On Smoking

[bisclavret]

After I found out what happened to Redstar2K, I got interested on the topic of smoking and its commonplace existence among the proles(being a smoker and a prole myself). I know a doctor who smokes and when asked if smoking has ill effects, his obvious answer was, YES but when asked why he does, he says that stress has a greater chance of killing him than smoking and smoking after all relieves one of stress. Another friend told me that a left-leaning biologist (thought it was Roger Lewontin but after much pondering am not sure) proposed that a study(statistical?) be made that would decide, given the stressful conditions of many proles whether smoking was after all an acceptable evil. What are your thoughts? Do you know of any scientific studies? :mellow:

[RebelDog]

I stopped smoking about 7 months ago and I was a heavy smoker. I statistically, should now live longer, considerably longer. The stress levels were maybe higher when I stopped (due to withdrawal) but are at normal levels now as I become better accustomed to being a non-smoker. People are better equipped to deal with stress if they are healthy. Smoking was knocking the shit out of me as I have a bad chest. I feel much better for stopping and will never go near cigarettes again and I really enjoyed smoking. I would not encourage anyone to start smoking and give total encouragement to those considering stopping. Smoking is a dying trend in the 1st world (forgive the pun) and the tobacco companies now get most of their new recruits from the developing countries. Something which helped me stop was the thought that I would no longer be giving Imperial Tobacco money to kill me.

I think the doctor you refer to is wrong, badly wrong. I do not have the figures but my guess is that the stress smoking relieves (if it does) is nothing compared with the damage it does.

[bisclavret]

I stopped smoking about 7 months ago and I was a heavy smoker.

What is your quantification of a heavy smoker? I tend to limit myself to two sticks a day and those two sticks are used prudently to say bye2x to tight nerves. Is there a study on the threshhold of sticks that will cause cancer after so and so years, given so and so genes at a given age bracket? :huh: Is there a Practical Guide to the Happy Smoker? Seriously, I think what induces one to smoke heavily are thoughts that induce one to smoke heavily and of course, nicotine rides on those thoughts. Remove the thoughts, you remove the heavy smoking. :)

[RebelDog]

Times your quota by about 25 and you get what I was smoking. If you are smoking 2 a day and you can keep it at that, then you will be doing far less damage than I was at least. I however, due to experience, suggest that this time next year if you are still smoking, you will be smoking more than 2 a day.


I think what induces one to smoke heavily are thoughts that induce one to smoke heavily and of course, nicotine rides on those thoughts. Remove the thoughts, you remove the heavy smoking.

Don't know what you mean here. Please elaborate.

[ÑóẊîöʼn]

My smoking habits have been a bit haphazard due to my irregular cash flow. Nowadays I mostly smoke rollies, but in richer days I would smoke cigars.
I notice that when I have pot I all but stop smoking tobacco. I think this is partly due to the fact that pot serves to alleviate stress and boredom.

[Avtomatov]

I have smoked 5 smokes a day for the last 3 years. However I whent up to 10 a day just last weak, its funny cuz i was actually planning to quit but instead i whent up.

[Red Polak]

I've heard (don't quote me on this, I can't remember where) but basically the large tobacco companies add a load of crap to their cigarettes in order to make them more addictive so people will continue to buy them and find it harder to quit. All the extra chemicals amount to something like 300 and are what do the damage to you.

I smoke rollies partly for the reason that they have far less of these chemicals in, partly because they're cheaper and also because you're not giving money to massively overpriced global cigarette companies.

[Janus]

Do you know of any scientific studies?
Well, their were the original studies in the late 50's and early 60's that forced the tobacco companies to put the warning labels on the cigarette packs.

If someone wants to use a potentially dangerous drug, then that's their choice but they should at least be made aware of the problems that it may cause. That's my view on it.

[kaaos_af]

I do not know what possesses people to give up smoking.

[bisclavret]

Times your quota by about 25 and you get what I was smoking. If you are smoking 2 a day and you can keep it at that, then you will be doing far less damage than I was at least. I however, due to experience, suggest that this time next year if you are still smoking, you will be smoking more than 2 a day.


QUOTE
I think what induces one to smoke heavily are thoughts that induce one to smoke heavily and of course, nicotine rides on those thoughts. Remove the thoughts, you remove the heavy smoking.



Don't know what you mean here. Please elaborate.


I think what I meant was that there are differences in the amount of cigarettes a person takes, thus we have chain smokers and thrifty smokers and one of the factors could be mindset. There could be other factors of course. I live in a Third World (again forgive the categorization) country and a lot of folks here survive up to their 70s, my grandfather for one, and they smoke a pack of cigarettes a day and drink gin for breakfast (no solids sometimes). I have to admit that some people seem to possess cockroach-like qualities but unless I can find a study showing a quantitative analysis of physical damage caused by cigarettes showing genetic material and number of sticks per day at the very least as variables, then Im happy with 2 sticks per day. :)

[Comrade Marcel]

I started smoking when I was about 10. Though my mother smoked much more than my dad, they both smoked lots of pot and hash.

Smokes where exspensive in Ontario, but I lived in Chinatown and bought smuggled smokes from the U$ when I was 12-13, and was smoking about a pack per-day at 14.

I eventually quit when I was 16 after my daughter was born, because I didn't want it to effect her.

My grandmother on my mother's side, died from cancer realated to cigarettes. My grandfather hat quit (he used to smoke pipe tobacco), but being the type of womyn she was she wouldn't do it just because he wanted to. However, she was 67 years old which is a considerable age to live to.

Basically, I think people should smoke if they enjoy it. I don't like it being imposed on others, however. They have now banned smoking in most public places here, but the reality is most kids probably inhail it at home.

[Ali.Cat]

I think smoking is an incredibly selfish thing to do for one main reason - it effects so many more people than just yourself. My boyfriend smokes and I honestly get sad when I see him do it - people who smoke are slowly killing themselves and that is just such a shame :( . Not only that - but I don't want to walk away from a good conversation when someone begins smoking, but I always feel the urge to because I don't want to inhale that shit - am I the only one who ever feels that way?

Truthfully, in the end I do feel it is a persons decision and they shouldn't be judged at all on that - but I do find it difficult sometimes getting out of my head that they are being very selfish to the point of hurting other people. I'm all for a bit of selfishness - I think it can be good for you, but not at the expense of others.

[RevSouth]

I wonder what the percentage of radical leftists (which are relatively young for the most part) that smoke is compared to the rest of the populace? I'm thinking of first world countries (forgive my terminology). It seems like Commies and Anarchists are a hell of alot more likely to smoke, but I am probably overanalyzing.

I am a minor, and my cashflow/people willing to buy me tobacco ebb and flow, but I would say I average a cigarette a day.

[bloody_capitalist_sham]

Well i smoked for about 6 years.

And i have now been free of them for 5 weeks.

I feel much better already.

Much muchness of the thanks go to my Girl.