Comments on: Thank You For Smoking

By: Mike Myatt

Mike Myatt — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 02:23:36 +0000

It's like David Mitchell said, let's just run it through the computer and see what happens to the economy if we kill all the poor.

By: Jara Matthews

Jara Matthews — Tue, 13 Nov 2012 10:56:47 +0000

awesome. theres a south park where they make fun of the smoking hatred. I don't understand it. I was a nonsmoker for many many years and it NEVER bothered me. Now, if I light a cigarette outside, someone 20 yards away will cough and hack like I'm killing them. It's ridiculous. A way of soothing the ego by claiming superiority over others. Nonsmokers are the worst!

By: Paula Grigorian

Paula Grigorian — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 22:06:36 +0000

I agree. Even though I quit smoking 4 years ago I saw this coming. Liberal agenda is about forcing us and controlling us to do what they want and not question it. And many people don't understand that tyranny doesn't just happen overnight. It's small steps until one day, you realize your freedom has been taken away and given to the government. We need to wake people up!!!

By: Blair Boyd

Blair Boyd — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 18:50:51 +0000

Oh, hey Emily, I admit I skimmed the article pretty quickly and didn't catch that it was a joke!

By: Emily Schrader

Emily Schrader — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 18:39:42 +0000

I was being facetious about health benefits – hence the "So take that American Cancer Society" (though are are true but related to nicotine not really smoking).

By: Blair Boyd

Blair Boyd — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 18:30:14 +0000

Personally, I'd rather lose my mind to PD than end up with COPD. But that's just me.

By: Blair Boyd

Blair Boyd — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 18:29:06 +0000

Oops. Meant to keep writing. That darn enter key always gets me. In New York, it is against the law to smoke indoors anywhere and it's now also against the law to smoke in public parks. Frankly, I wish it were against the law to smoke on the sidewalks. Nothing irritates me more than walking down the street with someone ahead of you smoking a cigarette.

By: Blair Boyd

Blair Boyd — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 18:27:21 +0000

This is the opinion of one graduate student journalist. There is not one credible institution that I'm aware of that would be stupid enough to promote smoking on any level for any reason. And I find the assertion of the benefits highly suspect. I work in medical communications and see published studies in health regularly. I have never once read of the benefits of smoking to thwart the onset of PD.

By: Michael Gordon

Michael Gordon — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 18:19:56 +0000

I was always against anti-smoking laws–whether in restaurants, bars, or colleges. The effort to demonize smoking has resulted in a net loss in freedom–as individuals are conditioned, more and more, to accept that government can regulate our behavior. During the time period when anti-smoking laws appears, many of them appeared rather mild, but the observant among us knew that it was really just the first step in terms of reducing our choices. It is no coincidence, in my mind, that an abomination like Obamacare passed after citizens were conditioned to take orders from their state in the name of "health." And in reality, when I walk around the city of Los Angeles, I don't see a lot of people smoking cigarettes, but I do see people smoking marijuana, which is much worse, but politicians are happy about it because a citizenry that is on dope certainly is easier to conquer than one motivated by principle.

By: Natan Epstein

Natan Epstein — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 18:19:02 +0000

people need to chill out , she probably did not mean to say it is healthy…… she just emphasized that attacking the smokers is kinda hypocritical because we have greater dangers out there (cars on the streets etc ) that can cause us death then smoking…. I am against smoking also BTW.

By: Natan Epstein

Natan Epstein — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 18:19:02 +0000

By: Jen Pattison Troester

Jen Pattison Troester — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 15:17:41 +0000

I have to say, Paris did suck just a little bit more bc is the smoke…but so did Germany. Heck, people smoked in the airport! I hate it, and would be fine if it was totally banned.

By: Gedalyah Chaim Reback

Gedalyah Chaim Reback — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 14:53:44 +0000

Addiction tends to temporarily alleviate the effects of depression and anxiety giving people something external to focus their stresses on. Cigarettes fall right into that category.

By: Gedalyah Chaim Reback

Gedalyah Chaim Reback — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 14:51:48 +0000

This is by far the stupidest thing ever posted on Times of Israel's blogs. It's clear the author doesn't understand the Republican party's and right wing's approach to limited government by the attitude she takes to smoking. Laws that are intended to protect the public health and safety are not on the targeting list of social conservatives. Smoking is a definitive threat to people's health and has been rightfully, increasingly discouraged. The real debate should revolve on drawing equivalency between a punch and smoking in someone's face. The amount of research that has made obvious the dangers of second hand smoke on for example an unborn fetus, should be compelling enough to keep people from ever smoking in the vicinity of a woman who could be in the early stages of pregnancy – yet that doesn't stop people.

If people want to smoke so badly in social circles away from home, they should go to smoking-only bars akin to the cafes in Amsterdam or the ones I expect will be opening in Denver and Seattle.

By the way, Thank You for Smoking is a hilarious satire of the alcohol, tobacco and firearms industry starring Katie Holmes and Aaron Eckhart.

When I heard this post had been written, I thought it was a joke.

By: Dana Meijler-Gross

Dana Meijler-Gross — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 11:20:11 +0000

While I've never been a smoker and am certainly grateful that living in Europe, everyplace outside of my own home is not surrounded in a cloud of smoke, I do think there is such a thing as going too far with this legislating this issue and at some point we move from beyond public health and safety to regulating people's own freedom to choose. I certainly identify with the crybaby attitude of many (American) non-smokers. I often hear Americans that come to Europe on vacation have their trip entirely ruined because people smoke over here. Seriously, Paris ruined? It's too much.

That being said, I hardly think touting the pseudo health benefits of smoking is a bit much. Smoking as a prevention for obesity? Plenty of obese people also smoke. It doesn't prevent obesity but rather the addiction to nicotine is a stimulant and suppresses hunger in some. The reasons for high rates of obesity is not solely due to less smokers, but a generally less active lifestyle combined with pre-disposition and unhealthy attitudes about food brought on by emotional issues. Using this as the backbone of your argument, you could also tout the health benefits of cocaine as well. Slippery slope.