Tobacco.

"There are some circles in America where it seems to be more socially acceptable to carry a hand-gun than a packet of cigarettes." - Katharine Whitehorn



I know, this is an on-going debate, but I have to put my two cents in.

A commercial just aired on my TV, it's an old one, I've seen it a few years ago, where an old woman who had a tracheotomy (lung disease where they have the hole in their throat) talks about how the tobacco company fucked her over.

Now, this lady started smoking when she was 13, which was about 70-ish years ago, and around those times and before then, people didn't understand the dangers of smoking. That's acceptable.

However, a few years after that, and all the way to this day, everyone knows that smoking is "bad for you." It was even labeled on the cigarette packs that it may cause cancer or other lung and mouth diseases. Yet, people still smoked. Their choice, I don't judge them.

But then someone gets sick. They get a cardiovascular disease, a respiratory disease, mouth disease, lung disease, cancer, all that bad stuff. Hell, maybe even more than one.

So, who do they blame for them getting sick? The tobacco company. They do not take their own responsibility that they chose to start smoking. (Again, I'm talking about now, when people knew that smoking is bad for you, not when it wasn't confirmed or even assumed yet).

That pisses me off. While I myself don't like the smell of smoke, I don't care if someone does or not. If you are old enough to decide for yourself, and old enough to buy cigarettes, you are the only one to blame if you get sick. The tobacco company has bluntly said that yes, there are severe health risks attached to this, usually.  But since they're greedy bastards and make great money off of this, they're going to keep selling.

It's your choice to keep buying and smoking. Not theirs. If everyone is so pissed off at them and what smoking can do to you, why did you keep buying cigarettes?

And also, a lot of people who are so against smoking can get really annoying. They can be twenty feet away from someone who's smoking, in a smoking area of the restaurant or outside of one, and they'll make obvious little remarks and movements that the smoke is "bothering" them. They'll wave their hand in front of their face furiously and scrunch their nose and say, UGH!! When you usually can't even smell it that much, if at all. Or, like my grandma, will walk right by the smoker and glare and make comments just loud enough for them to hear about how smoking is disgusting.

Yes, it is, but it's their chose to smoke, it's a smoking area, you have no right to complain if you are willingly going to a place that allows smoking in or around their business.

Also, it is not guaranteed that you will get cancer or some sort of disease from smoking. It's just a big "possibly," really. Depends on your health. There's a lot of people who have smoked for years and they're healthy as a horse.

And why don't people make this big of a deal about alcohol? That's pretty much just as bad, and can ruin someone's life in more ways than just making them sick. I've had second hand experience with this. At least with smoking, they're sober and stay sober (unless they're also drinking, too. You get what I mean.) Smoking doesn't alter your state of mind. You get a buzz and that lasts for a couple minutes, that's it. But no, you don't see people attacking the liquor or beer companies. Not as much or often, at least.