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TRICKEY CIRCUMSTANCES

Should cigarettes be classified as an illegal drug?

It's established on each carton of cigarettes the damage that occurs when used. Lung cancer, heart disease, and the incurable pulmonary disease are stated very clearly as the direct effects of smoking, and yet people, children even, are still smoking, same as always. Why is this?

The reason that smoking is still a viable commodity lies within a little something called the grandfather clause. The grandfather clause is a provision that states that an old rule may continue to apply due to exigent circumstances while new rules will be made for similar cases. When smoking was made available to the public all the way back in 1881, the factory owners and cigarette distributors convinced the public that there were actually health benefits to smoking. Obviously, there was no proof to this, but the misconception continued all the way to 1948, when scientists published a major article about the damage smoking caused to your health. The actual surgeon general's official warning didn't come until 1964, 16 years later. However, the warning was just that, a warning. Certain commercials were banned due to inaccuracy, but no actual legal action was taken due to the billions of dollars on the line after a very costly war. Thus, smoking was grandfathered in, and while many drugs were discovered and deemed unhealthy and addictive, the smoking industry continued to grow, causing instances of lung cancer to increase.

But even after this, does smoking fit all the criteria for being a drug? The FDA defines drugs as a chemical substance that affects the central nervous system, causing changes in behavior and often sparking addiction. Smoking does in fact stimulate the central nervous system in negative ways, as proven by the studies linking smoking to lung cancer. Smoking can cause behavioral changes, acting as a temporary antidepressant and mellowing out mood swings, and is a very addictive substance, and in some instances causes withdrawal problems. So yes, smoking does qualify as a drug by the FDA, but let's be frank, the definition the FDA put forward is vague, and we can't make something illegal just because it meets vague standards. We will have to put that aside for now.

What effect does smoking have on the economy? Smoking is a common hobby among all classes, but is especially prevalent among the lower classes due to the large amounts of financial stress they are commonly under. Smoking is also a very expensive hobby, with cigarettes costing upwards of $7.00 a carton. You can see where I'm going with this. I have come to a conclusion: The smoking industry was designed to reap profits off of addicting the lower class to cigarettes, a substance that also has terrible, life threatening side effects. This is part of a series of ventures designed to subdue the 99%, and make sure that the upperclassmen maintain their control of the population. Should cigarettes be classified as an illegal drug? Yes. Will they be classified as an illegal drug? No. The only course of action is to collectively stop smoking, something that not only puts your life at risk, but also puts your neighbors lives at risk, suppresses the populace, and makes you just another cog in the capitalist machine,. We need to reject the cigarette, move on with our lives, and be less cooperative the next time the establishment tries to do something like this again.

Sam Trickey, very ticked off at the smoking industry