abstract
Dagobah Resident
Re: relationship with tobacco
I believe the filter reduces the nicotine. If i smoke one of my filters without a filter, I usually put it out sooner.
Wise man say, the beginning of all wisdom is the question. Questions become answers become knowledge, which put into practice, is wisdom. A little off topic, did you know the term sophomore comes from greek sophos and moros, which means wise moron? One of my past english teachers told that to our class before. It tickles me a little bit.
I believe the filter reduces the nicotine. If i smoke one of my filters without a filter, I usually put it out sooner.
Wise man say, the beginning of all wisdom is the question. Questions become answers become knowledge, which put into practice, is wisdom. A little off topic, did you know the term sophomore comes from greek sophos and moros, which means wise moron? One of my past english teachers told that to our class before. It tickles me a little bit.
Mayb
Jedi Master
Re: relationship with tobacco
I quit smoking cigarettes 3 years ago , since I have pain in chest (have scarfs from several pneumonias in childhood) And then this year I discover cigarilos. Now I smoke one every evening or every second, since I have notice that I had cold frequently since I stop smoking.
I quit smoking cigarettes 3 years ago , since I have pain in chest (have scarfs from several pneumonias in childhood) And then this year I discover cigarilos. Now I smoke one every evening or every second, since I have notice that I had cold frequently since I stop smoking.
Re: relationship with tobacco
I have also noticed that when I smoked the big brands, after a heavy smoking day my head is about to split and my body says no more please in various ways even if the craving pulls the other way, yet the same amount or more of the traditional indonesian kretek brand which is full of spices like clove and others (one type boasts 2.3 mg nicotin and 26 tar with no filter and looks like a joint rather than a cigarette!!!) doesnt have any of those effects at the end of the day. The kreteks are so tight they need to be loosened by taking out a small ball of tobacco which I put in a bag and roll after the packet is finished. Only the brave attempt to smoke it without loosening it first...rice field workers and so.
Old country man aged 100 and more laugh when someone says tobacco kills and coffe is not good, they have smoked since age 14...but notice the setting...working physically open air and taking a break in the middle of nowhere whilst looking as far as the eye can reach...nothing to do with western packed cancers.
Sadly though, Phillip Morris bought a big share of Sampoerna company (the biggest national tobacco producer) sometime ago and the change in some of the types is already noticeable.
A friend of mine brought some rolling tobacco from a trip to java countryside and it was the smoothest, more aromatic and full of flavour thing I have ever smoked.
Clove spiced cigarettes are really something special and it is said that it reduces bodily temperature, the first clove cigarrete allways surprises the smoker with the sensation of wet lips, which is never again experienced after the first time. Also when I have brought those kind of cigarrettes back home to europe, they dont taste the same and you really dont feel like smoking them in cooler climates...
Compulsive smoking in stressful situations relaxes because of short breathing, like when yawning, the body is signaling that it needs fresh air, or a break... When the body is stressed, shallow breathing and all, the body asks for his deep breath and it comes via the first all satisfying puff, regardless if what is coming in is foul smoke...that is why it relaxes (one of the reasons)
local organic is really the way to go, even when it comes to smoking...
I have also noticed that when I smoked the big brands, after a heavy smoking day my head is about to split and my body says no more please in various ways even if the craving pulls the other way, yet the same amount or more of the traditional indonesian kretek brand which is full of spices like clove and others (one type boasts 2.3 mg nicotin and 26 tar with no filter and looks like a joint rather than a cigarette!!!) doesnt have any of those effects at the end of the day. The kreteks are so tight they need to be loosened by taking out a small ball of tobacco which I put in a bag and roll after the packet is finished. Only the brave attempt to smoke it without loosening it first...rice field workers and so.
Old country man aged 100 and more laugh when someone says tobacco kills and coffe is not good, they have smoked since age 14...but notice the setting...working physically open air and taking a break in the middle of nowhere whilst looking as far as the eye can reach...nothing to do with western packed cancers.
Sadly though, Phillip Morris bought a big share of Sampoerna company (the biggest national tobacco producer) sometime ago and the change in some of the types is already noticeable.
A friend of mine brought some rolling tobacco from a trip to java countryside and it was the smoothest, more aromatic and full of flavour thing I have ever smoked.
Clove spiced cigarettes are really something special and it is said that it reduces bodily temperature, the first clove cigarrete allways surprises the smoker with the sensation of wet lips, which is never again experienced after the first time. Also when I have brought those kind of cigarrettes back home to europe, they dont taste the same and you really dont feel like smoking them in cooler climates...
Compulsive smoking in stressful situations relaxes because of short breathing, like when yawning, the body is signaling that it needs fresh air, or a break... When the body is stressed, shallow breathing and all, the body asks for his deep breath and it comes via the first all satisfying puff, regardless if what is coming in is foul smoke...that is why it relaxes (one of the reasons)
local organic is really the way to go, even when it comes to smoking...
Re: relationship with tobacco
I've noticed something similar. I smoke pre-rolled, filtered cigarettes and usually keep American Spirits (both the All Natural-No Addatives and Organic) loose rolling tobacco on hand and smoke those occasionally. I smoke average 5 pre-rolled cigarettes a day (once in a while it reaches as high as 10). When I roll my own, I feel I get my nicotine "fix" much earlier and don't usually finish the whole thing. Also I usually use paper filters that I buy in a box of 100, which are half the length of normal filters, when I roll my own, but sometimes I roll and smoke with no filter. It definitely does seem that when smoking the roll-your-own, I and others smoke less.
There are MANY aspects to the issue of tobacco use, and by extension, to the disinformation surround it. I'll try to summarize just some of them here.
Everyone's metabolism and biochemistry is somewhat different, with some people's being closer to each other and others' having greater differences. There is lots of disinformation about the dangers of tobacco smoking AND at the same time a large amount of research about the benefits that are not promoted, but buried in the mountains of research papers. When one gets an unbiased look at ALL the data (or at least a large part of it), and the questionable credibility of the studies that promote anit-smoking, one has to ask: WHY? This issue has a whole lot of similarity to the benefits of nutrition -- in food and as supplements -- and how these are kept from becoming widely known in the mainstream.
In the case of smoking, I am obviously not promoting it as something everyone should do, just trying to get the REAL facts out and let people decide based on the FACTS. That's what's been done on this forum and related sites for a long time. What we DO insist on is the right of people who want to smoke to be able to do so without being labeled in absurd ways, harassed, and blamed for things in ways that are utter LIES.
This anti-smoking hysteria that's been escalating over the last 15 years or so is really an interesting phenomenon. It's a good way to study mass disinformation / propaganda and social engineering campaigns. Speaking of which, there was a recent article carried on SOTT entitled "Shoot the fat guys, hang the smokers" from Joe Bageant's site ( http://www.sott.net/articles/show/197491-Shoot-the-fat-guys-hang-the-smokers ) that while being featured in SOTT's Best of the Web, and having some really good points, also carried some of the widespread misconceptions. Over the last 5 years or so, I've read maybe half a dozen articles by Mr. Bageant, and they are excellent, really outstanding examples of reporting the true horror of the situation, especially the unspeakable suffering of the "underclass," the unlimited greed and sadism of the "overclass," and the endless manipulation of the middle-class to loathe and fear and work against the underclass for the overclass. This fear and loathing is also cruelly manipulated in two ways: to instill everyman-for-himself attitudes ever more deeply into the middle class, while at a subliminal level having the middle class identify with the rapacious predators of the overclass and increasing the fear of falling into the underclass (all the while exactly that is happening).
But the article still gives a more confusing picture of the facts about smoking than I was prepared to leave without comment. (I understand that Joe Bageant has many health problems, and feel HIGHLY empathetic toward him, but it seems to be mostly due to the covert war on people through the food, the pharmaceuticals, the poisoning of the environment, air, water, etc., but Joe seems to think that smoking "helped ruin" his health and he's suffering the "long term effects;" yet, he's on Welbutrin to quit smoking, and seems to have tried other "treatments" but still "lapses in and out.") For those who have not done so, I recommend you read the article by Laura -- Let's all light up! ( http://www.sott.net/articles/show/139304-Let-s-All-Light-Up- ) -- linked in the comment at the end of the article. That article has QUITE a bit of useful information about the topic. And for those interested in as much info as possible, search the forum for threads covering the issues besides the one provided above by DanielS ( http://www.cassiopaea.org/forum/index.php?topic=84.0 ), as well as SOTT articles and the cassiopaea articles. There's a massive amount of information here, and for those who have the time and inclination, you can research and add even more to the database.
Some of the important questions that should be asked about the whole anti-smoking issue will follow. Do you think your government (and the mainstream media) are really worried about your health? Really? Why, if they are, is the general health of the people on the planet in the state that it's in? Why is food and drug regulation so skewed in such detrimental (and profitable) ways? Why are simple nutritional/dietary approaches (along with sound detoxification and avoidance of exposure to toxic substances) not promoted? Why is mercury not only in vaccines and many other products where they certainly do NOT belong if health was a genuine concern, but is put into people's mouths in the form of amalgam fillings, claimed to be totally safe, but must be handled as toxic waste for disposal purposes if they are removed from people's mouths? Why is fluoride, a highly toxic industrial waste (mainly from the nuclear weapons industry) added to drinking water without people's consent, even when there are occasions when the practice is voted down locally and continues regardless? Why are so many highly toxic substances allowed to be added to the food supply? Why are the only public places that are NOT included in the smoking bans in government facilities such as the U.S. Congress and the EU Parliament (just two examples of GIGANTIC employers exposing non-smokers to "second hand" smoke). And why are the data exposing all of these problems so thoroughly buried with the insidious methods of the Powers that Be and the mainstream media?
One really fascinating aspect of the anti-smoking hysteria is that many smokers have bought into it. I personally know some smokers with different attitudes to the whole hysteria fueled campaign. Some feel very stressed out and worried that they should quit, others feel stressed out but don't think that they CAN quit (or have mixed feelings) so they just keep smoking while the worry hangs over their heads, and still others have the attitude that it's something bad but they're going to keep doing it anyway.
Another really interesting thing is that the Nazis had a major anti-smoking campaign, which really makes you think in light of the steadily increasing world-wide drift toward fascism. And when you fully digest the fact that the benefits of smoking include clear thinking, generally improved cognitive function and memory, it all falls into place: if well developed propaganda resulting in mass brainwashing, mass hypnosis, and hysteria inducing manipulation is what you're after, you would not want a populace that smokes and has NO knee-jerk reactions to smoking.
Just one of the really good points in Joe Bageant's article "Shoot the Fat Guys, Hang the Smokers" was made by "the other Joe" in the letter to which he responded with his own:
Another fake "grass roots" movement? The "astro turf" business seems to be one of those few that are booming ALL THE TIME.
In Armenia, where I've lived for a bit more than the last 3 years, this hysteria has not had anywhere near the proportions that it did in the U.S. where I lived for 31 years. Actually, everyone smokes everywhere, including bureaucratic facilities, in many, the bureacrats actually smoke at their desks, in taxis (the drivers, the VAST majority of whom smoke, ask if you mind, and we ask the drivers also out of courtesy), and the President of the country smokes even in television footage. But the campaign efforts have definitely begun, with only mixed results. There are less smokers here who have that stressing out about smoking attitude, but there are some. And there are some, unforntunately slowly growing, militant non-smokers getting caught up in the hysteria.
But this is one of the things that will be hard to have take root in a major way here. My brother (who is a regular smoker since his teens averaging about a pack a day) was telling me about some research he did a couple of years ago, and apparently Armenia has the highest percentage of the population that smokes among a group of about 26 countries categorized as European. The statistics were from the World Health Organization from 2003 with more than 70% of the male population in Armenia being smokers. He told me that he then tried to get the information on lung cancer rates in Armenia and it was much more difficult to find in the data, but he found of the same group of countries it was around 20th in lung cancer rates. Hmm. Shouldn't there be a better statistical correlation than that, with all the over-hyped claims about the dangers of smoking and lung cancer being right a the top of those dangers? Plus, a pretty large portion of the smokers here smoke A LOT.
The really mind boggling part of the escalating hysteria is that in more and more places in the world smoking is banned even outdoors. Some people who have bought into the whole nonsense become hysterical if someone outdoors is smoking a several feet away from them even while they're standing right next to the exhaust pipe of a diesel truck or bus.
I've smoked on and off since adolenscence. I've never smoked that much, averaging half a pack a day or less. I smoked casually in college, where I would sometimes run out and not buy any for a week or even two. Then in 1989-90, I was shooting a film with too many responsibilities on my shoulders, under enormous pressure, missing many classes in my final year of college which I would need to make up later to graduate. I was smoking more than usual. Cigarettes were props in the film as crucial to the plot. Camel filterless and Lucky Strike filterless were the brands of the props tied to the plot. I and many other regular and casual smokers on the set also kept smoking the props. And when the principal photography was over, I had gone from being a casual smoker to a regular, everyday one. By the way, if you're going to smoke pre-rolled filterless cigarettes, Lucky Strikes are really good, strong but smooth.
The issue of adding hundreds of chemicals to the commercially produced cigarettes has always intrigued me, as well. Especially in the last 10 years or so when taxes kept raising the prices and the tobacco companies kept lowering them to keep them the same. I mean, why do they have literally hundreds of chemical additives in name brand cigarettes? Any alleged detrimental effects that CAN legitimately be tied to smoking, and it has to be if you're smoking a lot (more than a pack a day, probably much more) it's because of these chemicals being burned and inhaled. In the period when the taxes kept increasing the price and the tobacco companies kept decreasing their price to keep it about the same, you'd think well if we stop adding 500 plus chemicals we can really save costs of production and pass on the savings to our customers, and overall smoking would probably increase if it became considerably cheaper. Or they could split the savings, keeping some as additional profit. But that didn't happen. Makes you wonder why.
During the 1990's, state governments' attorney generals' offices in the U.S. began suing the tobacco companies for alleged liabilities in health care costs to their states. And, unbelievably, got huge settlements. Well, I'm NOT into defending corporate predators in any way, but in this case the whole issue is astounding. Corporations do not have any explicit obligation to guard the health of the population. Governments do. If what these corporations were doing was not against the law -- selling cigarettes -- and it wasn't, still isn't, what exactly is their liability? The government should have made it illegal if their claims were legitimate, but to this day they have not done so (and good thing too). Besides, if you take the price of a pack of cigarettes, anywhere from 55% to 70% is for taxes (these days it may be even more). The governments who sued the tobacco companies pocket all that money and they have no costs of production (including packaging, distribution/shipping, advertising, etc.), in fact no overhead or any other costs at all, but they DO have the responsibility to protect the public health. Then when health problems and costs are dubiously blamed on smoking, these same governments have no liability, but the companies do? Go figure.
Another issue is smoking "light" cigarettes. I know (and have known in the past) people who are adamant about smoking light cigarettes. But when you look at these, many are very low in nicotine but high in tar. Well we smoke for the nicotine, we can all do without the tar. In fact I've made it a practice to get the highest amount of nicotine with the lowest amount of tar. The brand of pre-rolleds I smoke for the last three years or so are really good, and they have lower tar than the lights I've bothered to look at while having much higher nicotine content. I haven't been able to verify satisfactorily, but I also don't think that there are all those additives in the brands here, at least not as much. If you don't puff on it, it doesn't burn to the filter really fast like American brands. And another great thing about Armenian brands is that they are REALLY cheap, about 50 cents U.S. a pack, and even imports like Marlboro or Winston, etc. come out to about $1.35 U.S.
I also enjoy smoking a quality cigar occasionally and pipe, as well. And I inhale these as well. Smoking a good cigar and inhaling really kicks up the amount of nicotine intake big time. The only thing about cigars is some of them really have a STRONG smell, and it's less considerate to those who are bothered by it, as it tends to spread farther and hang around longer. But there are some good cigars that have a very mild smell.
I really do recommend any one intersted to check out the massive amounts of information about this issue on these sites. Why doesn't the general public know about the significant benefits from smoking to "mysterious" diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinsons, etc. like they know the dubious claims about the dangers; also, the superior benefits from SMOKING (especially pure) tobacco instead of any other form of nicotine ingestion.
As I mentioned, everyone is different as far as how much benefit they may get from smoking (and what is the right dose for them). So, as with anything else, keep a cool head, do your own research, and network. And light up, if that's your choice, and enjoy it!
Kila said:
Kila said:
I've noticed something similar. I smoke pre-rolled, filtered cigarettes and usually keep American Spirits (both the All Natural-No Addatives and Organic) loose rolling tobacco on hand and smoke those occasionally. I smoke average 5 pre-rolled cigarettes a day (once in a while it reaches as high as 10). When I roll my own, I feel I get my nicotine "fix" much earlier and don't usually finish the whole thing. Also I usually use paper filters that I buy in a box of 100, which are half the length of normal filters, when I roll my own, but sometimes I roll and smoke with no filter. It definitely does seem that when smoking the roll-your-own, I and others smoke less.
There are MANY aspects to the issue of tobacco use, and by extension, to the disinformation surround it. I'll try to summarize just some of them here.
Everyone's metabolism and biochemistry is somewhat different, with some people's being closer to each other and others' having greater differences. There is lots of disinformation about the dangers of tobacco smoking AND at the same time a large amount of research about the benefits that are not promoted, but buried in the mountains of research papers. When one gets an unbiased look at ALL the data (or at least a large part of it), and the questionable credibility of the studies that promote anit-smoking, one has to ask: WHY? This issue has a whole lot of similarity to the benefits of nutrition -- in food and as supplements -- and how these are kept from becoming widely known in the mainstream.
In the case of smoking, I am obviously not promoting it as something everyone should do, just trying to get the REAL facts out and let people decide based on the FACTS. That's what's been done on this forum and related sites for a long time. What we DO insist on is the right of people who want to smoke to be able to do so without being labeled in absurd ways, harassed, and blamed for things in ways that are utter LIES.
This anti-smoking hysteria that's been escalating over the last 15 years or so is really an interesting phenomenon. It's a good way to study mass disinformation / propaganda and social engineering campaigns. Speaking of which, there was a recent article carried on SOTT entitled "Shoot the fat guys, hang the smokers" from Joe Bageant's site ( http://www.sott.net/articles/show/197491-Shoot-the-fat-guys-hang-the-smokers ) that while being featured in SOTT's Best of the Web, and having some really good points, also carried some of the widespread misconceptions. Over the last 5 years or so, I've read maybe half a dozen articles by Mr. Bageant, and they are excellent, really outstanding examples of reporting the true horror of the situation, especially the unspeakable suffering of the "underclass," the unlimited greed and sadism of the "overclass," and the endless manipulation of the middle-class to loathe and fear and work against the underclass for the overclass. This fear and loathing is also cruelly manipulated in two ways: to instill everyman-for-himself attitudes ever more deeply into the middle class, while at a subliminal level having the middle class identify with the rapacious predators of the overclass and increasing the fear of falling into the underclass (all the while exactly that is happening).
But the article still gives a more confusing picture of the facts about smoking than I was prepared to leave without comment. (I understand that Joe Bageant has many health problems, and feel HIGHLY empathetic toward him, but it seems to be mostly due to the covert war on people through the food, the pharmaceuticals, the poisoning of the environment, air, water, etc., but Joe seems to think that smoking "helped ruin" his health and he's suffering the "long term effects;" yet, he's on Welbutrin to quit smoking, and seems to have tried other "treatments" but still "lapses in and out.") For those who have not done so, I recommend you read the article by Laura -- Let's all light up! ( http://www.sott.net/articles/show/139304-Let-s-All-Light-Up- ) -- linked in the comment at the end of the article. That article has QUITE a bit of useful information about the topic. And for those interested in as much info as possible, search the forum for threads covering the issues besides the one provided above by DanielS ( http://www.cassiopaea.org/forum/index.php?topic=84.0 ), as well as SOTT articles and the cassiopaea articles. There's a massive amount of information here, and for those who have the time and inclination, you can research and add even more to the database.
Some of the important questions that should be asked about the whole anti-smoking issue will follow. Do you think your government (and the mainstream media) are really worried about your health? Really? Why, if they are, is the general health of the people on the planet in the state that it's in? Why is food and drug regulation so skewed in such detrimental (and profitable) ways? Why are simple nutritional/dietary approaches (along with sound detoxification and avoidance of exposure to toxic substances) not promoted? Why is mercury not only in vaccines and many other products where they certainly do NOT belong if health was a genuine concern, but is put into people's mouths in the form of amalgam fillings, claimed to be totally safe, but must be handled as toxic waste for disposal purposes if they are removed from people's mouths? Why is fluoride, a highly toxic industrial waste (mainly from the nuclear weapons industry) added to drinking water without people's consent, even when there are occasions when the practice is voted down locally and continues regardless? Why are so many highly toxic substances allowed to be added to the food supply? Why are the only public places that are NOT included in the smoking bans in government facilities such as the U.S. Congress and the EU Parliament (just two examples of GIGANTIC employers exposing non-smokers to "second hand" smoke). And why are the data exposing all of these problems so thoroughly buried with the insidious methods of the Powers that Be and the mainstream media?
One really fascinating aspect of the anti-smoking hysteria is that many smokers have bought into it. I personally know some smokers with different attitudes to the whole hysteria fueled campaign. Some feel very stressed out and worried that they should quit, others feel stressed out but don't think that they CAN quit (or have mixed feelings) so they just keep smoking while the worry hangs over their heads, and still others have the attitude that it's something bad but they're going to keep doing it anyway.
Another really interesting thing is that the Nazis had a major anti-smoking campaign, which really makes you think in light of the steadily increasing world-wide drift toward fascism. And when you fully digest the fact that the benefits of smoking include clear thinking, generally improved cognitive function and memory, it all falls into place: if well developed propaganda resulting in mass brainwashing, mass hypnosis, and hysteria inducing manipulation is what you're after, you would not want a populace that smokes and has NO knee-jerk reactions to smoking.
Just one of the really good points in Joe Bageant's article "Shoot the Fat Guys, Hang the Smokers" was made by "the other Joe" in the letter to which he responded with his own:
Another fake "grass roots" movement? The "astro turf" business seems to be one of those few that are booming ALL THE TIME.
In Armenia, where I've lived for a bit more than the last 3 years, this hysteria has not had anywhere near the proportions that it did in the U.S. where I lived for 31 years. Actually, everyone smokes everywhere, including bureaucratic facilities, in many, the bureacrats actually smoke at their desks, in taxis (the drivers, the VAST majority of whom smoke, ask if you mind, and we ask the drivers also out of courtesy), and the President of the country smokes even in television footage. But the campaign efforts have definitely begun, with only mixed results. There are less smokers here who have that stressing out about smoking attitude, but there are some. And there are some, unforntunately slowly growing, militant non-smokers getting caught up in the hysteria.
But this is one of the things that will be hard to have take root in a major way here. My brother (who is a regular smoker since his teens averaging about a pack a day) was telling me about some research he did a couple of years ago, and apparently Armenia has the highest percentage of the population that smokes among a group of about 26 countries categorized as European. The statistics were from the World Health Organization from 2003 with more than 70% of the male population in Armenia being smokers. He told me that he then tried to get the information on lung cancer rates in Armenia and it was much more difficult to find in the data, but he found of the same group of countries it was around 20th in lung cancer rates. Hmm. Shouldn't there be a better statistical correlation than that, with all the over-hyped claims about the dangers of smoking and lung cancer being right a the top of those dangers? Plus, a pretty large portion of the smokers here smoke A LOT.
The really mind boggling part of the escalating hysteria is that in more and more places in the world smoking is banned even outdoors. Some people who have bought into the whole nonsense become hysterical if someone outdoors is smoking a several feet away from them even while they're standing right next to the exhaust pipe of a diesel truck or bus.
I've smoked on and off since adolenscence. I've never smoked that much, averaging half a pack a day or less. I smoked casually in college, where I would sometimes run out and not buy any for a week or even two. Then in 1989-90, I was shooting a film with too many responsibilities on my shoulders, under enormous pressure, missing many classes in my final year of college which I would need to make up later to graduate. I was smoking more than usual. Cigarettes were props in the film as crucial to the plot. Camel filterless and Lucky Strike filterless were the brands of the props tied to the plot. I and many other regular and casual smokers on the set also kept smoking the props. And when the principal photography was over, I had gone from being a casual smoker to a regular, everyday one. By the way, if you're going to smoke pre-rolled filterless cigarettes, Lucky Strikes are really good, strong but smooth.
The issue of adding hundreds of chemicals to the commercially produced cigarettes has always intrigued me, as well. Especially in the last 10 years or so when taxes kept raising the prices and the tobacco companies kept lowering them to keep them the same. I mean, why do they have literally hundreds of chemical additives in name brand cigarettes? Any alleged detrimental effects that CAN legitimately be tied to smoking, and it has to be if you're smoking a lot (more than a pack a day, probably much more) it's because of these chemicals being burned and inhaled. In the period when the taxes kept increasing the price and the tobacco companies kept decreasing their price to keep it about the same, you'd think well if we stop adding 500 plus chemicals we can really save costs of production and pass on the savings to our customers, and overall smoking would probably increase if it became considerably cheaper. Or they could split the savings, keeping some as additional profit. But that didn't happen. Makes you wonder why.
During the 1990's, state governments' attorney generals' offices in the U.S. began suing the tobacco companies for alleged liabilities in health care costs to their states. And, unbelievably, got huge settlements. Well, I'm NOT into defending corporate predators in any way, but in this case the whole issue is astounding. Corporations do not have any explicit obligation to guard the health of the population. Governments do. If what these corporations were doing was not against the law -- selling cigarettes -- and it wasn't, still isn't, what exactly is their liability? The government should have made it illegal if their claims were legitimate, but to this day they have not done so (and good thing too). Besides, if you take the price of a pack of cigarettes, anywhere from 55% to 70% is for taxes (these days it may be even more). The governments who sued the tobacco companies pocket all that money and they have no costs of production (including packaging, distribution/shipping, advertising, etc.), in fact no overhead or any other costs at all, but they DO have the responsibility to protect the public health. Then when health problems and costs are dubiously blamed on smoking, these same governments have no liability, but the companies do? Go figure.
Another issue is smoking "light" cigarettes. I know (and have known in the past) people who are adamant about smoking light cigarettes. But when you look at these, many are very low in nicotine but high in tar. Well we smoke for the nicotine, we can all do without the tar. In fact I've made it a practice to get the highest amount of nicotine with the lowest amount of tar. The brand of pre-rolleds I smoke for the last three years or so are really good, and they have lower tar than the lights I've bothered to look at while having much higher nicotine content. I haven't been able to verify satisfactorily, but I also don't think that there are all those additives in the brands here, at least not as much. If you don't puff on it, it doesn't burn to the filter really fast like American brands. And another great thing about Armenian brands is that they are REALLY cheap, about 50 cents U.S. a pack, and even imports like Marlboro or Winston, etc. come out to about $1.35 U.S.
I also enjoy smoking a quality cigar occasionally and pipe, as well. And I inhale these as well. Smoking a good cigar and inhaling really kicks up the amount of nicotine intake big time. The only thing about cigars is some of them really have a STRONG smell, and it's less considerate to those who are bothered by it, as it tends to spread farther and hang around longer. But there are some good cigars that have a very mild smell.
I really do recommend any one intersted to check out the massive amounts of information about this issue on these sites. Why doesn't the general public know about the significant benefits from smoking to "mysterious" diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinsons, etc. like they know the dubious claims about the dangers; also, the superior benefits from SMOKING (especially pure) tobacco instead of any other form of nicotine ingestion.
As I mentioned, everyone is different as far as how much benefit they may get from smoking (and what is the right dose for them). So, as with anything else, keep a cool head, do your own research, and network. And light up, if that's your choice, and enjoy it!
RyanX
The Living Force
Re: relationship with tobacco
SeekinTruth,
Thanks for that post! That was quite lucid and to the point. You should consider making a blog post out of this. I was intrigued by the information you gave on Armenia and smoking. It might be worthwhile following up to see if there are any hard statistics anywhere on Armenia, smoking and lung cancer.
SeekinTruth said:
SeekinTruth,
Thanks for that post! That was quite lucid and to the point. You should consider making a blog post out of this. I was intrigued by the information you gave on Armenia and smoking. It might be worthwhile following up to see if there are any hard statistics anywhere on Armenia, smoking and lung cancer.
Something that makes me proud. In spite worldwide antismoking campaign, my fellow countryman smokers won a battle against antismoking fascists. There is hope, indeed.
From: _http://www.guardian.co.uk/theobserver/2009/nov/29/world-lens-zagreb-ballet-smoking
From: _http://www.guardian.co.uk/theobserver/2009/nov/29/world-lens-zagreb-ballet-smoking
Hi ,
I am now busy with my 3rd American Spirits package, and the experiences are so far kind of interesting, I have had moments that I had a sudden burst of creativity, knowing what I wanted to do and how, these could also be due to the medidation program, but the thing is that I have been observing my body, and I do not seem to show any negative side effects because of this smoking, the only downside is that I get easily light headed for a while when I smoke.
I am now busy with my 3rd American Spirits package, and the experiences are so far kind of interesting, I have had moments that I had a sudden burst of creativity, knowing what I wanted to do and how, these could also be due to the medidation program, but the thing is that I have been observing my body, and I do not seem to show any negative side effects because of this smoking, the only downside is that I get easily light headed for a while when I smoke.
combsbt
Jedi Master
FSC Fire-Safe Cigarettes
Legislation was passed in 2007 that made it illegal in some states to sell non fire-safe cigarettes. Now more and more states are jumping on this bandwagon:
_http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2009-01-02-cigarettes_N.htm
But you may not even need to be in one of these states to be stuck with these as your only option. According to this article _http://firechief.com/news/Safe_cigarettes_10312007/ back in 2007 RJ Reynolds announced that it would only produce fire-safe cigarettes. Phillip Morris also supports fire-safe cigarette legislation.
So whats the big deal? A cigarette that is self extinguishing could save lives and prevent accidental fires right? Here's the problem though... and sorry for quoting the wiki site but here it is:
Even with no full studies done on the effects, for some reason I doubt it is healthy to smoke carpet glue.
I used to smoke Winstons because of the claim that they do not use additives in their blend, but now the blend could be 100% additive free but the paper is stuck together with carpet glue! Looks like i'll be going back to rolling my own cigarettes. And FWIW I noticed a distinct difference in taste while smoking the banded part.
Legislation was passed in 2007 that made it illegal in some states to sell non fire-safe cigarettes. Now more and more states are jumping on this bandwagon:
_http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2009-01-02-cigarettes_N.htm
article said:
But you may not even need to be in one of these states to be stuck with these as your only option. According to this article _http://firechief.com/news/Safe_cigarettes_10312007/ back in 2007 RJ Reynolds announced that it would only produce fire-safe cigarettes. Phillip Morris also supports fire-safe cigarette legislation.
So whats the big deal? A cigarette that is self extinguishing could save lives and prevent accidental fires right? Here's the problem though... and sorry for quoting the wiki site but here it is:
_http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fire_safe_cigarette said:
Even with no full studies done on the effects, for some reason I doubt it is healthy to smoke carpet glue.
I used to smoke Winstons because of the claim that they do not use additives in their blend, but now the blend could be 100% additive free but the paper is stuck together with carpet glue! Looks like i'll be going back to rolling my own cigarettes. And FWIW I noticed a distinct difference in taste while smoking the banded part.
abstract
Dagobah Resident
I found out from a video last night that tobacco is an anti fungal, and the reason a lot of people have a strong reaction to cigarette smoke is not because it's toxic, but because things like candida react very strongly to tobacco. This explains why I used to get just soooooooo nauseous after smoking, because of my diet feeding evil bacteria, etc. Not that i've ever had true blue, full on candida, but i have definitely identified other symptoms associated with the yeast overgrowth.
I have started smoking ONLY organic tobacco, american spirit organic to be precise. It is better than sliced bread.
The cool thing is this: since i startd on organic tobacco, i smoke less cigarettes per day. not even a pack a day anymore. I believe this is because the quality of the tobacco is just flat out better than the rest, i even think it has more nicotine.
Tobacco turns out to be a major dialator of blood vessels, which is why the evil corporations like marlboro pack 4000 chemicals in their "cigarettes" (which makes up 25% of the dry weight) which enables these chemicals to be delivered as deeply as possible into a person's body. A marlboro is not a cigarette, it's not tobacco, it's JUNK.
I think that just goes to show that everything on this planet can be used for good or for evil, it just depends on who uses it and how and for what purpose.
Organic tobacco doesn't make you cough up mucus, either.
Also, i believe that it is better to smoke than to end up as an alzhiemer's patient, and i quote: "p***ing down the leg of the pants you didn't even put on yourself."
Let's all light up!!!!
I have started smoking ONLY organic tobacco, american spirit organic to be precise. It is better than sliced bread.
The cool thing is this: since i startd on organic tobacco, i smoke less cigarettes per day. not even a pack a day anymore. I believe this is because the quality of the tobacco is just flat out better than the rest, i even think it has more nicotine.
Tobacco turns out to be a major dialator of blood vessels, which is why the evil corporations like marlboro pack 4000 chemicals in their "cigarettes" (which makes up 25% of the dry weight) which enables these chemicals to be delivered as deeply as possible into a person's body. A marlboro is not a cigarette, it's not tobacco, it's JUNK.
I think that just goes to show that everything on this planet can be used for good or for evil, it just depends on who uses it and how and for what purpose.
Organic tobacco doesn't make you cough up mucus, either.
Also, i believe that it is better to smoke than to end up as an alzhiemer's patient, and i quote: "p***ing down the leg of the pants you didn't even put on yourself."
Let's all light up!!!!
