Teenage Smoking
In a society where it is not unordinary to see a ten year old child smoking a cigarette in public, where large tobacco companies sponsor all big sporting events and where smoking advertisements are everywhere you look, how can it be understood that what is going on is a form of suicide. Smoking is comparable to a serial killer; a cigarette acts as the weapon used by tobacco companies and its victims subjecting themselves by their own free will to participate in the crime. The governments of the United States and many other countries have chosen to regulate addictive substances, like cigarettes, via taxation; minimum-age purchase laws; restrictions on consumption in schools, the workplace, and public places; and stiff fines for driving under the influence of alcohol. The prices of these substances will rise because of taxation; other forms of regulation, and bans. Thus, measuring their responsiveness to price is important in determining the optimal level of taxation and the impacts of legalization. Contrary to conventional wisdom, studies find that the consumption of addictive substances is quite sensitive to price. Teen smoking has been increasing since 1991. There are economic, psychological and sociological f
These advertisements also give teenagers the impression that if they smoke the brand of cigarettes advertised on his helmet, they will end up being just like him. Thus illustrating that much work must still be done to decrease the number of teen smokers. Psychologically, teens become addicted to the relaxing, familiar sensation of handling a cigarette, the taste and watching the smoke. (Neergaard, 1999) Heath activists are accusing the tobacco companies of lying when they say that they do not target teenagers. (Barnaby, 1997) The factor that increases female smoking; to stay thin, is also the leading reason that more females smoke than males do. New Brunswick and Quebec have shown to have the two highest rates for the illegal sale of cigarettes. This number is still on the rise as, in 1995, of 50 depanneurs in Montreal visited in a study, and 98% of them sold cigarettes to teens. (Taylor, 1997) Quebec however, remains the province with the greatest number of teen smokers and the highest rate of illegal sales of cigarettes in Canada. In Marlboro advertisements for example, the viewer sees a beautiful country scenes, wild horses galloping and cowboys around a fire or on horseback. The Canadian Government has been attempting to put a stop to tobacco industries using teen idols in selling their products, by passing Bill C-71, a legislation that forbids tobacco companies from putting up signs for events in which they sponsor. Advertisers are experts at reaching the unconscious of teens. Prenatal exposure to smoking has previously been linked with impairments in memory, learning, cognition, and perception in the growing child. From 1988 to 1996, there was a jump in teen smokers.
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Acceptance Essays
