Letter to the Editor

Firstly, I should tell you, I smoked three packs of cigarettes per day for more than thirty years. I was an arrogant-smoker inasmuch as I smoked when and wherever I wanted. If someone suggested to me in any form that I should not smoke at that particular moment, I would bristle and let them know in no uncertain terms that I had a right to smoke, period, and if they were not comfortable with my smoke they could leave my presence. Now having said that, lets get on with it . . . Today we have much knowledge pertaining to the hazzards of smoking, both to the individual with the lit cigarette in the mouth and the innocent bystander. Of course, there are those that would refuse to believe there is any danger to themselves or others in smoking, just as there are those that believe our trips to the moon were staged on a movie lot. Denial is powerful and indiscriminate. However, the proof that smoking is killing, is positive and true whether it is denied by some or not. It randomly devastates not only the individual smoker, but people, animals and plants in the presence of smokers. Any qualified electronics technician will tell you it is even detrimental to VCR’s, computers, etc. The death of those affected by tobacco whether smoking or chewing is not ever desirable. I say not desirable, because I really believe there is an element of suicide involved with many current smokers. Given the absolute knowledge of the risks of smoking, we can compare smoking to playing Russian Roulette. If a person, male or female, were to walk into a room with one bullet in the cylinder of a six-shot revolver, spin the cylinder, point the gun at you or your child or grandchild and pull the trigger . . . How would you feel about that as the parent or grandparent? Would you feel any differently if the child was a brother or sister? What if this person were to again spin the cylinder, point the gun at another, and pull the trigger? How long would you continue to allow this person to behave this way before you did something about it? Would you just walk away, separating yourself and/or the child, or would you actively try to stop the individual with the gun? Would you try to understand the gunner’s point of view pertaining to their right to their behavior at that moment or would you find their right to behave this way nonexistent? Now ask the same questions of smokers. . ! The only way smoking in the presence of others is any different from the Russian Roulette Player above is the speed in which the harm is induced. Everybody present in the above scenario knows who gets hurt and when, but with the smokers that fact is not so instantly evident. I met a man a few years back, when I was smoking three packs a day. He walked into my repair shop and started pumping on a Primatene-Mist bottle. He then walked over to the counter less than 15 feet away and again started pumping on the Primatene-Mist. I asked him what was the matter, he replied with great difficulty, “Emphysema!”. I then asked him how long he had been affected by it, and he again replied with great difficulty, “Eight years!”. That was the moment I came to my senses and quit smoking. The thought of being like him for eight years was so undesirable to me . . . I did not fear death then, nor do I now, but to be imprisoned in a body like his for even a moment, let alone eight years was so undesirable to me that my cigarette smoking stopped dead that day. My anger toward the tobacco industry swelled for producing a product that could be so harmful to even one person let alone millions of people, animals, plants, electronic devices, etc. Today I listen to the arguments of the right-to-smoke and it seems as ludicrous to me as the rights of a Russian Roulette Player. In retrospect, I suppose one of the most ineffective laws we passed was the law insisting the tobacco industry place warning labels on their products’ package, because they now use that to escape prosecution. Think about that for a minute. The arrogant tobacco companies, who fought the warning labels in the past, spending massive amounts of money to produce doubts as to the dangers of tobacco use, today use the very warnings that were placed there, in hopes of preventing the informed from placing themselves in harms-way, as an “out” from prosecution, saying, “The smokers were warned, but ignored the warnings, so they have no one to blame but themselves!” Doesn’t that irritate you, just a little? We listen with horror, to the descriptions of the effects of bombs on buildings and persons involved in terrorist activities. We hear of dismemberment, disfigurement, pain, agony and despair. We hear of lives that are permanently scarred and changed for the worse, and we think, “Gees, what kind of an awful person or persons could do such a thing!”, and we have no mercy for the individuals involved, and yet . . . Even tho, the effects of inhaling tobacco smoke are not as immediate, they are just as, or even more so devastating, because the affect on people and families is more insidious, it takes more time, usually years to develop the calamitous effects of tobacco use, and then it is easy to raise doubts as to tobacco even causing these murderous effects. There are those that would tell us the evil people producing and selling tobacco products are not the monsters that bombers are. A mass murderer is a monster by whatever means he or she uses, period! I find little difference between the manufacturers of Crack-Cocain, Heroin, LSD, or Methamphetamine and the life-threatening, life-altering product we know as Tobacco! Neither do I find any difference between the distributors of the products of the drug-culture, and the distributors of Tobacco products. Both, are producing and/or disseminating illness and death at an alarming rate. The people hooked on street-drugs and the people hooked on tobacco, both, are destroying their own lives and the lives of those coming in contact with them. I think back to my attitude with regard to smoking when I smoked and find it truly shameful. It embarrasses me to think I could be so naive. I started smoking to appear adult, because that was the adult thing to do. Well, when I was even younger I wet-my-pants, but I stopped that, because it was the adult thing to do! At least I was correct half the time!Lets do something about tobacco, the manufacturers and the distributors! What can you do? Well a lot depends on your motivation. . We need to understand, just harassing the maker, distributor and user is not going to get us very far. We also know that education is not the solution, denial is far too strong for education to be anymore than somewhat effective. What then? We all, who are concerned for the well-being of our loved ones, young and old, friends and strangers, must come up with an alternate, non-harmful use for tobacco. By doing that, we will drastically reduce the incentive to promote tobacco use by humans, and the tobacco industry can divert their efforts towards this alternative, safe tobacco use. We must also stop immediately the federal government subsidizing the tobacco industry! It would be beneficial to put pressure on the sellers of tobacco products starting today, by letters and conversation with the store owners and managers and associates declaring your displeasure with their part in the distributing of these lethal products. Letters to and conversation with, the government officials in local, state, and federal government, also stating your displeasure with their part in not actively participating in the removal of tobacco use by humans all over the United States, indoors and out. Folks, the devastating effects of tobacco use is fully documented by every person, house pet or sensitive electronic device that has suffered from exposure to it. If we do nothing, this suffering will only continue. If you do not use tobacco yourself, you will most likely be an unfortunate victim of second-hand smoke some years in the future. Certainly your children, friends, house pets and total strangers will suffer. To take no active part in putting an end to this evil, is giving it your blessing, and just as the tobacco companies are saying to the users, “It’s their own fault, they were warned!” The same will be said about you, and the rest of us that do nothing.We are the only ones that can make a difference - it will not happen by itself! Tone Kister 409 North Kansas Avenue Hastings, NE 68901