Poll: Ye olde Cancer Sticks

[enriel]

The other day I was having a smoke and a small child (who never got anywhere near close enough to me to breathe in any secondhand smoke) felt entitled to look over at me and begin melodramatically gagging coughing and so on. Now personally, I find this very offensive; I'm being made fun of and alienated for a lifestyle choice.

The question here is, what is so wrong with people who smoke? These days, because of the whole healthy lifestyle kick, it seems that this in particular is being villainized.

As though smoking automatically makes you some sort of second rate lowlife. Not to mention the preaching. I KNOW IT'S BAD FOR ME, LEAVE ME ALONE.

If you're a smoker - How do you feel about the way we're treated? Do you notice at all?

If you're not - How do you feel about it? Do you go out of your way to express your opinion on the subject?

 

[SovietSecrets]

I smoke on and off (cigs and pot) and no one cares. I have yet to be told off for smoking and evenall my friends who don't smoke don't even care that I do. No one does really. Though people who smoke get shit because were willfully killing ourselves and also fucking up the airspace for other people. People love to rub in other peoples faces that they are better than them and nonsmokers think they have a moral high ground because they don't smoke.

 

[FalloutJack]

I'm sorry, I had to give the funny answer. It was hilarious.

In any case, no I don't smoke and I don't really care if you do. My thoughts are that if you want to smoke, then smoke. Just not in my face, alright? I don't bother smokers unless they do something to directly bother me.

 

[tijuanatim]

No I don't smoke. I also don't care if anyone else smokes, as long as I can't smell it.

 

[Vern]

My name is Vern, and I'm a smoker. I do feel the attitude towards smokers is getting borderline ridiculous, even though I tend to be a considerate smoker. If I'm around someone who doesn't smoke, I'll ask if it's okay. If they say no, I don't. If they say it's fine, I'll hold the cigarette downwind, and don't blow any smoke towards them. Keeping in mind they said it's fine that I smoke around them I still try to keep it away from them. If someone starts hacking and coughing from a distance away outside, they're just being a douche bag. It's not harming them in any way, it's being dispersed in the air, and they just feel like being superior to a filthy smoker. It's a choice that I've made, and I don't smoke around children, if I'm at someone's house that doesn't smoke I'll go outside, I don't blow it in people's faces, I pay for my own health insurance so I don't waste tax dollars, I put my cigarettes out in ashtrays, so I'm not quite sure where the villainy comes in. I'm here, I smoke, and least I don't use coke.

 

[PrototypeC]

What non-smokers don't understand is that smokers are TOTALLY AWARE of how unhealthy it is for them, and don't really want to hear it every single day. That's part of why they do it in the first place. Smokers need to understand that the reason non-smokers will pick on them is because everyone else has to smell it, taste it and breathe it in even hours later, so it's not even a personal choice... it's being forced on everybody.

On the other hand... who cares what some snot-nosed little brat does to set you off? I'd have blown the smoke right in his face, and to hell with whoever has a problem with it. The little turd probably goes around doing whatever bothers people the most, all day. Some kids are like that.

 

[Omikron009]

I have a serious problem with smoking, but only if it's being done in close proximity to me. The smallest amount of secondhand smoke will instantly give me a huge headache and a stomachache, and it ruins my day. Smoking is gross. Don't do it in public.

 

[smithy_2045]

Never have, never will.

 

[DiMono]

I usually just hold my breath if I walk past someone who's smoking. If I'm walking with someone who's smoking and the smoke is being blown on me, I tell them and ask them to adjust because I'm allergic. I generally don't say anything to them about it directly unless it comes up organically in conversation. If I do say something, it's usually done in an offhand slightly ironic way so as not to sound preachy.

My opinion on the matter: you're literally paying money for the privilege of actively killing yourself. Not the brightest thing you could do. Further, your choice directly affects those around you because your smoke is never isolated to just you; anyone nearby is going to smell it, and anyone close enough is going to have it in their clothes and in their lungs without necessarily wanting it there.

Honestly, if you could smoke without it affecting others I wouldn't have a problem with it, because it would be just a lifestyle choice (with consequences). When your lifestyle choice negatively affects the health of those around you, that I have a problem with.

 

[Sikachu]

The other day I was having a smoke and a small child (who never got anywhere near close enough to me to breathe in any secondhand smoke) felt entitled to look over at me and begin melodramatically gagging coughing and so on. Now personally, I find this very offensive; I'm being made fun of and alienated for a lifestyle choice.

The question here is, what is so wrong with people who smoke? These days, because of the whole healthy lifestyle kick, it seems that this in particular is being villainized.

As though smoking automatically makes you some sort of second rate lowlife. Not to mention the preaching. I KNOW IT'S BAD FOR ME, LEAVE ME ALONE.

If you're a smoker - How do you feel about the way we're treated? Do you notice at all?

If you're not - How do you feel about it? Do you go out of your way to express your opinion on the subject?

Correct thing to do was to take a big long drag, walk over to the child, and blow your smoke in its face. If it wants to cough, give it something to cough about. And there's literally no harm.

 

[Harlemura]

There was something my dad said once...
"The product of smoking is smoke. The product of drinking is urine. But once I've been for a drink, I don't come piss all over you."
Horrifically paraphrased, but you get the idea.

To an extent I agree with it. Smoke by all means but if you're not going to do it at home, don't do it on the busiest streets where you know people are going to have to walk through the smoke.
I never make my annoyance noticed though. Just hold my breath and walk on by.

 

[Xan Krieger]

I used to smoke, it helped get me through high school because all my stress went up in smoke leaving me with a steady mind to get good grades. If you don't want to deal with smoke then I hope you never open you car window while in a lot of traffic or you'll get a ton of car exhaust in your lungs. Light smoking is really no different from sitting in traffic, in both cases you and the people around you are inhaling a harmful substance, but at least smoking gives you that stress relief.

 

[enriel]

Alright, I'll give the point to the people mentioning how it affects others. It does leave a smell and it's especially awful when disrespectful jerks leave their butts all over the place.

However, like Vern, I do go out of my way to make the least impact I can. I don't smoke in high traffic areas (this is actually outside the back entrance to my work that this happened) and I try to be mindful of people who don't want anything to do with it. If I can't avoid forcing someone to deal with my secondhand, then I won't smoke.

And as for the paying to actively kill yourself...well, yeah, a little bit. But there's more to it than that. The same can be said for drinking alcohol. And really...we're all gonna die...just maybe me a little sooner.


It's nice to see quite a few replies from people that don't mind it though. Honestly, I think that people shoving their opinions into strangers' business is the underlying problem here. Smoking just happens to be a pretty obvious sign of it.

 

[CaptainKoala]

I totally don't get smoking, people pay money (and lots of it) to pump carcinogens into their lungs for 5 minutes at a time for 10 times a day. You are literally paying money to kill yourself.

I don't mind people who smoke, its their right. As long as people aren't running blowing smoke into my face it doesn't bother me.

 

[enriel]

As a side note. Irritating as it was, blowing smoke in the face of that kid would not only exacerbate the whole situation, but would completely take away any right I had to defend myself for being a smoker. Bratty child, yes, but that would just be a dick move.

 

[PrototypeC]

Well, I'm kind of an asshole that way. But then, I guess at that moment you felt like a repressed minority or something.

If you guys are keeping like Vern, then that's all I can ask for. The one thing I beg of smokers (which I assume you guys already do) is to stamp out their butts if they're thrown on the ground. You'd think that would be easy, but most of the smokers I've known have been high school kids who don't respect anybody anyway, so they never bother.

 

[Ldude893]

I totally don't get smoking, people pay money (and lots of it) to pump carcinogens into their lungs for 5 minutes at a time for 10 times a day. You are literally paying money to kill yourself.

In other words, it's like paid suicide.

My grandfather nearly died of smoking, and his experience was enough to convince me not to fall into a habit that is nothing more than the act of killing oneself in a slow manner.
To all the smokers out there, I strongly urge you to quit your habit before the damage on your body gets any worse. It's not easy, but it'll be worth it. If you decide not to give up your habit, for pete sake do it somewhere where you're alone but don't let other people choke from the fumes from your cancer sticks. I am sick of having to breath in the fumes of smokers on the streets and damaging my lungs from it.

Why did people even cultivated the first tobacco crop, I'll never know.

 

[enriel]

Well, I'm kind of an asshole that way. But then, I guess at that moment you felt like a repressed minority or something.

If you guys are keeping like Vern, then that's all I can ask for. The one thing I beg of smokers (which I assume you guys already do) is to stamp out their butts if they're thrown on the ground. You'd think that would be easy, but most of the smokers I've known have been high school kids who don't respect anybody anyway, so they never bother.

Like I mentioned, this happened on a break at work and believe me. Not only am I extremely conscious about my butts, I have written people up for not disposing of them properly.

Respect is a big deal for me in this matter.