of kids. I had a friend who became severely asthmetic because her parents smoke in the house and car all the time. The taxing sound a little lame, though.
The tobacco company is still a major money maker for the government, so i don't see them banning it entirely. I haven't paid attention to the smoking stuff much, so I can't really say anything.
I'd never force someone to change, though... while I can't stand the smell of cigarette smoke myself, it's not like I'm going to force anyone to quit.

This reminds me of something House once said: "There are pink ribbons for breast cancer, green for liver, etc. But do you know why there isn't a ribbon for lung cancer? It's because people believe that the people who have gotten it inflicted it upon themselves, that they got what was coming to them."
Not discriminating against smokers or anything, but it's kind of what society thinks. >< At my old high school, the kids at the smoking section were always targeted. They were told to not smoke on school property, but not loiter in the surrounding neighbourhood either. They got fined shitloads. There were always officers watching them and they had this wee little patch of dirt to stand on and smoke. If not school property, and not the surrounding area, where do you want them to go?