Mario puzo said Don Corleone was killed by the opposing Family because, he
did not agree to deal in narcotics, that is Marlon Brando for the folks who
frequent movie theaters, we cannot approach our day to day life
problems in this manner.
Alright, okay I am with you, this is a bad habit, its effects are printed on the pack itself and sellers are warned on the pack "For Adults only" We aim to close all cigarette factories, we sue left right and centre every cigarette manufacturer and persuade them to close their doors to the business.
What about the employees? What about the engineers who make the machines? What about the tobacco growers? What about the traders? Leave all this people, you say. They can take care of themselves, if not God is their counsel. What about the Government? If not us who will take care of the Governments, who is their counsel.
If government is not there who will build the roads and highways,
who will electrify our localities, who will pay the police, who will
pay the military, I can go on without end. Our Governments gets more than 30-100%, in some places more
tax from the cost of each cigarette sold by the makers. What alternate
arrangements have we thought of to offset this income to the exchequer.
No idealists' demonstrations on the roads has a clue, this source is
steady and very old income for our governments, its cash immediate and
cold. Do we envisage the amount of disturbance we are causing by
interfering with smokers and manufacturers.
Look, this whole industry can come to a standstill, every plant
manufacturing cigarettes can be closed in a jiffy, all this power is in
the hands of one person alone, this one person is capable of bringing a
revolution in the world over. Do we know who this person is? He is
the SMOKER himself!!!
No more demonstrations please, no more making fat lawyers more fat, no
more suing, no more unachieveable targets, you can take a horse to water but you can't make it drink, every mother, sister, brother, father,
friend, lover, neighbour, son, daughter can make the smoker give up
this habit. That is the only practical approach to the problem.
I have been smoking for about 4 years. I understand the difficulties in kicking this habit, I understand what I get out of smoking, maybe my sanity is due to smoking, maybe my creativity is due to smoking, maybe I am rich due to this habit, maybe I am a better person due to this habit, maybe I have better control over myself due to this habit, I see always non-smokers erupt into rages of anger, I see many an evil because of not smoking, my level mindedness is due to smoking, my self control is due to smoking, so please do let smokers have their drags. Leave them in peace, one has no need to pester them to quit because ultimately, it is a decision they have made. Everyone had a choice. It's how they exercised it.
A good article.