If You Smoke, You Lose All Your Progressive Cred

[oberliner]

OpEd from Huffington Post

Excerpt:

But then I see some of these same people light up a cigarette.

In that one act, they lose all progressive cred with me.

They have surrendered their value system for the cigarette in their hand.

A cigarette most likely branded and marketed by an international conglomerate- the same type of international conglomerate so many of these same people I just described absolutely hate.

A cigarette made by an international conglomerate whose products poison and have killed millions both here and abroad.

Cigarettes made by American corporations who mostly contribute campaign funds to conservative Republicans- the same politicians who stand for everything progressives are against and stand against everything progressives are for.


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/russell-shaw/if-you-smoke-you-lose-al_b_36520.html

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. ...

:popcorn:

[cwydro]

60. Pass me some of that...

:hi:

[librechik]

66. the most progressive thing you can do is switch to pot.

:smoke:

works for me

:)


:smoke:


:)


:smoke:


:)


salways 4:20


cigarette smokers BLOW
marijuana smokers suck. (In a good way.)

[Lilith Velkor]

107. Yeah, because pot's not illegal and nobody ever tests for it

:sarcasm:

Fuckin' bourgeois hippies...:eyes:

[hvn_nbr_2]

96. How do you get to be first on one of these threads?

Just lucky timing? Or do you camp out on the "latest" page?

Well, anyway, I'll see your :popcorn: and raise you a :toast:

[mcctatas]

2. You bag on people with addictions...

you lose all your progressive cred....

[shadowknows69]

4. Thank you

n/t

[Viva_La_Revolution]

14. oh, SNAP!

:thumbsup:

[Synnical]

21. Exactly!

Does the writer think I LIKE being addicted to nicotine?

[lvx35]

46. No, the writer knows that if he makes you feel depressed, anxious, or angry...

...it makes it easier to quit smoking, because nobody EVER smokes when they feel those ways! (That's why when characters in movies experience hard times, they say "I picked the RIGHT week to quit smoking!") :sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm:

Seriously though, if you really smoke, read Allen Carr's "easy way to stop smoking" It hynotized me...I quit after 14 years, my GF after 16 years, my freind after 10, all from this book. Its crazy.

[elehhhhna]

57. please tell more about carr's book. What's his method?

Thx.

[pdrichards114]

94. Please tell me more about this book, if its that powerful.

[question everything]

33. This is still a free country where we are free to choose our vices

what would be next? If you are overweight? If you are not a snappy dresser (whatever that means)? If you have a facial tick? Suffer from allergy? Speak with an accent?

[Irreverend IX]

40. Why should addiction be forgiven?

Should progressives be equally forgiving to people who drive gas-guzzling SUVs to keep up with the Joneses? "Well, I know it hurts the environment, but everyone on my block has one!" How about people who invest in companies like Exxon and Wal-Mart? "Yeah, they aren't very socially responsible, but hey, I have a half-million dollar house to pay off!" Someone too weak to overcome a tobacco addiction does not deserve any sympathy while they continue to support right-wing organizations. Tolerance of such pathetic behavior needs to stop.

[Hippo_Tron]

44. Those aren't addictions

Substance addiction is a genuine disease.

[TheModernTerrorist]

77. it's still addiction

there's two types: physical and psychological, both are powerful, both have torn families apart, both have serious consequences. Alcohol, gambling, sex, etc all have varied degrees of addiction, and all have some serious consequences, and all should be treated as such.

[lvx35]

47. That's the wrong idea.

condemnation strengthens smoking behavior, support and positivity weakens it. As an ex-smoker I give you this advice: If you really want to get people away from smoking, talk about how great it is to be a non-smoker, all the things you enjoy that you can do because you don't smoke...athletic stuff, enjoying food, etc. This engenders a feeling of hope in smokers, which will make them not smoke, but your previous statements would make me want to light up right away to cool my anger.

[bling bling]

76. That attitude is a huge turn-off.

People who talk like that make me feel like doing WHATEVER it is you tell me not to because I want to be about as far away (literally and figuratively) from such snottiness as possible. In fact, it turns me off so much that I'd rather not be under the same LABEL even (such as, say progressive). I'll take a smoker ANYDAY compared to that crappy attitude. Yuck.

[rudy23]

80. "Too weak" to overcome possibly the most addictive substance known to man?

Man, that's pretty harsh. Do you know what nicotine withdrawal feels like? I don't think you'd call it "pathetic behavior" if you did.

[novalib]

84. PEOPLE ARE ABLE TO OVERCOME THAT ADDICTION!!!!!

What, exactly, are you suggesting???!!!

Are you suggesting that because tobacco is the most addictive substance known to man, that NO ONE is capable of kicking the filthy, disgusting habit of inhaling NOXIOUS, TOXIC fumes into their body??!!!

You DO know, I hope, that THOUSANDS of people -- EVERY DAY!! -- DO stop smoking!

And you also know, I hope, that HELP to kick the habit is readily available.

Remaining ADDICTED when help to kick the addiction is stupid.

[rudy23]

97. No need to scream.

I didn't suggest that no one was capable of it, I've done it myself. It was the hardest thing I've ever had to do, no doubt about it.

You go through a major chemical depression (your body being used to being flooded with endorphins and dopamine and whatnot), you have to change your entire lifestyle, you have trouble concentrating and doing good work for months, trouble sleeping, stomach and other g.i. problems, rapid unhealthy weight gain, night sweats, and the feeling that you are absolutely going to die from bursting into flames when your body cries out for nicotine.

So you're saying that if a person can't go through that, they aren't a real progressive? Do you know how many current Democratic politicians, writers, and leaders smoke?

I can't believe I'm trying to have this argument.

[novalib]

103. YES!!! That is EXACTLY What I Am Saying!!!

"So you're saying that if a person can't go through that, they aren't a real progressive?"

ABSOFUCKINGLUTELY that is what I am saying!!!

People who smoke are VOLUNTARILY GIVING THEIR MONEY to CORPORATE DRUG PUSHERS!!!

BIG TOBACCO is ALL about pushing a HIGHLY ADDICTIVE DRUG to people -- getting them HOOKED on nicotine, and then makikng them pay until they DIE a horrible, painful death!!!

Do you think that people who VOLUNTARILY GIVE THEIR MONEY to such a corporation are PROGRESSIVES??!!

I DO NOT!

[rudy23]

108. Have fun with your little group of "real progressives". I hope you take the country by storm nt

[CTyankee]

110. Not everyone has those reactions when they quit smoking. I didn't.

I think it's because I didn'thave an addictive personality or an addictive physicial sensitivity. I had smoked for 20 years and quit through great incentive and behavior modification. I didn't have any suffering at all.

I really didn't like the idea of being a smoker. I felt more negative about it than positive. I wanted a relationship with a partner who didn't smoke. I wanted to be a nonsmoker. So I became that.

Others have a terrible time and I have sympathy for them. We don't know what it's like unless we walk in their shoes.

We shouldn't judge.

[verdalaven]

105. One of the differences between Progressives and Repubs

Progressives are more tolerant than Repubs.

At least, I thought so.

[BoneDaddy]

63. Exactly

Their addiction is self-righteous narcissism. Everybody has to be as perfect as me in order for me to give them the nod of acceptance.

[rudy23]

82. Addiction is chemical. Has nothing to do with narcissism. Where in the world would you get that?

[AZBlue]

86. The OP doesn't bag on people with addictions.

Crying "but I'm just an addict with a problem" doesn't ring true and does a great disservice to those with true addictions. Yes, cigarettes are addictive - but it's an addiction that's easily overcome if you want to quit. If you're still smoking it's because you have no desire to quit, you've chosen this habit and you want to continue.

The OP makes you smokers face the facts about your support of tobacco companies (and therefore your support of Republicans) and that makes you guys uncomfortable - well, truth hurts, deal with it.

[Drum]

3. Flamebait.

And I roll my own. But thanks for passing on some stigmatizing, as if we need to import it. :eyes:

[Starbucks Anarchist]

13. I'm on your side.

:hi:

[Drum]

19. Hi Starbucks Anarchist!

:hi:

[NoodleBoy]

5. wow, I guess volunteering my time away for candidates, working with nonprofits,

and taking down sidewalk conservatives must mean I'm a Republican because of one aspect of my personality.

this reminds me of a thread I saw awhile back, where someone insinuated that if you don't support a member of the congressional black caucus for President then you're not a real progressive.

[Patiod]

98. My reaction exactly

Is smoking worse than shopping at Walmart?
Wearing a diamond ring?
Wearing a coat with a fur collar?
Eating meat?
Eating at McDonalds?
Buying Nikes?
Buying clothing made in China?
Buying clothing made in US "territories"?
Going to a Frist family HCA hospital?

[San Diego]

6. You know, the person that posted that is very uninformed.

I started smoking when I was 12 years old. I did it because my mother smoked 2+ packs a day. I thought it was 'normal.'

I first started out by stealing a smoke or two, then stealing a pack. I would skip school with a buddy of mine and smoke under the railroad tracks.

Then I started going to the corner store, telling the clerk that the smokes I bought were for my mother. They never questioned me.

I quit for a while when I was 16, but started back up in earnest after I joined the Navy at 18. It was a way to be 'cool' and to belong.

I tried to quit many, many times. Cold turkey, the patch, Nicorette gum, etcetera. I always went back after 6 or 8 weeks.

I finally (knock wood) quit just over 5 years ago.

Cigarettes are the hardest addiction to quit. Worse than heroin, so I've heard.

If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. That was my mantra in trying to quit smoking.

If you're truly serious about it, then maybe you should adopt the same mantra. You may not succeed the 1st time, the 2nd time or the 20th time.

But keep trying. Eventually it will stick.

[flobee1]

16. Cigarettes are the hardest addiction to quit. Worse than heroin, so I've heard

A good friend of mine confirmed this

He kicked booze, coke, and several other drugs
but he was never able to quit smoking, even after 2 heart attacks

[Beaverhausen]

30. Cigs are hard to quit- yet people do it everyday

I have numerous family members and friends who are ex-smokers - myself included. Most smoked for over 20 years- since they were teens.

It can be done- it's hard but it can be done.

[RebelOne]

54. I can confirm that. I have tried to quit many times and just can't.

It would be easier to give up food.

[barbtries]

111. that's me

i signed up to be a subject in a study at UCLA on giving up smoking. they gave me a test, and the way it was graded was that if you scored more than 20 you were "unlikely to quit." i scored a 22. i watched my mother die. on the day i buried my daughter i swore to quit smoking by the end of the year - my son in his eulogy had urged everyone there to try to be a better person for having known bekah.

that was july 2001. i still smoke. i can't stop smoking. saying that my tobacco addiction precludes me from being a progressive is mean and wrong. i suppose anyone who drives a car cannot be a progressive; i mean, we all know that the oil companies are making obscene profits after huddling up with cheney to write this country's energy policy. personally i can forgive y'all driving cars - i would be driving myself if i could afford it - i, too, feel the need to be able to get from one place to the next.

ah whatever

[novalib]

67. BUTT -- IT IS KICKABLE!!!!

Cigarettes are the hardest addiction to quit.

NO QUESTION.

And YET -- PEOPLE KICK THEIR ADDICTION TO CANCER STICKS EVERY DAY!!!!

There are HUNDREDS of PROGRAMS and other ways to KICK THE HABIT!!!

Remaining an ADDICT to CIGARETTES is just plain STUPID!

[Batgirl]

73. I sincerely hope

that the caps lock and exclamation point keys never crack and fall off your keyboard from excessive use.

[novalib]

83. THANKS!!!!!!

THANK YOU so VERY much for your HOPEFUL message!!!!!

[americanstranger]

112. Ouch, man.

Does get hard to read after a while, doesn't it?

I'm likin' your attitude, Batgirl. Likin' it a lot.

- as

[AZBlue]

87. Actually it's one of the easiest to quit.

The reason many, like your friend, can't quit the cigarettes is that it's his last vice. A good number of past drug addicts are addicted to either food or cigarettes because they are legal, less shameful and not as immediately debilitating. The trouble they have giving up cigarettes is not phyical, it's psychological. That does make it harder for them to give up cigarettes than a non-drug-addict but it's not impossible.

[rudy23]

99. No, I'm sorry, but nicotine is extremely chemically addictive

They release Dopamine, endorphins, and many other chemicals which block pain, increase alertness, and give the user a sense of pleasure and well-being. So when you take them away, your body isn't used to having to make up the difference, and the feeling is absolutely excruciating.

[AZBlue]

101. Yes, but it's very temporary - a week, maybe two at the most.

It's also chemical that is fairly easily removed from your system.

Unlike many drugs, which can linger for months and months and which your body never quite gets over.

[rudy23]

109. Yes "only" a week or two of feeling like you're on fire from head to toe

Even if the nicotine is out of your system, you really don't start to heal until 6 months to a year later. I was in a fog for months, and pretty depressed, too. Not sure that was all psychological.

[PsN2Wind]

26. Much like you

I started smoking when I was a kid. Went in the Navy and at nine cents a pack for Sea Stores Luckies I couldn't afford not to smoke. Anybody in the Navy at that time that didn't smoke was considered a bit odd. I quit, cold turkey, about 25 years ago. And, like Ike said, "I will never say that I will never smoke again, but I will say I'll never quit again".

[Petrushka]

36. After being a smoker for 50 years . . .

. . . I quit smoking--cold turkey--three years ago.

Having "survived" the first three days without a cigarette and, then, that first week--I knew I had it made . . . especially when I found the following website:

http://www.quitsmokingonline.com

[SeattleGirl]

7. Mr. Shaw got his behind handed to him on this one by lots of

responders over on HuffPo. Arianna took a few hits too, for allowing this to be posted in the blog in the first place.

[colorado thinker]

8. Oh please . . .

He needs to get over himself. Yes, they are made by evil corporations, so are the jeans he wears and the computer on which he types his nasty little diatribes. I reject everyone who tries to control other people's lives, Republican or progressive.

Yes, they are not good for you but what I don't see in these stories is who is going to support me when, after I quit smoking, drinking, eating unhealthy food, exercise religiously, and I live to be 110, no one will hire me to work?

I'm 52 now, and have been trying to change jobs for a year now. Thank god I still have a paycheck, but what good is it living to a ripe old age if I'm living in a box under a bridge?


Reality, people!

[Kutjara]

9. The HuffPo poster didn't think their argument through fully.

Their logic can be extended to cars, clothes, food and any number of products. Multinationals make just about everything we consume (the means of production are often exploitative, dangerous and unethical), so, by extention, you aren't a progressive if you drive, eat, wear clothes or basically live in the modern world.

[oberliner]

29. The HuffPo poster's follow-up: Philip Morris Is Infinitely More Evil than Halliburton

Excerpt from the second Huffington Post OpEd:

The exploitative, cancer-promulgating, death-dealing tobacco companies you subsidize are more evil than Nike. Or Starbucks. Or Wal-Mart. Or Halliburton.

You hate these corporations for their business practices and war machine involvement but buy from one that is a lot more evil.

That's the problem for me.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/russell-shaw/what-it-boils-down-to-ph_b_36596.html

That is from Russell Shaw again. Not sure what his politics are exactly. Or how he came to be a HuffPo blogger.

[pinto]

10. Eh. It's one blogger's opinion on Huffington. No more, no less.

It's a big blog world...:7

[JDPriestly]

11. Great post. The same applies to watching right-wing TV, etc.

Why support the liars by paying hard-earned money for their poisons.

[William769]

12. To the OpEd at Huffington Post

BITE ME!

[Starbucks Anarchist]

15. Dupe, wrong poster.

[TacticalPeek]

17. “Health nuts are going to feel stupid someday, lying in hospitals dying of nothing.”

Redd Foxx


;)

[SeattleGirl]

20. LOL!

:rofl:

[seabeyond]

22. that is funny. thanks. n/t

[Patsy Stone]

28. I say that all the time.

:)

[jus_the_facts]

35. Priceless...

:applause: :rofl:

[tritsofme]

18. Loss of "cred" by Russel Shaw? Oh the humanity!

I'm sure liberal smokers are shaking in their boots.

[everythingsxen]

23. This is a great idea! I am very excited!

Ok, so I smoke, now I guess I am a Republican. What else do I and all those other evil Republicans do...

• Drink alchohol! No more booze Progressives!
  
• Watch TV! No more TV!
  
• Play video games! No more video games for you!
  
• I eat food! Other Republicans eat food... so I guess that means no food for "real progressives".
  
• Air.. we breath air! No air for progressives, because republicans do it, so you had better not do it!
  

FFS this idiot needs to get a life. There are bigger problems in the world.

[alittlelark]

24. It took me over a year to hit 1000.

5 months - wow - good job!

[seabeyond]

25. so all people who smoke should vote republican? is this what this person is

suggesting. not seeing how that particular progressive will pull out a win. ya... he is a clever dude.:shrug:

[Mythsaje]

27. Oh, well then I think I'll just start voting Republican...

To the author of this editorial:

--NOT the OP--

Go fuck yourself.

[johnaries]

31. Anyone who makes a closed-minded judgemental statement like this

loses all "Progressive Cred" with me.

[Canuckistanian]

32. If you smoke, you're forever indebted to 'the man'

Yeah, that's right, I said it. You're just another sellout, man, to the fascist military-industrial complex!

Whoa, I just had a serious flashback.

What was I saying, man?

[comradebillyboy]

34. I was still a republican when I quit smoking

When I smoked I hated self righteous douche bags, I still do, even if they are 'progressives'. The author is just an intolerant asshole.

[fujiyama]

37. Smoking big tobacco brand cigarrates supports some very red companies

but red companies are almost unavoidable (whether it's alcoholic beverages, junk food, etc - all of which are unnecessary and in some ways unhealthy).

Some people like red meat. Some like junk food. Some like smoking cigarettes (or whatever else). Others like alcohol. Some like 'em all. These are personal vices and only affect the person doing these things to themself...and as long as the smoking isn't in front of other people that don't want to be near cigarette smoke, then I see no problem with smoking. People should be free to consume whatever they wish as long as it doesn't cause anyone else harm.

Though, I'd definitely recommend progressives rolling their own smokes. That way they're not supporting these very red companies.

[Spider Jerusalem]

38. Russell Shaw is a worthless fuckwit.

And if he was right here in front of me I'd blow a double lungful of smoke (from a handrolled Turkish cigarette...my habit doesn't support those big evil corporations) in his face while asking him how much he drives and whose political campaigns oil companies underwrite, and how much pollution and environmental destruction they've caused. And then I would laugh at him.

[mrcheerful]

39. You know this is getting rather stupid and boorish, blame all lung disease on smoking yet over look

all the other lung risk most americans face every year. In my 50 years of life I have been exposed to major lung damaging job hazards. I have done it all, Welding galvanized steel, asbestos, working on brakes and in schools as a custodian. Most schools built in the 40's, 50's and 60's used asbestos as sound proofing in band rooms and to wrap heating pipes and ducts.Did major body work dealing and breathing plastic fillers and fiberglass, before OCEA required all workers in the body repair industry wear filters. Not to mention primer spray and primer dust when sanding primer. Then theres the cleaning supplies I was exposed to while working as a custodian. Not to mention the hours I spent in traffic jams as a child and adult. Also having lived before the EPA put smoke filters on foundries, I was also exposed to non filtered factory smoke until the EPA came along. I grew up in a city with 6 GM plants and 3 foundries, which I still remember passing as a child and the smoke was so thick people had to put on their head lights so on coming cars could see them. Also as a little reminder to those who may have forgotten that DDT was the boon of mankind in the 50's and 60's so it was put on everything from crops to school children to kill pests, like lice.

Not to mention all the other chemicals used on the fields or the number of times I got dusted by crop dusters spraying farm land, not to forget mosquito control spraying after every rain storm all summer and breathing all that in.

Nope I need not worry about any of those things, all I need to pay attention to is how many cigarettes I smoke a day and how that will be the only thing that will cause lung disease is my smoking. :banghead:

[SeattleGirl]

42. My father died from cancer that was brought on by the chemicals

they used to use in dry cleaning. Now, he DID smoke, so that didn't help, but his cancer started in his intestines, not his lungs. Thank The Maker they don't use those chemicals any more.

Oh, and a woman dad worked with for years at one cleaners also died from cancer. She was not a smoker.

[hughee99]

41. Man, he must hate those "Red" companies... unless

they're selling one of his books...
"That's just a taste. Buy it now on Amazon.com, Walmart.com and Barnes & Noble.com."

or advertising for one of his regular gigs
"My duties as regular contributing columnist for the Smart Investor section of the Charles Schwab Web site were fun and rewarding."

For those who don't know, Schwab is a big-time repuke.
http://www.newsmeat.com/billionaire_political_donations/Charles_Schwab.php

I got this information off his website www.russellshaw.net.

[rudy23]

93. HAHA!!! n/t

[WilliamPitt]

43. Fuck that

Wanna question my cred?



Beat that with a stick.

Along with the half-million words I've written since, the progressive campaigns I've worked on, the orgs I've worked with, etc.

I am, as we speak, smoking.

So whoever wrote that shit can bite me. Twice.

[mattclearing]

68. Yeah, it's a pretty stupid thing to say.

If there's one thing a person does that loses them all credibility in the eyes of a certain beholder, then clearly the beholder has some difficulty distinguishing black and white from gray. An individual's political/moral compass is not a zero sum game.

Quitting smoking is one the hardest things I've ever done. Some dumbshit hypocrite-baiter who jumps out and says, "Gotcha! Your cigarettes are a contribution to the right, therefore, you are not liberal," needs their pundit license revoked.

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

45. From An Angle Of Irony, It Appears The Author Has Given Up Their Progressive Cred, And Insteaad

traded it away for sheer stupidity.

[justice1]

48. In the words of Katie Couric, "Bite me".

Now, there is someone I never thought I would quote.

[northofdenali]

49. Not a complete excuse, but I know lots of people

including myself, who've quit many, many times....

Most employer-provided insurance plans will NOT pay for stop-smoking medications, including Zyban, the Patch, Chantix, etc. Sure, they'll cover the cost of everything, including your surgery etc., once you begin to have heart failure, emphysyma, other breathing problems, lung cancer, etc. But help you quit? BWAAAAAAAAAAHAAAAAAAAAA!!!!

Those of you who feel you'd be successful on Zyban, get your Doc to prescribe Wellbutrin. As it is an antidepressant, you'll have to inform the doc that you're very depressed about trying and failing to quit....... but it is the EXACT SAME FORMULA under a different name than Zyban.

Chantix is very new, and works very differently from the Patch or oral meds. Their website is informative and both hubby and I are starting their program. http://www.chantix.com

Putting down people with habits is disgusting, however, and makes one much less than progressive. I know a lot of nonsmokers who have eating disorders that turn me off, attention disorders that annoy me, etc. I don't down them for it, and distance myself rather than putting them down. If asked, I'll provide helpful information.

Except for tailgaters, they get a very vivid piece of my mind.

[kiki]

50. Anyone here eat chocolate?

If you do, look into slavery in cocoa farming.

Anyone here use a mobile phone?

If you do, find out about the exploited workers who mine coltan, an essential component of every cellphone.

Oh, and I sure hope none of you good and true liberals drive cars. For that matter, I've heard that many energy companies aren't exactly friends of the planet either, so maybe it's time to boycott electricity.

You could argue that anybody who uses any of the modern conveniences of the Western world has no right to claim to be a progressive. Everyone who enjoys the luxuries available in wealthy countries does so on the backs of those living in poorer countries, to some extent.

[rucky]

51. How about big ears? n/t

[mmonk]

52. Judging the character of people based on whether they smoke

is much more of a loss of progressive credentials with me. You can truly hate me and lie about me and say bad things about me but I remain a progressive and the person that says I'm not remains a liar.

[proud2BlibKansan]

53. Oh (cough) give it a rest

(cough) (cough)

[DiverDave]

55. If you don't think like me, you cant be a democrat.

Sheesh, what a maroon (with apologies to Bugs Bunny)

[La Lioness Priyanka]

56. fucking judgemental horseshit.

all of a sudden progressives are against addicts now?

[sinkingfeeling]

58. Shut up! Name one person in America that doesn't use, wear, drive, eat, or drink

something made by an international conglomerate. It is my belief that part of being 'progressive' is the preservation of individual liberty.

[Beelzebud]

59. Nanny State Control Freaks are not liberals.

[novalib]

61. ADDICTS Who Support Corporations That ADDICT!!

AbsoFUCKINGlutely!!!

People who suck cancer sticks and fill their own lungs with NOXIOUS TOXIC smoke (before they exhale it into the atmosphere and POLLUTE the air!)are just like junkies who support drug-pushers!!!

BIG TOBACCO is nothing more than a HUGE drug-pushing CARTEL that is in the business of HOOKING NEW ADDICTS and KEEPING them addicted!!!

Every dollar a cancer-stick sucker pays for a tobacco product goes DIRECTLY into the pockers of the PUSHERS!!!!

AND --- it's not as though there are HUNDREDS of programs and other ways to STOP!!!

No Progressive Cred for cancer-stick suckers!!!!!

[dionysus]

88. did you skip your thorazine today?

[novalib]

89. WTF???!!!

Thorazine is used to treat certain EMOTIONAL or MENTAL CONDITIONS???!!!

Why the FUCK would I be taking THORAZINE???!!!

I do NOT have hiccups, I am NOT anxious, and I am NOT nauseated!!!!

I do NOT have ANY REASON to take something like thorazine!!!!!!!

[snooper2]

102. how bout just taking a couple ludes?

nt

[novalib]

104. LUDES???!!! WTF??

I HAVE NOT NEED FOR LUDES!!!

[BoneDaddy]

62. These are the type of liberals who scare me

I do not smoke but crap like this amazes me. There is a portion of liberals who are part of the "perfect life" crowd. No vices, no drugs, no alcohol. Total virtuous, self righteous prigs who bore the hell out of me. Transparent plastic know it alls.

[RetroLounge]

64. Thanks for the reminder

I think I'll go have a smoke now...

RL

[radfringe]

65. I'll post a response when I return from having a smoke

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

69. Hitler must have had great "progressive" cred.

He hated smoking and wouldn't allow anyone to smoke in his presence. Also, he was a vegetarian.

[BlooInBloo]

70. Saw that a coupla days ago - will never take nonsmoking nazis seriously again.

[AnnInLa]

71. bullshit

Whoever wrote that is wearing clothes, eating food, driving a vehicle, using a bank account, purchasing medicines.......all supported by American companies/conglomerates.

[Annces]

72. I guess even a saint could be a smoker

But I think it says something about a person, some flaw. However people that don't smoke will have their flaws too, that is part of being human.

[Batgirl]

74. I'd rather take my chances with the smokers

than with the liberal authoritarians who feel they occupy a lofty enough position, free of vices, which entitles them to manage all the unsavory behaviors that other, less-good liberals engage in.

[mongo]

75. Finally! A litmus test for progressives!

That deeply probes their values and ideals!

:sarcasm:

[Gregorian]

78. Sibel Edmonds smokes.

And I would smoke still, if it weren't addictive and deadly.

Oh for an Export A.

[Spirochete]

79. I wonder if this person

is a Chewlies gum representative or something...

:shrug:

[Lyric]

81. I love threads like this! Helps me flush out all of the

Fascist, judgmental morans so I can add them to my Ignore list, where they belong.

Thanks!

[tuvor]

85. I wonder if that was written over a hot cup of java or a fine merlot.

This ex-addict is happy to extend an enthusiastic middle finger to Mr. Shaw.

[LeftishBrit]

90. I don't smoke; dislike being around cigarette smoke; and think smoking is definitely bad for health;

BUT what has it got to do with being a progressive, or non-progressive? The arguments here would apply to an awful lot of consumer goods. E.g. given that oil is a trigger for war, is it similarly 'non-progressive' to drive?

I've known several people who died of smoking-related illnesses, and I would definitely recommend that people not smoke, or quit if they can; but it's a health issue, not a political one. And ultimately a personal choice.

[otherlander]

91. Giving money to establishments that kill thousands of people?!?!??

OMG!!!1 THAT'S Horibul!

So I assume that the author doesn't pay taxes?

[novalib]

92. OF COURSE HE PAYS HIS TAXES!!!!!!!

Of course the author pays his taxes!!!!

If he didn't pay his taxes, he would be thrown IN PRISON!!!!!!

But people who PAY MONEY to the DRUG PUSHES KNOWN AS BIG TOBACCO do so because they CHOOSE to.

NO ONE is going to throw anyone in jail who STOPS SMOKING!!!

[pdrichards114]

100. You seriously need to chill out.

[novalib]

106. I HATE It!!

I just HATE it when other people presume to TELL me what I NEED to do!!!

I am an ADULT and I am PERFECTLY capable of deciding what I need to do!!!

How would YOU like it if I were to tell you that you NEEDED to do something??!!

[americanstranger]

113. Like quit smoking?

Hmm?

- as

[name not needed]

114. And yet, you still have temper tantrums.

[JacksonWest]

95. He's a "blackerry" blogger for AOL and TIme Warner.

Don't talk to me about Cred. His blog entry on Huff is next to a banner ad for an American Express credit card. Does he drink Coca Cola? Does he watch professional sports sponsored by Nike? He's losing a lot of cred with me. What a fucking fuck ass. The democrats are back in power...so we're going to start going after big tobacco again? Why?!!! What a fuck tard ass clown taint stain.

[mogster]

115. If you're a progressive and care wether smoke gives you 'cred' or not

Maybe you're not that progressive after all, but on the way backwards to teen age. There are better reasons for stopping to smoke, but in the end of the day, there are worse things you could do in your life. IMHO.

[conscious evolution]

116. I'll quit smoking when you quit

using products that use petroleum in any way,shape or form.
The food you eat?Was it grown using petroleum based pesticides,herbicides or fertilizers?Was it cultivated and harvested using tractors that use oil?was oil used to process it in way?Was oil used to transport it from farm to store?Does the store you buy it from use,sell or have anything in it made from or uses oil?
Does the vehicle you use use gasoline or oil?Was it made with parts that contain plastic?Do you use roads that are made from petroleum based asphalt?Was oil used in the construction of the road?If so then get off your ass and Walk.Don't even use a bike unless it was no oil whatsoever was used in its manufacture
The clothes you are wearing.Are they made from oil based synthetics like polyester or rayon?Is the cotton used in them free of any type of oil in its manufacturing process?
No?

Quit using oil in any shape or form and then talk to me about using tobacco.
Until then don't try to question my progressive values.

And if you insist on doing so then
FUCK YOU AND THE HORSE YOU DID NOT RIDE IN ON!!

[Bjorn Against]

117. I am a non-smoker, but I recognize smoking is an addiction...

It may not have been a very progressive decision to start smoking, but when nicotine has been proven in studies to be more addictive than heroin I think we need to recognize that it is not as easy for smokers to quit as we would like it to be.

So yes, smokers can be every bit as good of progressives as you or me. There are all kinds of things that contribute to the corporations, and harm our environment and the truth is that unless we are living in a cabin out in the woods and growing our own food without any use of chemicals or fossil fuels we too have our own sins which do not coincide with our ultimate agenda. There is a little bit of hypocrisy in all of us because none of us are perfect and we would all like to be, so lets try to correct our own problems before we condemn others for theirs.

That being said I do think we need to fight tooth and nail against the tobbaco industry.

[wakemeupwhenitsover]

118. I'm going to lock this.

Sorry, but we've had enough threads about smoking for today.

best,
wakemeupwhenitsover
DU Moderator