Political Cortex: Brain Food for the Body Politic

That's right. I've even attempted to show them how others might suffer because much of our public resources are dedicated to addressing smoking-related diseases and addiction in lieu of more productive areas like education, overall healthcare, environmental preservation, etc.

Gratefully, my youngest son has already developed an outspoken distaste for it all. If someone is smoking near us, and he catches a whiff, well... stand back, because he let's rip with an, "Ewww! That smoke is disgusting!! Let's get outta here!" and I have to admit that I make no attempt to silence him since I feel the perceived audacity of his public appraisal pales in comparison to the audacity of someone who feels they have a right to force me  -- or worse, my kids -- to suck up their toxic, car-exhaust breath.

Luckily, my hometown (NYC ROCKS!!!) has banned smoking from all enclosed public and private commercial spaces. Nevertheless, my (perhaps radical) desire for the elimination of tobacco production altogether, a dream that will likely never come true, was at least reinforced by my brilliant son who asked very innocently, "Dad, why do they make this stuff?"

Excellent question, my boy! One that I don't think I've ever actually asked or heard asked by another. It's just one of those things that is 'understood'! Or is it?

So I thought I would give him the rundown -- about how the lethal health affects of smoking weren't known when people first started smoking -- and how some people are stricken with a destructive 'addictive' personality or sense of denial, and that there are liberties that allow us to choose to smoke or not even though it inherently invades the airspace of others and yadda, yadda, yadda, and blah, blah, blah...

Whahh? Who am I kidding? Besides the peripheral fact that my son hadn't a clue what the Hell I was trying to say, the nonsense I was spewing had absolutely nothing to do with "Why they make this stuff."

So I had to ask the question to myself. "What IS the motivation to 'make this stuff'?" Is it to fill a need in society? Is it a simple matter of creating a 'supply' for the clear 'demand'?

No way: In fact there is only ONE REASON why this lethal, sickening, addictive, polluting, invasive stuff is made:

The ONE REASON: There are people out there who are willing -- nay desirous -- of killing people for money. They get paid, and people die. Lives are destroyed. Pockets are filled. It's that simple.

Now, I'm sure many of you out there are saying, "Well DUH!! You just figured that out?" while others chide, "Nonsense! No one wants to kill for money. That's just their job -- and one that has been around for hundreds of years. It's not their fault people choose to smoke. Get off their back."

Okay, if you don't think there is murderous intent (or at least a flagrant lack of concern for the resulting illnesses and deaths), consider this:

1) Tobacco Execs know full-well the health implications of using their 'stuff'.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention there are an estimated 44.5 million adults who smoke in the US. Among them 8.6 million have had a tryst with smoking-related illness. Smoking is the prime culprit in many respiratory diseases including lung cancer.

[...]

Cigarettes are the only products, which kill more than half the consumers that buy them.

2) Worse, they target children so the flow of loot continues as their products murder their old cash cows.

3) Tobacco Producers have consistently lied about and denied the devastating health effects of smoking and exposure to second-hand smoke.

For 50 years, big tobacco has "lied" to the American public about the devastating health effects of smoking, a US judge ruled last week. That's a moral victory... Sadly, the ruling will do little to remedy the problem of tobacco use.

4) And to top it all off, now they've INCREASED the physically addictive substance found in their 'stuff' (Nicotine) in order to prevent those who would prefer to quit from doing so.

Nicotine levels in cigarettes manufactured in the US have increased by 10 percent over the last six years, a report by the Massachusetts Department of Health said Tuesday. Nicotine is the main component in cigarettes that is responsible for increasing addiction in smokers.

[...]

"We in public health have tried to spend a lot of time figuring out why people don't stop smoking," said Lois Keithly , director of the Massachusetts Tobacco Control Program . "It is more difficult to quit when there is a higher amount of nicotine in the cigarette."

Addiction to tobacco smoking is the number one habit in the world. It is a notoriously difficult one to curb since the nicotine in the cigarette smoke binds to nicotinic receptors in the brain.

These receptors in turn stimulate the reward pathway in brain circuitry. The activation of this pathway gives a pleasurable and contented feeling, which gradually transforms into a vicious cycle of craving and withdrawal... [and that makes] it harder for them to quit smoking."

The people who 'make this stuff' are evil -- plain and simple. There is no nuance to a situation where people are knowingly benefiting from the destruction of human life.

And that was the eventual answer to my son -- the unvarnished truth -- the REAL answer to his question: The people who run these companies and 'make this stuff' are evil and they have no problem making tons of money at the expense of others' health and lives. Their greed kills people. (Though modified through a metaphor using supervillains and superheroes -- along with our desired roll in this epic)

They are the villains. And it is our job to serve as the HEROES -- to stand up and fight against those would seek to destroy and harm others for the sole purpose of personal self-gain.

The world needs more superheroes!