Should smoking be illegal?

I've gone through six months of archived threads to see if this has been discussed before. If it's been done already, just lock the ♥♥♥♥ out of it, but AFAI can tell, it hasn't so here it goes.

This has long been a serious point for me, and a painful one at that. I've lost two (admittedly elderly) relatives to smoking-related deaths. It's one of my favourite (right word?) discussion topics, and one I think needs to be given serious thought.

So, should smoking be illegal? Tobacco-related death claims someone every six seconds, and kills just under six million people per year, of which 600,000 are nonsmokers. It is the number one cause of preventable death in the world.

Pros of smoking:

-Generates money from taxes (does not apply in countries with state healthcare, as a roughly equal amount is spent on curing).

-Makes you look cool (bad argument).

-Is hard to give up.

-Is part of a long tradition/ has been done for a long time.


Cons of smoking:

-Has a massive carcinogenic effect.

-Even if you don't contract active cancer, various parts of your body become gummed up with tar.

-Causes your teeth/nails to yellow, skin to stain, etc (bad argument, as this isn't a serious problem).

-Is addictive (making it illegal now prevents people getting hooked).

-ONE IN EVERY TEN PEOPLE KILLED BY SMOKING ARE KILLED BY PASSIVE INTAKE.

-Mothers who smoke while pregnant can cause their child to be born with birth defects ranging from major problems to minor lung damage to being born addicted.

-Children/teenagers who are too young to make responsible decisions can start, and have limited mental development throughout their lives.


EDIT: My opinion of smoking is that it should be illegal, if that wasn't obvious.

Here are some helpful links:

Wikipedia.

World Health Organization.

While I hardly smoke tobacco and don't support it whatsoever, I don't think a government should have a final say in what people can and can't put into their bodies.

Originally Posted by Gamzee

While I hardly smoke tobacco and don't support it whatsoever, I don't think a government should have a final say in what people can and can't put into their bodies.

Whilst that's a fair point, one in every ten people who die a smoking-related death didn't choose to put it in.

that's due to irresponsibility of some smokers, you shouldn't illegalize it because some smokers choose to hot box their house 24/7 with the ♥♥♥♥ and hurt their children. i'm a smoker and, and that doesn't apply to me nor does it apply to any of my friends that are smokers. we typically smoke together, outside, away from non-smokers, not bothering anybody. why does anyone care that i choose to light the tobacco leaf and inhale it? plus, are you illegalizing smoking tobacco or cigarettes? because if you're illegalizing cigarettes that seems a little arbitrary and biased. then again, why would you want to illegalize hookah or smoking pipes? how many people die a year from smoking pipes? not many. but if you allow it to remain legal people can get their hands on pipe tobacco and can most certainly get their hands on a lighter and gummed paper. where do you draw the line?

Originally Posted by forte

that's due to irresponsibility of some smokers, you shouldn't illegalize it because some smokers choose to hot box their house 24/7 with the ♥♥♥♥ and hurt their children.

Actually, that's quite enough of a reason for me to want to make anything illegal. Gamzee just said "the government shouldn't have a say in what you put into your own body" which, while I don't agree with, you've just gone and said the opposite. You're harming others with your habit and more importantly you're harming children.

We don't let people who beat their children keep them. This is because it can have serious physical and psychological damage on the child. Why should a smoker, who is knowingly poisoning the body of their child be allowed to keep them? Tobacco smoke is severely harmful to the development of children and can induce asthma at an early age. This behaviour is neglectful. It is apathetic. And it is wrong.

So why're smokers allowed kids? :>

Obviously, when children are around, one should step outside to rip the bong or cigs. Smoking when children or company are around is a warning sign, though, I'll say.

No, because it has already been legalised for quite awhile.

smokers should be allowed to have kids because what about me being a smoker means that i'll inherently be a worse parent? it doesn't. for the parents who ARE doing what i said, they should still be allowed to smoke, however they shouldn't be allowed to knowingly make their children inhale smoke until a certain age and the child can choose. i'm on the fence about taking their children away, but that isn't what we're discussing honestly.

we're discussing whether or not smoking cigarettes (and tobacco) should be illegal. i still see no reason why it should be, regardless of some people being irresponsible.

"SMOKING IS HARMING OTHER PEOPLE!"

uhhh so is alcohol because people are irresponsible and get in their cars and kill innocent people all the time. Including a great deal of children. So why arent we banning alcohol?

"SMOKING IS GROSS!"

Your point? Its the choice of the smoker. Most smokers are courteous enough to go outside or away from people to do it. Most smokers make use of designated smoking areas without complaint.

"SMOKING CAUSES CANCER!"

Yeah it does. But most smokers are actually aware of this. Its their bloody choice.

Im sorry, but im sick of people telling me what i can and cannot do. If i wanna quit smoking, itll be on my own. I dont approve of the government telling me i have to.

My stance on the subject is really a combination of what people have said so far, lol.

The government should have absolutely NO say on what I can and cannot put in my body until we get to the narcotics level of things. Smoking is included in that.

In the same way, I don't think that smokers shouldn't be allowed kids, because generally (or I'd like to say generally) people are smart enough to realize that you shouldn't smoke around kids, at least indoors. I'm not saying that outdoors is okay but definitely not indoors.

However, I think that child protective services should get involved when a smoker does hurt their children through their own habits of smoking.

This way the only people that get hurt are the ones who know they're hurting themselves, and the irresponsible parents don't get the chance to hurt their child.

Child protective services wouldn't ever be able to keep track of every smoker with children to make sure they're never being harmed, and I'd feel terrible for taking children away from their parents, but in a perfect world, this is what I'd suggest.

SO IN DIRECT REPLY TO THE TITLE, no, I don't think smoking should be illegal.

I find it kind of arrogant when people comment that "It's my choice, leave me alone."

In most cases when this is said, the person who condemns the smoking is usually speaking out of concern and, yes it isn't their business, but they shouldn't be written off instantly.

Before I quit smoking I was very quick to mock the person who would tell me I should stop. Though I wasn't conscious of it at the time, I retorted so arrogantly because I felt threatened. Thinking that someone wants to take away your 5 minutes in heaven is a very bad feeling. Hence the write offs.

I quit because it came down to the fact that I was slowly killing myself. I felt it with every breathe of smoked I inhaled, but never cared enough to listen.

I know some people will say that I am exaggerating and that I am trying to lecture people but, this is just my experience as I smoked for 6 years.

To answer the topics question. While nowadays I openly oppose smoking, I still believe people have the right to do what they want. So smoking illegal? No. People to use a little more common sense? Yes.

From my personal opinion, I believe smoking should be illegal. I think that tobacco has caused enough deaths to be considered a viable threat to life. Especially now that healthcare in the united states will be subsidised, I think it is more important for the government to protect the health of its citizens. I'm not saying we should have a nanny state, but anything that causes this many health problems and deaths is to much of a medical build for our country to afford.

In practicality, making tobacco illegal will probably be impossible. Considering there are so many addicts that will be practically unable to quit in the united states. It would be unfair to take away something they are legally dependant on. However, I do think measure can be taken to prevent the creation of new addictions, thus wiping out smoking in the next generation. It is a tough issue, because smoking has been considered and acceptable privelage for so long.

Originally Posted by Florinasaur

"SMOKING IS HARMING OTHER PEOPLE!"

uhhh so is alcohol because people are irresponsible and get in their cars and kill innocent people all the time. Including a great deal of children. So why arent we banning alcohol?

"SMOKING IS GROSS!"

Your point? Its the choice of the smoker. Most smokers are courteous enough to go outside or away from people to do it. Most smokers make use of designated smoking areas without complaint.

"SMOKING CAUSES CANCER!"

Yeah it does. But most smokers are actually aware of this. Its their bloody choice.

Im sorry, but im sick of people telling me what i can and cannot do. If i wanna quit smoking, itll be on my own. I dont approve of the government telling me i have to.

Secondhand Smoke

The problem with smoking is that it dangers people who are choosing not to smoke and deal with the negative side-effects. Smoking outdoors is just as bad since there are tons of people walking by who will inhale the second-hand smoke and breathe in the carcinogen.

It's fine if it's your choice, but when it dangers other people, it should damn sure be illegal, or else have "smokers only" rooms where no non-smoker can enter and inhale the smoke.

Originally Posted by forte

smokers should be allowed to have kids because what about me being a smoker means that i'll inherently be a worse parent? it doesn't.

I didn't say you'd be a bad parent. I said that you are physically harming children and you are not be allowed to do so. I acknowledge that just because you physically harm your child does not mean you're a bad parent. But whether or not someone is a bad parent has no bearing on whether or not they have custody of their children.

We're in a thread where we are discussing the legality of smoking, but that we're allowed to discuss how smoking should or should not be legal in more than the simple respect that it should be a flat ban. But if you don't want to continue on this point with me, feel free to stop :>

Originally Posted by Big Daddy

Secondhand Smoke

The problem with smoking is that it dangers people who are choosing not to smoke and deal with the negative side-effects. Smoking outdoors is just as bad since there are tons of people walking by who will inhale the second-hand smoke and breathe in the carcinogen.

It's fine if it's your choice, but when it dangers other people, it should damn sure be illegal, or else have "smokers only" rooms where no non-smoker can enter and inhale the smoke.

looking at this pragmatically, it is hard to see, VERY hard to see, how second-hand smoke that isn't accumulated (like in the case of a smoker smoking often in their home and non-smokers living in said house) is really that damaging. yes, second-hand smoke can cause cancer. do you ACTUALLY think that the 1 or 2 times a week you might walk by a smoker your body is being that damaged? either people exaggerate the unhealthiness of smoking (which i doubt is the case) or they very much underexaggerate how well their body works. you could smoke 1st hand for a year consistently and are probably very likely to still not get cancer. i'm tempted to say more than 1 year but i don't feel like looking that up.

Originally Posted by Sailor Moon

I didn't say you'd be a bad parent. I said that you are physically harming children and you are not be allowed to do so. I acknowledge that just because you physically harm your child does not mean you're a bad parent. But whether or not someone is a bad parent has no bearing on whether or not they have custody of their children.

We're in a thread where we are discussing the legality of smoking, but that we're allowed to discuss how smoking should or should not be legal in more than the simple respect that it should be a flat ban. But if you don't want to continue on this point with me, feel free to stop :>

it's not that i don't want to continue this point, it's that i fail to see how it's particularly valid if we are discussing its legality. how am i inherently harming my children by being a smoker? what if i only smoke in my garage?

Do I think smoking should be illegal? Absolutely not.

However, I do think we should have a few more restrictions on where smoking is okay. For example, smoking right outside the door in a nonsmoking establishment is polluting the air for any nonsmokers who have to pass through the area. Whenever I want to have a smoke I'll either go to a specially designated smoking area, smoke by myself, or ask whoever I'm with if they're okay with me lighting up a cigarette near them. And I never smoke near children.


Yes, parents shouldn't be smoking near their kids. That's pretty obvious. But I don't think people should be calling for the legalization of cigarettes/tobacco purely because of that. I just believe it's infringing on the rights of every smoker just because some smokers are too dumb to properly care for their children, or too dumb to think about the welfare of other people's children.


And at the end of the day, I absolutely loathe the idea of the government telling me what I can and cannot put in my body. It's my body, it should be my decision as long as I don't harm anybody else.

Get ready for an original post! Ready? I don't think smoking should be illegal! Now for the interesting and original bit: We can phase it out. In case you were wondering, less people smoke nowadays then ever before. So much awareness has been brought to our attention, that if we continue to condem and shun smokers (sorry forte and florina, this is probably rather offensive to you) we can stop the problem without all the legal mumbo-jumbo. Second-hand smoke is bad, I agree, which is why I do believe you CAN get your kid taken away from you if you smoke with them frequetly. It's considered abuse I do believe. Trust me, this is a better plan, and won't get republicans mad! (AGAIN with the generalization and abuse, jeesus I'm a monster) What can you the forumer do? Don't smoke. Get friends and family to not smoke. Shun those who smoke (aka be openly against their smoking, not they themselves). And finally, MAKE THOSE POSTERS IN YOUr SCHOOL HALLWAY! Jk, jk, those do absolute ♥♥♥♥. - So Sheik the Serious Man of Truth

As much as I would like to see less cigarettes around (I do not smoke), I can't help but think of the Eighteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, the Prohibition, and the Twenty-First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. ^_^;

However, I do think we should have a few more restrictions on where smoking is okay. For example, smoking right outside the door in a nonsmoking establishment is polluting the air for any nonsmokers who have to pass through the area. Whenever I want to have a smoke I'll either go to a specially designated smoking area, smoke by myself, or ask whoever I'm with if they're okay with me lighting up a cigarette near them. And I never smoke near children.

Not sure how it is in your state, but in California, you need to stand a certain amount of space away from the door of a non smoking establishment. You cannot smoke in your car if there is a child in it. So on and so forth. Of course, smoking in rental homes/apartments are usually not a thing. Landlords and such do not allow it like, 99% of the time. Mostly due to the fact cigarette smoke can collect on walls and junk and its a ♥♥♥♥♥ to clean. Yeah....i know for a fact this is the case. O_o So if you are renting, you have to smoke outside on the patio or some junk.

So in some states there are regulations. Plus rather heavy taxes on cigarette sales. And how! Oi....

As a Canadian, a smoker will usually draw more money out of our socialized healthcare than a non-smoker. Still, I support the current system of heavy taxes imposed on cigarettes, and education of their harmful effects. Really, smoking is fading away on its own. Even compared to twenty years ago, smoking is looked down upon in contemporary society (at least in Canada. I know it's big in Europe and other places around the world). If you think about it, video games are bad for you too, but we don't impose a ban on them.

I think we should go further and impose a tax on unhealthy food, but that's neither here nor there. We shouldn't ban smoking, just tax it to hell.