Is Smoking Bad???

Is smoking bad? There are many answers to this question; it is simply not a definite 'yes' or 'no' answer. If you argue that smoking is bad for your health then the answer would be 'yes': smoking has been medically proven to be bad for you causing lung cancer and smoking-related diseases. But, what about the alternative view that people could in fact be partaking in more harmful pursuits, such as drinking too much alcohol or taking hard drugs? They can be as harmful and taken in smaller doses can be potentially fatal (smoking 1 cigarette may not kill you, but 1 ecstasy tablet can). So in this sense, smoking is not as 'bad' as other pursuits (although it would certainly not be viewed as good compared to them!).

In my view, smoking does not bother me [I am a non-smoker]. I would not consider it any worse than drinking too much in 1 evening. Yes, it is bad for you; I would not argue otherwise. What is potentially bothering to me is the aspect that a smoking ban in public places is away to come in force south of the border (Being a resident of Scotland, the smoking ban has been in force for nearly 1 year). The smoking ban is to be enforced due to the risks of 'passive smoking'. Passive smoking, being the affects of secondhand smoke on non-smokers, is the recent scourge of public health; although this has not been proven yet to link to non-smokers deaths. But, why it has taken so long to ban smoking? It is interesting since we all knew that smoking was bad for us since the fifties, why not ban it then?

The premise of banning something is 'bad'. Once one aspect of our lives is banned by the Government, then other things can be banned and intrude in our lives, for example banning smoking in cars. Simply, banning smoking in public places is not the answer despite their health risks. People shall smoke regardless whether it is 'bad' for you or not. The Government should think of a more manageable plan for smokers and non-smokers to cohabit peacefully as they always have. People should be protected from smoking, since it can be obtrusive, and I can respect that. But, to mean that one group is targeted over another is no better than prejudice in its many forms.

Is smoking bad? Bad for your Health: yes. Bad compared to drugs and alcohol: No (but it is no better than them). Banning smoking is the 'Bad' factor. Who knows what is next to be banned...alcohol? drugs? bad language? We just don't know but once we go down this path it shall be difficult to return...

Link to ASH (Action against Smoking), advice and info on smoking: http://www.ash.org.uk/

Here is a further link to FOREST (Freedom Organisation for the Right to Enjoy Smoking Tobacco): http://www.forestonline.org/output/Page1.asp

And one final link about smoking: http://www.gosmokefree.co.uk/