Anyone that knows me well enough, knows that I hate smoking with an intense passion. I am often replied to with a “this is my vice, leave me be I’m not hurting anyone”, and the honest answer is you are hurting far more than you know. You think that the little stick of 1) paper, 2) tobacco and 3) cellulose acetate is your problem, you think this doesn’t affect anyone else. Well let me ask you this what is the value of smoking and what is the impact on the environment for every cigarette you smoke. Do you know what the paper compound you smoke is made of and where it comes from, do you know what the environmental sustainability is on the plantations that produce your beloved fast burning paper. Do you know where you tobacco blend comes from, do you know what the environmental impact is there? Do you know that the tobacco in your cigarette was more than likely sourced from more than one country, which means there is a massive transport cost involved to just make the product that’s not even its distribution. Do you even know what cellulose acetate is. Do you know what combination of toxins your burning cigarette produces?
I honestly don’t care that people get cancer from smoking, or get serious heart diseases I really don’t. Why and how can I be so insensitive?! Well you know what the cost is of you “enjoying” your vice, you know what the cost is to yourself. However you don’t know or care what the cost is to me, the people living in an near the plantations and the environments getting destroyed so that you can savour that vice once more. Do you know that the tobacco industry has the following real effects it exacerbates poverty, contributes to world hunger, does severe damage to the environment, it reduces economic productivity and is a gross waste of labour, capital and resources. Then you still have to light the cigarette. There is also nothing governments can really do, the corporations who has you addicted are so powerful that they simply tell the governments what they will do and won’t do – not ask.
So there are some questions and statements you need to be able to answer and live with if you smoke. I’m not done yet though, did you know that most smoking is done by people who KNOW BETTER it’s done by people who have the choice to say no, 85% of the 1.3 billion people that smoke come from developed nations. Fires that have been caused by smokers have since 2000 cost more than $27 billion do you know what a gross waste of money that is, and what that money could have done to help the environment you are destroying. The plantations required to produce the little things you burn contributes to the destruction of more than 1.3 million hectares of land a year.
Now when you smoke who is being affected more you, me or the environment what else can we do with the money you through away, what else can be done with the land destroyed so that you can have that vice? Think about that, think about what you will leave behind when you are gone will you be one of the many contributors to the destruction of our planet or will you be one of those trying to stop those who don’t care?
There is another form of smoking that’s become a bit more popular solving a few of – what smokers see as – the major issues in smoking such as no tar, ash, carbon monoxide, fire hazards, yellow teeth, smoky smells, many chemicals and finally cancer and that is electronic cigarettes. Now I am happy about only two here the fire hazards and carbon monoxide that all, people don’t realise that the nicotine in the cartridges still needs to come from somewhere and and that somewhere is tobacco plants (Nicotiana tabacum). So what I said earlier about the plantations of tobacco that help destroy our planet still stands true, I think it might actually worsen the situation. Why, well because the dry weight of tobacco only yields 0.6 to 3.0% nicotine that means that 97% of the crop is disregarded. Also smokers will now smoke more because you can again smoke in doors with the electronic cigarettes and at your desk so I can a massive increase in consumption and with a yield of say 3.0% per plant we are in trouble! Loads of trouble!
How much do you know about nicotine, smoker? Did you know that nicotine functions as an antiherbivore chemical with particular specificity to insects; therefore nicotine was widely used as an insecticide in the past,and currently nicotine analogs such as imidacloprid continue to be widely used. So is this a good thing to be smoking? DO you know what the repercussions are of the electronic cigarettes, I know you’re definetly not because the companies who produce them say the health effects of using electronic cigarettes are currently unknown. The Canadian government has gone as far as advising people against this form of smoking with a concern that you risk a chance at nicotine poisoning. This makes sense because you intake will potentially increase substantially. The World Health Organization proclaimed in September 2008 that it does not consider the electronic cigarette to be a legitimate smoking cessation aid, and demanded that marketers immediately remove from their materials any suggestions that the WHO considers electronic cigarettes safe and effective.
I know there are many other plantations destroying the environment everything from cotton, tea, soya beans (yes hippies you contribute to the destruction of the planet just as much), coffee and so on but these things have tangible uses tobacco has none. The destruction of the afore mentioned plantations can be controlled by managing your consumption.
Generally at 6+/- billion people on the planet managing our consumption of any resource is vital, but in my eyes managing the consumption of tobacco is not an option it needs to be stopped an those plantations should be reassigned to a new type of crop or returned to it’s natural state. This change will never happen unless ignorance is remedied and smokers stop smoking, the corporations will just keep filling your mind with its bullshit until you die an unpleasant death.
Have another smoke, you’re awesome!
I honestly don’t care that people get cancer from smoking, or get serious heart diseases I really don’t. Why and how can I be so insensitive?! Well you know what the cost is of you “enjoying” your vice, you know what the cost is to yourself. However you don’t know or care what the cost is to me, the people living in an near the plantations and the environments getting destroyed so that you can savour that vice once more. Do you know that the tobacco industry has the following real effects it exacerbates poverty, contributes to world hunger, does severe damage to the environment, it reduces economic productivity and is a gross waste of labour, capital and resources. Then you still have to light the cigarette. There is also nothing governments can really do, the corporations who has you addicted are so powerful that they simply tell the governments what they will do and won’t do – not ask.
So there are some questions and statements you need to be able to answer and live with if you smoke. I’m not done yet though, did you know that most smoking is done by people who KNOW BETTER it’s done by people who have the choice to say no, 85% of the 1.3 billion people that smoke come from developed nations. Fires that have been caused by smokers have since 2000 cost more than $27 billion do you know what a gross waste of money that is, and what that money could have done to help the environment you are destroying. The plantations required to produce the little things you burn contributes to the destruction of more than 1.3 million hectares of land a year.
Now when you smoke who is being affected more you, me or the environment what else can we do with the money you through away, what else can be done with the land destroyed so that you can have that vice? Think about that, think about what you will leave behind when you are gone will you be one of the many contributors to the destruction of our planet or will you be one of those trying to stop those who don’t care?
There is another form of smoking that’s become a bit more popular solving a few of – what smokers see as – the major issues in smoking such as no tar, ash, carbon monoxide, fire hazards, yellow teeth, smoky smells, many chemicals and finally cancer and that is electronic cigarettes. Now I am happy about only two here the fire hazards and carbon monoxide that all, people don’t realise that the nicotine in the cartridges still needs to come from somewhere and and that somewhere is tobacco plants (Nicotiana tabacum). So what I said earlier about the plantations of tobacco that help destroy our planet still stands true, I think it might actually worsen the situation. Why, well because the dry weight of tobacco only yields 0.6 to 3.0% nicotine that means that 97% of the crop is disregarded. Also smokers will now smoke more because you can again smoke in doors with the electronic cigarettes and at your desk so I can a massive increase in consumption and with a yield of say 3.0% per plant we are in trouble! Loads of trouble!
How much do you know about nicotine, smoker? Did you know that nicotine functions as an antiherbivore chemical with particular specificity to insects; therefore nicotine was widely used as an insecticide in the past, and currently nicotine analogs such as imidacloprid continue to be widely used. So is this a good thing to be smoking? DO you know what the repercussions are of the electronic cigarettes, I know you’re definetly not because the companies who produce them say the health effects of using electronic cigarettes are currently unknown. The Canadian government has gone as far as advising people against this form of smoking with a concern that you risk a chance at nicotine poisoning. This makes sense because you intake will potentially increase substantially. The World Health Organization proclaimed in September 2008 that it does not consider the electronic cigarette to be a legitimate smoking cessation aid, and demanded that marketers immediately remove from their materials any suggestions that the WHO considers electronic cigarettes safe and effective.
I know there are many other plantations destroying the environment everything from cotton, tea, soya beans (yes hippies you contribute to the destruction of the planet just as much), coffee and so on but these things have tangible uses tobacco has none. The destruction of the afore mentioned plantations can be controlled by managing your consumption.
Generally at 6+/- billion people on the planet managing our consumption of any resource is vital, but in my eyes managing the consumption of tobacco is not an option it needs to be stopped an those plantations should be reassigned to a new type of crop or returned to it’s natural state. This change will never happen unless ignorance is remedied and smokers stop smoking, the corporations will just keep filling your mind with its bullshit until you die an unpleasant death.
So light up another one, because you’re awesome!