A World Without Tobacco
Tyler Adkins
Dr. Johnson
English 111-D
3 March 2013
A World without Tobacco Every year the United States Federal Government puts millions upon millions of dollars into research proving how bad tobacco products are, warning the public through various forms of media advocating against tobacco use, cleaning up the pollution caused by tobacco, and penalizing the tobacco user by taxation in an attempt to make them quit. But my question is, if the federal government wants people to quit using tobacco, why not make it illegal? We see the advocacy videos and commercials warning the dangerous possibilities tobacco products can cause almost on a daily basis from some popular source of media. From the information these corporations provide we confer tobacco has a long list of health issues it can cause, it’s highly addictive, and is quite expensive over time. The federal government is who funds these organizations which aim to try and get people to stop using tobacco. The problem is, even with the massive amount of propaganda against tobacco use there is still more people that try the drug every year and more people die from it every year. Instead of wasting tax dollars funding research and advocacy organizations that obviously don’t help the problem, eliminate it at its source and make tobacco illegal. This would also allow the money used every year to fund tobacco related things to be used for more productive and useful things.
Another impact of tobacco smoking that is often underestimated is the pollution that this bad habit causes from a global perspective. Do smokers ever ask themselves: “Where do all the packs and cigarette butts go?” They do not just vanish. Unfortunately, they pollute our surroundings, litter on our streets, and infest our water ways. They not only make the environment look bad, but also harm animals, fish and plants. A few cigarette butts might seem to be an issue of little importance, but with the ever growing number of tobacco users
Dr. Johnson
English 111-D
3 March 2013
A World without Tobacco Every year the United States Federal Government puts millions upon millions of dollars into research proving how bad tobacco products are, warning the public through various forms of media advocating against tobacco use, cleaning up the pollution caused by tobacco, and penalizing the tobacco user by taxation in an attempt to make them quit. But my question is, if the federal government wants people to quit using tobacco, why not make it illegal? We see the advocacy videos and commercials warning the dangerous possibilities tobacco products can cause almost on a daily basis from some popular source of media. From the information these corporations provide we confer tobacco has a long list of health issues it can cause, it’s highly addictive, and is quite expensive over time. The federal government is who funds these organizations which aim to try and get people to stop using tobacco. The problem is, even with the massive amount of propaganda against tobacco use there is still more people that try the drug every year and more people die from it every year. Instead of wasting tax dollars funding research and advocacy organizations that obviously don’t help the problem, eliminate it at its source and make tobacco illegal. This would also allow the money used every year to fund tobacco related things to be used for more productive and useful things.
Another impact of tobacco smoking that is often underestimated is the pollution that this bad habit causes from a global perspective. Do smokers ever ask themselves: “Where do all the packs and cigarette butts go?” They do not just vanish. Unfortunately, they pollute our surroundings, litter on our streets, and infest our water ways. They not only make the environment look bad, but also harm animals, fish and plants. A few cigarette butts might seem to be an issue of little importance, but with the ever growing number of tobacco users