smoking is stupid (and so are some anti-smoking campaigns)

[mellowtigger]

The most common factor that I hear mentioned among all the reasons that people start smoking is the "cool factor".  People have the impression (reinforced via film and advertising) that smokers are tough, imposing, and rebellious.  People slowly committing suicide are not cool, okay?  To paraphrase one person I read on Facebook a few weeks ago:

"Oh, yeah, I smoke as a critique of social conformity too."

A recent study from Israel collected some very interesting data about smokers.  They studied more than 20,000 recruits in the Israeli army, including some recruits who were brothers.  They found that the population of smokers had a lower I.Q. than the population of non-smokers.  That alone was fascinating news.  The most interesting tidbit (or so I believe) is this one:

"An analysis of brothers discordant for smoking found that smoking brothers had lower cognitive scores than non-smoking brothers (adjusted ES = 0.27; P = 0.014)."

So even when considering the impact of socioeconomic environment, the effect still remains.  They seem to be taking the theory that people with lower I.Q. scores will exercise poorer judgement about the long-term consequences of their actions, leading to the practice of smoking (among other high risk conditions like obesity and drug addiction).

"People with lower IQs are not only prone to addictions such as smoking," Prof. Weiser adds. "These same people are more likely to have obesity, nutrition and narcotics issues."

That idea seems reasonable.  I do wonder, however, if smoking ends up lowering mental acuity because of all the horrible chemicals that are included in cigarettes these days.  They can't be good for the brain.  When considering cigarette smoke and lower I.Q., which is the cause and which is the effect?  I'd want to see I.Q. tests done on young people, then followed up a decade later to see who has taken up smoking and who hasn't.  Has I.Q. lowered only after exposure to smoke?

I know that I've jokingly mentioned before (to dangerdhotrod and others) my theory that a former smoker would make a great boyfriend because of that oral fixation that they need to satisfy.  *wink wink* *nudge nudge*

I think I need to retire that joke.  Now that I've seen it used graphically, I can see just how crude and offensive it really is to make light of a deadly serious problem.

As The Advocate reports:

"A series of posters released Monday by the Non-Smokers' Rights Association each feature a male or female who appears to be in their late teens kneeling before a fully clothed adult male. A cigarette hangs from the teen's mouth, extending downward before seeming to disappear into the man's pants. The caption beneath the image reads "Smoking Means Being a Slave to Tobacco."

Um, yeah.  A serious and life-threatening addiction should not be made into an opportunity for a giggle.  The humor value of my joke is now gone.

I still dislike watching people slowly kill themselves by inhaling that garbage.  I can't quite imagine what I would feel while watching a boyfriend do something like that.  I still want to help people everywhere quit their addiction.  Curiosity (do smokers develop an irrepressible oral fixation?) still roams my thoughts, but it's no longer a laughing matter.

Comments

[bitterlawngnome.livejournal.com]

do smokers develop an irrepressible oral fixation?

I think in my case it worked the other way around.

[mellowtigger]

I remember this campaign being discussed in a few journals back when it first came out. Yeah, there is a segment for whom the imagery has exactly the opposite effect. :)

Following up on the emotions that it provokes (rather than just the strict metaphor) leads to another problem with this campaign. It's intended for viewing by a wide audience. For the heterosexual male smokers who view it, I can't help but think that they feel some kind of homophobic response to it as they place themselves in the submissive role as designed in the image. I'm not sure that I want "I'M NO FAG!" being part of an anti-smoking campaign. It seems like a willingness to toss some people under the proverbial bus in favor of saving other people.

That interpretation is a small stretch, but not a huge one.

[bitterlawngnome.livejournal.com]

hah

I should have said *which* other way.

the oral fixation preceded/conditioned the smoking.

[pi3832.livejournal.com]

do smokers develop an irrepressible oral fixation?

Not for me. However I have developed an overwhelming disdain for people who tag smoking as some kind of especially moronic behavior in a world of moronic behaviors.

I still dislike watching people slowly kill themselves by inhaling that garbage

How can you possible walk past a McDonald's without your head exploding?

[chernovog.livejournal.com]

My quit was enlightening, and the biggest lesson was that everyone's dealing with their own shit. My input is neither required, asked for, or helpful.

I quit smoking for the god-only-knows-nth time almost a year ago, with the specific goal of figuring out exactly what I was like without. It was clear after many successful but ultimately temporary quits that something deeper than addiction was going on. I had left any illusions of coolness behind. Was actually embarrassed by the habit.

Turns out I was self-medicating somewhat severe inattentive ADHD from the age of 18 onward. A long overdue diagnosis and some medication, and I haven't wanted a cigarette since. (or nicotine... i fed my addiction via nicotine lozenges for almost two years)

So yeah. I do try to stop myself from feeling snooty about my good choices. I just have to remind myself that if I start thinking someone else's issues are easily solved in my head, I'm full of it.

[pi3832.livejournal.com]

Interesting. I quite smoking 2 years ago. Last fall I was diagnosed ADD and am currently taking meds for it. One of the things I always liked about smoking was about how it made me more focused. Ha!

Personally, I still miss the social aspects of smoking. It's amazing how many people you meet when you're leaning against a wall having a smoke. Gads, there was a whole set of folks I made friends with while working at UC because I smoked. And consequently, my office AC got fixed first; my parking tickets got waived; I got an extra parking tag for my motorcycle; etcetcetc.

[mellowtigger]

some kind of especially moronic behavior in a world of moronic behaviors

Everybody's going to die of something, I agree. If I were to watch a group of people playing Russian roulette, however, I know that their chosen game has about a 1 in 6 chance of killing them. If I watch the same group of people smoking cigarettes, I know that their chosen game has about a 1 in 2 chance of killing them. Yes, it is especially moronic. Smoking is not just a minor irresponsibility.

I'm not complaining here about the smell of cigarettes (which is rank) or the taste of kissing someone who smokes (which is actually even worse). I do rant, though, about the mathematical odds that what they're doing will actually kill them. For that matter, it also enters the equation as a potential cause of death for both people and domesticated animals that share space with them. It's not merely a bad habit like spitting. It's a deadly behavior.

There's a local gay bar called the Eagle that puts up a temporary tent each winter on their back patio. It creates a small warm space outdoors where the smokers go to get their fix. Here's a photo that I took with a bad cell phone camera before the snow arrived.

I call it "Auschwitz", that place where people go to suck in the air that kills them.

I know a local guy who is a heavy smoker. Whenever we're talking at the Eagle and he wants to go outside, I ask zhem, "Is it time to visit Auschwitz again?" I follow along, but I don't go inside the tent. Zhey compromises and stands outside in the snow with me until zhey finishes zheir cigarette, then we go back inside again.

If I have to watch people (as in, it would be wrong of me to tackle them and prevent them from doing so) slowly kill themselves, then they have to listen to me (as in, ignore me while I blah blah blah) tell them that I hate watching them slowly kill themselves.

I know that nobody can rescue an addict. Only the addict can do that. Nicotine is, for many people, as chemically addictive as cocaine. I don't pretend that it's easy to overcome an addiction. I just maintain that it's important to do so.

[dangerdhotrod.livejournal.com]

The sort of ad you posted probably would have turned me on at that age.

All the witty kinds of anti-smoking campaigns like this always just pissed me off, but I guess maybe they're targeted at people who don't smoke but are at risk of starting.

I've quit myself now going on a few months. I don't like the smell of it anymore, though occasionally when I see someone smoking I really want to. I maintain for myself smoking was a way to temporarily check out of whatever I was doing and get myself somewhere else. It's not totally socially acceptable to be with a group of people and suddenly say "Hey all the sudden I want to get the fuck out of here, so I'm going to go do that for a bit then I'll be back". It has been in the past acceptable to step outside for a smoke. I also started smoking because it gave me a wicked buzz. I swear I never started because I thought it was cool. Mostly it was about stopping whatever I was doing and thinking about something else for awhile.

I think it's kind of sad that smoking is associated with low IQ, damn! I don't think of myself as that stupid. But I quit so maybe I'm not so stupid after all.

[mellowtigger]

No, I've never thought of you as stupid. I think it's very good that you're continuing your effort to remain cigarette-free.

I agree about the social de-stress time that smokers get. Wilson's Leather home office (back when I worked there) had a permanent smoker's cabin set up outside the main door. The health benefits of frequent de-stress breaks have been mentioned many times over the years. I wonder what would happen to the smokers if we gave people a well-planted plant room in which to sit whenever they needed it each day, as frequently as they needed it.

When I had a cubicle job in a big business, I would sometimes schedule a small conference room for a short meeting. I would go there, close the door, turn out the lights, and chill out for 10-20 minutes alone. I'd go back to my cubicle and get back to work. It worked for me, but "hiding" such behavior was a lot easier in a large organization. It wouldn't work as well in a small one. People would notice, ask questions, and then probably arrange a change of rules to prohibit it... while the smokers still take their frequent breaks. *sigh*

[chernovog.livejournal.com]

Occasionally, when it's the right cigarette smoke, in the right concentration, on the right breeze, it evokes the old comfortable "ahhh" feeling. Not nearly as torturous as you might think. Kind of soothing in a way. As in, "Oh there were a handful of truly enjoyable cigarettes, and I enjoyed them. Moving on."

But 99% of the time, I cannot stand the smell.