The Australian Cigarette Packaging Change.

[Duol]

I love people who cry about smoking, and how they then have to pay for their health care in taxes.

Let's ban obesity, it causes more deaths per year than smoking, or so I've heard.
Let's ban extreme sports, heck I'm not gonna pay for some twat sho threw himself off a cliff with a mini paracheute and now broke his spine in 12 places.
Let's ban swimming! So many people drown, it's attrocious.

IF a country has a ban on smoking in public areas then smoking has little impact on other people and thus is nto too dissimilar from obesity or things like self induced diabetes or tooth decay due to lack of care.

As a smoker I couldn't care less if you sold me my ciggarettes in goldfish bowl, whatever. Sure it will dissuade kids from smoking, which is a good thing, but stop with the taxes and demonizing people who do smoke.

 

[Davrel]

Smokers are gonna smoke. This won't matter.

Yeah, true but its not about them; it decreases the likelihood that others will start smoking - you take away the "cool" aspect of smoking as much as possible and young people are less likely to take it up.

It may only have a small impact but thats still better than nothing.

 

[Keava]

BAkck then when in my country they enforced the cigg companies to put the silly info about what evil things smoking can do to you it was point of honor of each smoker to "Catch 'em all". People were gathering and trading those infos just to have full set to proudly display their dedication.

Personallyw ouldnt mind collecting images now, alwasy something new to do

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

Comes into effect July 2012?

It's looking less and less likely Kev and Co will be in power come year's end let alone be able to do shit in 2012.

 

[rokkolpo]

as if an addiction will be solved by changing the package.

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

And even more distastefully, the images they've decided to go with, the video linked in the article shows a packet with a gangrenous foot, yeah. But...is that -really- going to put smokers off?

That gangrenous foot pic already adorns out cig packs in Oz. Not as cool as the dissected brain pic, though.

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

one of the students mentioned he had to ask his granddad for help in learning how to do rollies because they're cheaper.

he should buy a rollie machine if he's that spack handed.

 

[JaredXE]

I'm a non-smoker who has voted AGAINST public tobacco bans. I think that this law is retarded. Cigarettes are a LEGAL product, that can be purchased by informed and consenting adults. So what's the fucking problem?

Cigarettes can increase your risk of cancer and lung disease.....do smokers really not know this? Do non-smokers who are thinking of lighting up really not know this? Fuck, alcohol kills more people each year, especially people who were not drinking at the time, but no one is making all beer come in a standard package with just XXX and the warning label on the package.

Leave these fucking people alone and let them smoke in peace. They aren't doing anything to you.

 

[GothmogII]

And even more distastefully, the images they've decided to go with, the video linked in the article shows a packet with a gangrenous foot, yeah. But...is that -really- going to put smokers off?

That gangrenous foot pic already adorns out cig packs in Oz. Not as cool as the dissected brain pic, though.

You know, that -does- sound cool. As were those skull packs posted earlier. If I didn't know any better I'd say there was a sneaky bit of reverse psycology going on here.

 

[squid5580]

In Canada we have had that for years. Doesn't seem to have effected much. And now stores have to hide them like porn. We can't smoke 6ft from any high traffic door. Or in parks where kids play (they have no smoking signs). Hasn't really stopped anything. I still smoke.

 

[Gebie Lerio]

I don't care if that scum thing change. You cannot change the fact that it slowly burns smokers life.

 

[JoshGod]

i dont suppose similar things will be put on alcohol and fatty foods?

 

[MelziGurl]

Having a grandmother pass away from smoking related causes and watching my grandfather pass away from cancer that affected almost every vital part of his body makes me not give a damn that smokers pay more tax. I am an ex-smoker myself and quitting only gave me more money for healthier habits.

Do I think it will be affective though? Who knows, we'll wait and see.

 

[theincurabletragedy]

Personally, from seeing the smokers in the social scene here, I think the price change is the only thing going to change anything.

Packaging changes: "these new packets are gheeey"
Price changes: problems.

 

[Korolev]

It's not going to stop smoking. It MIGHT cause some to quit, and it will probably deter some from picking up the habit. But no, it will never fully stop people from smoking.

The evidence is in and the conclusion is irrefutable - smoking damages your lungs, and raises the RISK of lung cancer significantly. It is also addictive and expensive. It bothers most of your fellow citizens. It makes your clothes smell funny.

And yet I routinely see people who are in their teens who smoke. I see university students who smoke. I see people who, having grown up in modern day western society obviously KNOW the dangers and downsides to smoking, yet still smoke.

Some people just don't think of consequences, or just don't think at all. Hence, no matter how shocking the images on the packets, people will still smoke, because the dangerous effects of smoking can take decades to manifest. And like the myth about the frog that sits in the pan and allows itself to be boiled, people will actually damage themselves so long as it is pleasurable and the damage takes a long time to show up.

But it might deter a few bright kids from smoking. Yes, I know, we've all heard about the grandmother that has smoked all her life and never got cancer. Strange you don't hear much from the grandmothers and grandfathers who DID get cancer.... oh wait, that's right, they're DEAD.

Smoking raises the RISK of cancer SIGNIFICANTLY. Yes, it is impossible to say whether or not it causes cancer for sure. Technically if you chugged a bottle of ethidium bromide, you MIGHT NOT get cancer. Same with smoking - some smokers will never get cancer, either because they don't smoke much or because they have good genes. But it raises the risk by a lot - if you smoke you are in serious danger. And it DOES damage your lungs. Chronic smoking will make your life a misery when you are older. Sure you might be laughing now - wait till your 60.

And to those who say 'I don't care, cancer can't frighten me' - take a trip to a cancer ward. Talk to those suffering from emphysema due to their smoking. And then look me in the eye and say you aren't afraid. Because if you're not, you're not too bright.

And if you say you aren't afraid of death, weeeeellllll - are you afraid of dying slowly? Painfully? Before your time? Again - you can be all macho now. You WILL feel different when you're in the doctors office hearing a diagnosis you don't want to hear.

 

[DefunctTheory]

Lighten up people, this thread is about cigarette packages, not actually smoking.

Besides...

On topic though, let them do what they do. I really doubt it will have much of an affect.

 

[SmartIdiot]

Hmm. In Britain we've had the 'shock' images on our tobacco products for a couple of years now. Rather than be off-putting it's kinda turned into a card collection game between my friends and I.

"Trade you a blackened lung for guy with a throat tumour"
"Ah I got 3 of those, how about a heart surgery?"
"Got one, although I don't have the one with a picture of mouth cancer"
"Got 2, trade you for a guy in a morgue with a sheet over his head"

We're quite sad really...

Anyway, point being is they need to keep it fresh. After seeing the same 7 or 8 images a dozen times it loses its shock value. They need to keep rotating it every few months if they really want the message to hit home. We're not stupid, we know smoking is bad for us. Yet seeing the same horrible throat tumour for the Nth time just doesn't have an impact. It's like going on the internet and stumbling across some gore from time to time. You get desensitized quite quickly.

 

[AndyFromMonday]

Yeah, true but its not about them; it decreases the likelihood that others will start smoking - you take away the "cool" aspect of smoking as much as possible and young people are less likely to take it up.

It may only have a small impact but thats still better than nothing.

I'm sorry but that's complete and utter bullshit. No matter how you turn it, shock images will not take the "cool" aspect of smoking away. What do you think is cool in smoking? Is it the package or the cigar itself? Hint: It's the cigar.

The current campaigns against social smoking(which is at what this campaign is aimed at since that's how every smoker starts) has failed and will continue to fail. Social smokers will continue to smoke in a social manner and might end up picking up smoking all together. They WILL NOT take a campaign which is bent on fear rather than information seriously. They will simply laugh and move on.

Anti smoking groups come every year at schools here trying to stop people from smoking or start smoking. Instead of engaging in a discussion with the students, showing both the good and bads and generally just informing the crowd about smoking, they choose to show some shock pictures and then start telling stories about their own "personal experiences". It was all bullshit and everyone in that gym left before the presentation was over(much to the dismay of the headmaster).

You CANNOT stop people from picking up smoking. If people in the social group they hang with smoke they will eventually pick up smoking as well. Spreading misinformation will simply strengthen their will to smoke.

Social smoking and everything after will continue age 12-13 and up and this failed campaign will continue to fail.