For some, smoking tobacco is a pleasurable experience to enjoy in moderation. For many, however, tobacco is a highly addictive substance which causes them, and those around them, many health problems. If someone is aware of the consequences of smoking and still wants to smoke, a democratic society would say they have the right to do so, but also the responsibility that goes with that right not to harm anyone else while doing so. Is it an act of freedom or fascism to force someone to do something, even if the action appears to be in the best interests of the individual? When people began smoking tobacco, the health risks were not as clear as they are today. Despite the fact that the dangers of smoking are now widely known, people continue to become addicted to tobacco and die from diseases associated with its use. According to a study carried out at the University of Wisconsin, (Meyer et al, 2002) the most common response from light, moderate and heavy smokers to the question why they smoke was because they were addicted. From these responses, we can deduce that smoking is a highly addictive substance that, although it may begin for relaxation, pleasure or for social reasons, can very quickly become an activity that is no longer done for these reasons, but out of addiction instead. Having addressed the reasons why people smoke, it is now time to turn our attention to the effects of smoking both for the smoker and the secondhand smoker. According to a long-term study made in China and documented in Reuters (Norton, 2012) the same diseases that effect smokers will effect non-smokers who are exposed to smoke over a continuous period of time. Although it is clear how bad smoking is for the smoker and those exposed to their exhalations, I still maintain that in a democratic society, any policy on the use of tobacco should protect the rights and liberty of the individual, and therefore smoking should be legal for adults, with restrictions on where they smoke to reduce the possibility of those around them being effected by secondhand smoke.
Sources:
1. Meyer, Gloria et al. (October 2002).Why People Smoke. Retrieved from http://www.ctri.wisc.edu/Publications/publications/WhyPeopleSmokefl.pdf
2. Norton, Amy (June 2012), Secondhand smoke tied to more health effects. Reuters. Retrieved from http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/06/14/us-secondhand-smoke-effects-idUSBRE85D1FJ20120614
3. Yao He, MD, PhD et al. (online May 2012) Retrieved from bit.ly/LoNalu
