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I am a smoker for about 57 years,already outliving a lot of my non smoking friends. So much for the smoking kills and 2nd hand smoke retoric! When is the last time you saw 2nd smoke on a death cerficate? I think my point
is it that it"s a lifestyle choice, that has been taken away. I don't look at
it as losing because it is what it is! The only way I can get even is not to
patronise bars or restaurants any more. Think of all the money I will save
by eating and drinking at home, so I win and the businesses lose! This is how I will deal with it and in time they will all show a loss of revenue, which is a proven pattern in other states.
I used to enjoy a bourbon and cigar while listening to live music in a bar quite often. Now I just listen to CDs on my deck, smoke my cigar and drink my own bourbon because our Big Brother Government has told us how to live our lives.
Smoking kills hundreds of thousands of people every year, and adds huge amounts to our HC spending, and I don't want to pay for people who choose to abuse their bodies.
As for pot, I read yesterday that in high schools more teens have tried pot than cigarettes. I think this speaks volumes for the success of anti-tobacco campaigns. If kids never pick up a tobacco habit, there is a good chance they will live 15 years longer. If the choice was either tobacco, or pot, I would say ban tobacco and legalize pot. After all, not nearly as many people would smoke pot as cigarettes. Also, those who would smoke, would probably not smoke 20 joints per day like many cigarette smokers do, and the result would still be improved average health of the nation. Same with cigars.
Obesity has replaced smoking, in that chances are this
will be the first generation that will not live longer than
the previous one before them, simply because of their
inactivity and eating habits.
As a teenager today, you'd probably have to have a full time job to pay for cigarettes due to the tax hikes It's also incredibly easy to grow yourself: a closet, a few seeds, and a good light - your on your way to a free vice
Lung Cancer is not the number one leading cause of death - heart disease is. Add in diabetes among young and old and Old People simply leaving longer. These are the largest costs to health care in the country. The cost
of caring for folks with Alzheimer's Disease is astronomical. So, if it's cost that bothers you, let's make anyone old, fat, or increasingly forgetful our new enemy From an economic standpoint, we should try to kill them off as quickly as possible
Smokers pay more in taxes, than any other targeted group. We pay for everyone's ills, not just ours.
I'd be very careful who/what you want to ban/tax
today. Tomorrow......
Words to live by:
They came first for the Communists, and I didn't
speak up because I wasn't a Communist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew.
Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Catholics, and I didn't speak
up because I was a Protestant.
Then they came for me
and by that time no one was left to speak up.
Smoking kills hundreds of thousands of people every year, and adds huge amounts to our HC spending, and I don't want to pay for people who choose to abuse their bodies.
The taxes I pay for them SHOULD go to funding health care then, don't you think? But, I'm pretty sure they go to spreading more propaganda to feed your fears. But trust them, they are looking out for you!
As for pot, I read yesterday that in high schools more teens have tried pot than cigarettes. I think this speaks volumes for the success of anti-tobacco campaigns. If kids never pick up a tobacco habit, there is a good chance they will live 15 years longer. If the choise was either tobacco, or pot, I would say ban tobacco and lagalize pot. After all, not nearly as many people would smoke pot as cigarettes. Also, those who would smoke, would probably not smoke 20 joints per day like many cigarette smokers do, and the result would still be improved average health of the nation. Same with cigars.
Where are you getting these numbers? I'm sure you can find a study to back them up because they are designed that way, but I'm just curious as to whether you are opining or stating from an article.
It's interesting that you think you should be allowed to choose whether pot or cigarettes should be legal. But I should have no say in the matter. Are you better or smarter than me in some way?
Are you opining again about not smoking 20 joints a day? How do you know this? Does smoking a cigarette impair your ability to drive as marajuana does? Does "overall health of the nation" involve the accidents that could be caused by impaired drivers? At least in that case any casualities would be solid statistics rather than speculation as it is with cigarettes. But ya gotta love that contact high.
Lung Cancer is not the number one leading cause of death - heart disease is. Add in diabetes among young and old and Old People simply leaving longer. These are the largest costs to health care in the country.
Yes, and smoking is one of the leading causes of heart disease.
Diabetes? Did you know that a smoker is three times as likely to develop diabetes as a non-smoker?
I used to enjoy a bourbon and cigar while listening to live music in a bar quite often. Now I just listen to CDs on my deck, smoke my cigar and drink my own bourbon because our Big Brother Government has told us how to live our lives.
I save a lot of money on drinks, etc.
Don't tell that to too many people, if they know you have a little cash they will want you to pay more taxes lol.
Yes, and smoking is one of the leading causes of heart disease.
Diabetes? Did you know that a smoker is three times as likely to develop diabetes as a non-smoker?
No, I don't want to pay for your mistakes anymore
So, how and when are we going to get the overweight to pay for their excessive health care?
The overweight are now costing our health care system much more money than smokers, raising the cost of health insurance for all of us.
Let's set up weigh stations.........once a year, say within 30 days of your birthday, you should be required to go to a government weigh station and be taxed or fined accordingly.
Why should I pay because people can't control how much they eat?
Where are you getting these numbers? I'm sure you can find a study to back them up because they are designed that way, but I'm just curious as to whether you are opining or stating from an article.
Depending on the study, smoking will reduce your life expectancy by 10-25 years. Added to that, smokers suffer from reduced quality of life.
It's interesting that you think you should be allowed to choose whether pot or cigarettes should be legal. But I should have no say in the matter. Are you better or smarter than me in some way?
Where did I say I should be allowed to decide, and no one else should have no say? I did not say that. I was replying to someone's comment saying that maybe we should ban tobacco and legalize pot.
Quote:
Are you opining again about not smoking 20 joints a day? How do you know this? Does smoking a cigarette impair your ability to drive as marajuana does? Does "overall health of the nation" involve the accidents that could be caused by impaired drivers? At least in that case any casualities would be solid statistics rather than speculation as it is with cigarettes. But ya gotta love that contact high.
I know many people who smoke 20-40 cigarettes a day, but I have never known a pot smoker who smokes that many joints a day. Not even close. And no, I am not pushing for legalization of pot.
Are you opining again about not smoking 20 joints a day?
Heh, I don't know about other people who used to smoke grass back in the day (for me the late 70s and early 80s), but I figure I was pretty close to that number counting bong usage and all. I was a walking Cheech and Chong movie.
So, how and when are we going to get the overweight to pay for their excessive health care?
The overweight are now costing our health care system much more money than smokers, raising the cost of health insurance for all of us.
Let's set up weigh stations.........once a year, say within 30 days of your birthday, you should be required to go to a government weigh station and be taxed or fined accordingly.
Why should I pay because people can't control how much they eat?
I think a lot can be done by educating kids about food, and by labeling calorie and sugar contents more clearly at the grocerie stores. A lot of people would not buy unhealthy foods if they knew it was unhealthy.
In most cases it is a matter of ignorance. No one wants to be fat. If you can walk to a grocery store and see color coded foods with red signs warning of unhealthy foods, and green color idntifying heatlhy choises, people would choose healthy. There is no doubt about it.
I ordered Applebee's Fajita burger some time ago, because it looked delicious, and by looking at the menu it seemed healthier than regular burger since it didn't have bread. The next week I saw it listed as "America's most unhealthy restaurant meal". The menu said nothing about the extreme salt content. If the menus included nutrition facts, people would know what they put in their mounts.
You can't say the same about smoking, because EVERYONE knows it is an EXTREMELY unhealthy habit.
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It's also incredibly easy to grow yourself: a closet, a few seeds, and a good light - your on your way to a free vice
