Thoughts on raising smoking age?

[Tyler]

"We know that 95-percent of teens who don’t smoke by the time they’re 21, never end up smoking,”.

Personally, I find that to be a good reason to support the raise.

+1

Its better for people to make important decisions after they've developed.

 

[Oculus Gold]

Yea smoking doesn't make you do stupid things like alcohol does. If 18 year olds could drink like in the 70's things would be messed up with school problems. Especially nowadays you see children shooting up schools because they got bullied on facebook. Now add alcohol into that mix.... Smoking however, it doesn't matter... Kids who smoke usually have parents who smoke. So they'll just steal a cigarette off their parents...

 

[Panda-Splosion]

I don't support tobacco being commercialized for young adults. I know it doesn't stop people from smoking cigarettes if they want to, but it does create a fine line on what age group should smoke it given the choice. Adolescents are known for making poor choices, and to push something that's bad and addictive to the youth isn't fine with me.

Not sure what you mean by "given the choice", isn't this redundant when you say "doesn't stop people from smoking cigarettes if they want to"? If they want to, age restriction isn't going to stop them.

You aren't pushing anything to the youth either, tobacco commercials are no longer legal, and there's shit tons of PSAs and programs in schools how bad smoking is for you. I doubt there's anybody above the age of eight by now that doesn't know the downsides of smoking.

I don't think ALL adolescents are as dumb as you make them sound out to be either, some of them will want to try it and get addicted perhaps, but there's also those who wouldn't even bother. Just an age restriction from purchasing cigarettes isn't going to influence their decisions one way or the other.

 

[Swan]

Not sure what you mean by "given the choice", isn't this redundant when you say "doesn't stop people from smoking cigarettes if they want to"? If they want to, age restriction isn't going to stop them.

You aren't pushing anything to the youth either, tobacco commercials are no longer legal, and there's shit tons of PSAs and programs in schools how bad smoking is for you. I doubt there's anybody above the age of eight by now that doesn't know the downsides of smoking.

I don't think ALL adolescents are as dumb as you make them sound out to be either, some of them will want to try it and get addicted perhaps, but there's also those who wouldn't even bother. Just an age restriction from purchasing cigarettes isn't going to influence their decisions one way or the other.

I think you perhaps ought to look in to just how much power advertising and peer pressure has over our minds. Certainly, if adolescents want something they'll be able to get it. The fact is though they're much more likely to want to get it for themselves if they can do so without risk of repercussion, egged on by smoking culture and advertising.

I think there are likely better ways of handling it than raising the smoking age. Before I can get behind or against anything like this I need to see the research which led to such a decision, otherwise I can't really have an informed opinion.

 

Not sure what you mean by "given the choice", isn't this redundant when you say "doesn't stop people from smoking cigarettes if they want to"? If they want to, age restriction isn't going to stop them.

You aren't pushing anything to the youth either, tobacco commercials are no longer legal, and there's shit tons of PSAs and programs in schools how bad smoking is for you. I doubt there's anybody above the age of eight by now that doesn't know the downsides of smoking.

I don't think ALL adolescents are as dumb as you make them sound out to be either, some of them will want to try it and get addicted perhaps, but there's also those who wouldn't even bother. Just an age restriction from purchasing cigarettes isn't going to influence their decisions one way or the other.

Adolescents are more susceptible to peer pressure than adults, and it's true they don't make the best choices. I'm not undermining anyone by saying that. Did you make poor choices when you were younger/now? I certainly do. When I say commercialized, I mean it appeals to a wider range of age groups, pushing it for profit. Like I said, it won't stop all underage individuals from obtaining it, but it does help by creating a fine line on the legality of it, thus potentially stopping some people.

 

[Not Stable]

I'm not American but, I'd love to raise the age to 21 + everywhere.

I see so many 14 year olds vaping it's sad to watch.

 

[JaspersLove]

I'm from the UK, and 19 years of age, I have been smoking for 3 years, and to be honest, its a stress reliever and also a way to meet people. Yeah it is harming you, and yeah you die younger, but at the age of 18 you should be making the decisions yourself, it all about growing into a adult and making stupid decisions to better yourself from it in future preferences.

To conclude my argument, NO I don't feel that the age of smoking should be lifted, as most people feel like full pledged men and women at that age, and taking away rights they have at that age and pushing them higher, is only be belittling society as we know it, and as we all know leads to rebelling.

 

[nodnarbusn]

Great idea but won't do shit. I remember kids smoking and regularly having cigarettes by Jr high.

Raising the age would only increase underage smokers.

 

[SAO_Kirito]

I don't believe that raising the smoking age would make much of a difference. kids will still find a way to get smokes regardless.

 

Call it natural selection. If people want to be dumb and smoke their later years away, it's their choice to do so.

Raising the age is non-productive. People still smoke from what.. age 10 even though the smoking age is 18. It only increases the likelihood of these young people stealing the cigs or having older persons buy them for them.

If you want to stop people smoking; you have to look at why people do. For adults it's mostly stress, depression, a hard life or all 3. For children it's mostly peer pressure (because they have nothing more productive to do in their lives). Then you have to look at who smokes. Increasingly it's probably the working class and even more so those nearing lower class. Most likely because these people are disenfranchised from what's going on beyond grafting a 9-5 to keep a roof over their heads and at least a couple of meals a day. Kids are similarly spending most of their days in some kind of institution, being judged and graded on subjects which may be of no interest or acceptably suited to their skill set. No actual life skills or social skills are developed ready to be successful in state schools.

tldr; empower the lower classes and make the education system one that can help everyone find their skill set and not judge a fish on it's ability to climb a tree, as the saying goes.

 

[Almond Joy]

It wouldn't really matter what the legal age of smoking is because teenagers can just shoulder tap (meaning ask an adult who is old enough) to buy them cigarettes or whatever.

 

[Add My Msn]

My country has no limitations for smoking / drinking. It's all down to how parents educate their children here.

 

[Swan]

Call it natural selection. If people want to be dumb and smoke their later years away, it's their choice to do so.

The problem with your mentality here is that smokers inadvertently affect those around them. Second-hand smoke is just as bad for your health as actually smoking a cigarette.

 

[Panda-Splosion]

The problem with your mentality here is that smokers inadvertently affect those around them. Second-hand smoke is just as bad for your health as actually smoking a cigarette.

This has nothing to do with raising/lowering the smoking age though.

 

[Swan]

This has nothing to do with raising/lowering the smoking age though.

Learn to follow the conversation. It was responding to a point that was trying to be made, which is entirely relevant.

 

[malakadang]

Like that'll make much of a difference. As for second-hand smoking, that is only a problem within the system of public ownership. Because those that smoke also contribute to the upkeep of public land, it stands the reason that they have some right to be on said land. The clash occurs when you start saying they are not allowed to access the land in which they have contributed to; it's like not being able to live in a house you rent! Such a problem does not occur within a system of private ownership, if someone is on your property, and you don't want them there, you can evict them. So the problem of second-hand smoke is just a byproduct of the problem of public ownership. It can never be solved without the violation of certain liberties, or the abolition of public property.

 

[whaatitdo]

People are still going to do it. But, it should be raised.

 

[Khaini]

This is quite interesting actually. Here in Holland they raised the drinking age from 16 to 18. All the teenage kids kept saying that they would go and drink at age 16 anyway, and they did. But now that we are 1-2 years further in time, people actually find it normal to start drinking at 18 instead of 16. And as smoking, especially at a young age (people who start smoking at age 15 have a 10x higher chance of getting lung cancer than people who start smoking at age 21) is very bad for your health, I'd vote to get the smoking age from 18 to 21.

Edit: Of course people who really really want to smoke will buy it, if they are 16, 18, 21 or whatever age. But I guess this would stop a majority of people buying before they turn 21. When they then turn 21 and finally are able to smoke, I think they've grown older and I think a lot will realise that smoking is very bad and not start it at all.

 

[arcakillo]

Smoking age should be increased to 21, I think it'd be better that way

 

[Bunny Hops]

Some European countries nailed it, 18 to smoke and no drinking age. It's way too late to have no drinking age in America though.

Smoking age should be 21, I'm a smoker and wouldn't wish it on anyone else. With regards to "kids get it anyway" yeah, but it's 3 more years of age, and it cuts down the amount of people they can use to buy it for them.