Smoking cigarettes...why?

[dudewithasock]

This question isn’t directed at any of the older folks here, but at the people of my own generation and even younger. I understand that a mere 15-20 years ago, the current knowledge about the effects and plain stupidity of smoking cigarettes wasn’t, well, known. And if it was, it wasn’t widely advertised.

Nowadays, pretty much everyone is aware of how pointless smoking is. And yet I still see kids my own age and younger (that’s the scariest part) smoking cigarettes. I have to ask myself why they would at least not smoke weed instead - at least then they would experience a much more appreciable high and a much lower chance of physical addiction.

So…why?

[PKHodgie]

becuase there stupid and they think its cool. Someone needs to teach them all a good lesson. In my year all the really good sports people think its cool to smoke but in the end they arnt going to be good at sports much longer.

[dudewithasock]

@amanda.gallacher

Cos it’s social, it’s something to do to waste that extra 5 minutes between classes and, of course, peer pressure. If all of your friends smoke, you would feel a bit left out when they head to the smoking area in school / college / pub / restaurant etc.

Whatever happened to just chilling? Why do you need to be inhaling death just to be social? That answer isn’t nearly satisfactory…it just makes the human race seem like idiots.

[James_Potter]

First of all, I think saying that “it makes you look cool” is the lamest argument…I don’t know a single person who smokes to fit in with the “cool kids.”

People don’t just inhale burning tobacco for something to do, there is a noticeable physical and mental effect that people like, just like caffeine and marijuana. The difference is that there are much worse consequences to using tobacco than any other socially acceptable drug. But I certainly would not say it’s “pointless”.

As for those consequences, everyone knows that smoking will probably make them die earlier than they would have otherwise. But a lot of people don’t think that’s a bad thing. To die at age 60 instead of age 80…many people think 60 years is long enough.

[Jerrick]

@amanda.gallacher

If all of your friends smoke, you would feel a bit left out when they head to the smoking area in school / college / pub / restaurant etc.

I wouldnt.

Its something I dont like, and will not do. Id feel slightly liberated if all my friends went to smoke and left me to do whatever.

[wickedbob]

@dudewithasock

This question isn’t directed at any of the older folks here, but at the people of my own generation and even younger. I understand that a mere 15-20 years ago, the current knowledge about the effects and plain stupidity of smoking cigarettes wasn’t, well, known. And if it was, it wasn’t widely advertised.

Nowadays, pretty much everyone is aware of how pointless smoking is. And yet I still see kids my own age and younger (that’s the scariest part) smoking cigarettes. I have to ask myself why they would at least not smoke weed instead - at least then they would experience a much more appreciable high and a much lower chance of physical addiction.

So…why?

Yes, smoke weed instead because its much worse and more fun! Seriously weed is worse for you lungs than cigarettes are. Also since weed is an illicit drug finding a safe source would be much harder than finding a good source for tobacco. People splice weed with many different things or even soak low quality weed in chemicals like formaldehyde to get you that high. I can only see what you said reasonable if you live in a place where wed is legal and you know the source is completely safe.

As for why kids smoke, I think it is to fit in. Every kid that smokes in my school, that I see, are basically the sheeple of the world. They do whatever to fit in. This goes far beyond smoking, of course. These are the kids that do things like carry around skate boards, change their style to fit in with their friends, and to what people tell them to do. They don’t have an once of character at all.

This is not why all people smoke of course. This is why I think 12year olds smoke and so on. They see Lindsy, Paris and all the other media whores do it so they jump on the train.

Just my two cents, don’t kill me.

[Jerrick]

@James_Potter

First of all, I think saying that “it makes you look cool” is the lamest argument…I don’t know a single person who smokes to fit in with the “cool kids.”

I think it is a plausible argument, and I know quite a few people who only smoke to be cool. Only smoke when certain friends are with them, and then dis smoking when around other. Quite a few people start smoking because their friends do it, and they are curious, and want to fit it.

People don’t just inhale burning tobacco for something to do, there is a noticeable physical and mental effect that people like, just like caffeine and marijuana.

Again, I know a few people who smoke just for something to do. Im sure he wont mind me saying this, but my friend Donnie, I think you rode with him once, smokes just to smoke. He hates how it makes his body feel, the smell, the taste, and everything, but when he is bored, he go and smoke so he is doing something.

The difference is that there are much worse consequences to using tobacco than any other socially acceptable drug. But I certainly would not say it’s “pointless”.

Still some terrible stuff happens from other drugs.

As for those consequences, everyone knows that smoking will probably make them die earlier than they would have otherwise. But a lot of people don’t think that’s a bad thing. To die at age 60 instead of age 80…many people think 60 years is long enough.

Thats true, a lot of people really don’t care or have much to look forward to, so for them it doesn’t matter.

Its still sad for me to hear my dad cough violently for minutes because he smokes, and the effects it is having on my mom. She is getting better. Some of my friends who have started smoking now do way worse stuff. Ill use Donnie again for an example. He started with cigarettes, which he now smokes 11-12 a day, then he started with alcohol, getting drunk a lot, cigarettes started to bore him, and now he smokes weed all the time, and then his friends who do drugs tell him to move on from weed, try more stuff, and so he has, and sorry to curse, but he is seriously fucked right now.

My friend Rocky who just got married is having lots of trouble because of smoking, both him and his wife do it. Lots of time they get in big fights cause there are no cigarettes left. They run out of money, because instead buying food and whatnot, their first priority is cigarettes. They also are so addicted to it, that they have to live with his mother-in-law, because they cant afford and cant save money to do anything else. It doesn’t help that they are trying to have a baby too.

So its not just dying faster as an consequence, but smoking can really cause your life to roll downhill.

[wickedbob]

@Jerrick

His post

Good post.

[Borgschulze]

What I hate is the majority of smokers that don’t care about other people who don’t smoke.

My Dad is one of them, whines and complains I don’t go to his place enough, and I told him it’s because I end up coughing for a couple days afterwards every time I go there. I also get a very serious headache from it after about 15 minutes of being in a smokers house.

Top it off with the worst possible case, kissing a smoker, it seriously is like kissing an ashtray if they don’t brush their teeth before hand and maybe drink some water.

Jerrick - My Dad has a smoke about every 10 minutes. I tell him to stop when I’m at his place, or tell him to stop killing me.

[wickedbob]

I know, I went into a friends house and his parents were smoking and I got the worst headache ever. The light even hurt my eyes and the slightest noise.

[Borgschulze]

@wickedbob

I know, I went into a friends house and his parents were smoking and I got the worst headache ever. The light even hurt my eyes and the slightest noise.

I also get a pressurized feeling in my head, like something in my head is expanding.

When I leave school I hold my breath for about 20 seconds every time, because I have to walk past the 75% of the school that smokes. They’re not even supposed to be on school property smoking, but nobody enforces the rule.

When I rode the Unicycle to school I didn’t have to because they all moved out of the way, but I don’t trust the kids in the Auto class, majority of them are pretty well known as thieves. They stole so far this semester, 1 Winter tire for a truck, a Mac Tools Impact Gun, tons of pencils from in the teachers desk, change from in peoples cars when we work on them, it’s quite sad.

[Borgschulze]

I was checking out some pictures on Deviant Art when I came across this…

http://xxkaisaxx.deviantart.com/art/Parental-Influence-24484235

[James_Potter]

@wickedbob

Yes, smoke weed instead because its much worse and more fun! Seriously weed is worse for you lungs than cigarettes are. Also since weed is an illicit drug finding a safe source would be much harder than finding a good source for tobacco. People splice weed with many different things or even soak low quality weed in chemicals like formaldehyde to get you that high. I can only see what you said reasonable if you live in a place where wed is legal and you know the source is completely safe.

Dude, why do you think that marijuana is worse for your lungs than cigarettes? Cigarette smoke contains carcinogens, thereby causing cancer…marijuana smoke is just burning leaves, so it’s bad, but just as bad as any other smoke, no worse. Tobacco smoking is WAY worse for you than marijuana smoking. And anyway it’s really easy to get pure marijuana, just get it from someone you trust. Trust is the key word.

As for why kids smoke, I think it is to fit in. Every kid that smokes in my school, that I see, are basically the sheeple of the world. They do whatever to fit in. This goes far beyond smoking, of course. These are the kids that do things like carry around skate boards, change their style to fit in with their friends, and to what people tell them to do. They don’t have an once of character at all.

People in Moscow must be a lot different than in everyone else’s neck of the woods…some people here smoke to relax, but no one I know smokes to “fit in” and I couldn’t really imagine anyone doing that…especially not changing the way they are to look the same as everyone else. If anything, it’s exactly the opposite (people try to look and act differently).

[James_Potter]

@Jerrick

Again, I know a few people who smoke just for something to do. Im sure he wont mind me saying this, but my friend Donnie, I think you rode with him once, smokes just to smoke. He hates how it makes his body feel, the smell, the taste, and everything, but when he is bored, he go and smoke so he is doing something.

Maybe he should get a new hobby…

Still some terrible stuff happens from other drugs.

True, but that’s why I said socially acceptable drugs…by that I mainly mean caffeine, and marijuana sometimes.

Its still sad for me to hear my dad cough violently for minutes because he smokes, and the effects it is having on my mom. She is getting better. Some of my friends who have started smoking now do way worse stuff. Ill use Donnie again for an example. He started with cigarettes, which he now smokes 11-12 a day, then he started with alcohol, getting drunk a lot, cigarettes started to bore him, and now he smokes weed all the time, and then his friends who do drugs tell him to move on from weed, try more stuff, and so he has, and sorry to curse, but he is seriously fucked right now.

That is definitely unfortunate, but can you really blame cigarettes specifically? I mean, some people are gonna use hard drugs and some people aren’t, and there are a lot of people who smoke tobacco and never use any other drug, probably even more than do go on to use harder drugs.

So its not just dying faster as an consequence, but smoking can really cause your life to roll downhill.

It can, if you’re irresponsible about it. So can alcohol, or playing video games (that guy in Korea who played for so long he starved to death, for example). The difference, of course, is that nicotine is one of if not the most addictive substance known to man…so yes, it can seriously mess your life up, and the lives of everyone who cares about you. That, in my opinion, is why tobacco is so dangerous, not because of lung cancer or mouth cancer or yucky smells.

[wickedbob]

@James_Potter

Dude, why do you think that marijuana is worse for your lungs than cigarettes? Cigarette smoke contains carcinogens, thereby causing cancer…marijuana smoke is just burning leaves, so it’s bad, but just as bad as any other smoke, no worse. Tobacco smoking is WAY worse for you than marijuana smoking. And anyway it’s really easy to get pure marijuana, just get it from someone you trust. Trust is the key word.

People in Moscow must be a lot different than in everyone else’s neck of the woods…some people here smoke to relax, but no one I know smokes to “fit in” and I couldn’t really imagine anyone doing that…especially not changing the way they are to look the same as everyone else. If anything, it’s exactly the opposite (people try to look and act differently).

Well, don’t stab me in the neck, I am going off what I have been told. I am not a scientist or anything like that so I listen to those who teach me. From what I have heard weed has more tar/ or crap that makes it much worse. I do accept the fact that could be a lie, until I have something proving other wise I stand my ground. Ok… I dont think your average drug dealer is going to be trust worthy whether you trust him or not. Besides weed changes hands so unless you trust every single person involved, the you can’t be sure. That is whether or not you trust them or not. Once gain the exception is if you know somebody that actually grows it by themselves, which I am willing to bet most don’t.

They must be. How do people get started is what this seems to be about mostly, so why did the people who want to relax get started? According to what I have seen it is not at all pleasurable when you start, making relaxation something your obviously not starting for. Well, it happens even if you can’t imagine it. I don’t know how you can miss that, but I guess you could. I mean haven’t you seen little kids smoking candy cigarettes pretending to be cool? The next step is real ones which I admit is a big step to take and many don’t, but you can’t deny this behavior/ mind set leading to real smoking. Well if they want to be different why do you see big groups of kids smoking with their friends? If they did want to be different they would not smoke. That is almost like saying goth/emo/punk/preppy kids want to be different, no they want to be goth/emo/punk/preppy. Get what I mean? I think young kids smoke to be perceived a certain way. The reasons can be different, but the act the same.

[James_Potter]

@wickedbob

Well, don’t stab me in the neck, I am going off what I have been told. I am not a scientist or anything like that so I listen to those who teach me. From what I have heard weed has more tar/ or crap that makes it much worse. I do accept the fact that could be a lie, until I have something proving other wise I stand my ground. Ok… I dont think your average drug dealer is going to be trust worthy whether you trust him or not. Besides weed changes hands so unless you trust every single person involved, the you can’t be sure. That is whether or not you trust them or not. Once gain the exception is if you know somebody that actually grows it by themselves, which I am willing to bet most don’t.

I personally have never heard anything about the tar content from marijuana, but I’ve read many studies showing no negative health effects from smoking the reefer. Like this one for example.
Anyway, the general population give drug use a rather negative connotation, so you always think of drug dealers as being these shifty dangerous dirty people hiding out on street corners with a gun in their pocket…whereas in reality, all the people I know who sell are in college or high school, and are perfectly respectable citizens.

Well if they want to be different why do you see big groups of kids smoking with their friends? If they did want to be different they would not smoke. That is almost like saying goth/emo/punk/preppy kids want to be different, no they want to be goth/emo/punk/preppy. Get what I mean? I think young kids smoke to be perceived a certain way. The reasons can be different, but the act the same.

If you’re gonna use that argument, why don’t you look at the big groups of kids not smoking? People I know don’t stop smoking because their friends do, and they don’t start smoking because their friends don’t, or vice versa. Usually there’s a group of people hanging out, some are smoking and some aren’t. My school doesn’t really have the goth/emo/preppy cliques…there are groups of friends but it’d be hard to label them any more specifically than “the ones that sit on the stairs at lunch.”

[oneisenough]

i havent read many of these posts, a bit long for me:o .

personally i think that anyone who smokes (anything) is a loser in my eyes and wont hang out with anyone who does, especially someone who lets it control their lives. i cannot explain why kids do, but i think it is gross, and hate even walking by someone who is smoking.

[Hazmat]

The only thing that puzzles me is why do it in the 1st place. I think who does it just because they think its cool is a complete and utter moron.

@oneisenough

i havent read many of these posts, a bit long for me:o .

personally i think that anyone who smokes (anything) is a loser in my eyes and wont hang out with anyone who does, especially someone who lets it control their lives. i cannot explain why kids do, but i think it is gross, and hate even walking by someone who is smoking.

I totally agree with you on this my friend.

[wickedbob]

@James_Potter

I personally have never heard anything about the tar content from marijuana, but I’ve read many studies showing no negative health effects from smoking the reefer. Like this one for example.
Anyway, the general population give drug use a rather negative connotation, so you always think of drug dealers as being these shifty dangerous dirty people hiding out on street corners with a gun in their pocket…whereas in reality, all the people I know who sell are in college or high school, and are perfectly respectable citizens.

If you’re gonna use that argument, why don’t you look at the big groups of kids not smoking? People I know don’t stop smoking because their friends do, and they don’t start smoking because their friends don’t, or vice versa. Usually there’s a group of people hanging out, some are smoking and some aren’t. My school doesn’t really have the goth/emo/preppy cliques…there are groups of friends but it’d be hard to label them any more specifically than “the ones that sit on the stairs at lunch.”

Ok, either me or you messed something up. I said people don’t do stuff to really be different, in my eyes. They do something to be perceived a certain way. This can be applied to kids who do not smoke. Athletes might want to show they are the best, student leaders to set and example and maybe straight edge punk kids to show you don’t have to smoke to be punk. That is strange, you and your area seem to be the exception. At our school we have cliques, and most other places. Sorry if I didn’t explain what I meant clearly the first time around.

That is not what I think of at all. Yeah, respectable to you. Anybody that directly breaks the law on purpose, doesn’t get respect from me. If drugs were legalized it would be different, which I think they should be. Still that doesn’t change the fact they are breaking the law and most, from what I know, drug dealers sell more than just weed. The only way I could consider them respectable is if they sold weed and that was all. They also have to know where the weed was grown and that is is perfectly safe. Chances are they don’t. If that is the case they are distributing a product that could potentially kill or even harm somebody else. It is also fair to say most don’t even know the quality of their product or how it got to our country at all. Well, that is not very respectable is it?

[wickedbob]

P.S. James all the studies are flawed probably in one way or another. People looking to find something specific will find it, or perhaps the lack of it.