A friend who passed away leaves a lesson

[ckissick]

There have been so many threads on friends/family members who passed away. I thought I'd add my story, but with a lesson in mind. The lesson? Don't smoke. I'd bet many of you smoke, mostly younger Pelicans.

My wife's good friend's husband smoked 3 packs a day since he was a teen. He got lung cancer and died recently. He was 45. Teens who start smoking think if they die, they'll be old, anyway. 45 is not old. And his kids, a 9-year old girl, and 4-year old twin boys, are too young to lose their Daddy. I'm not one to lecture people on their vices, but when I saw those beautiful kids at the funeral...

They say there is a 1 in 6 chance you'll die of lung cancer or other smoking related diseases if you smoke. I wonder how many teens would smoke if, to be allowed to smoke, they had to sign a contract to play a round of Russian roulette on their 45th birthday.

[Joeaksa]

Totally agree. Seen it happen far too often. My Mother passed from smoking and I really hate it, but try to tell that to the addicts.

Yes, I did say addicts. The tobacco companies have continued to push this drug and even added more chemicals to make the nicotine go into their blood stream even faster.

Sad to see it but 99% of the people do not quit until they want to quit and in many cases its too late by then. Wish more people would wake up and realize what this drug does to your body.

Joe

[Rick Lee]

I haven't seen or known too many people who smoke that much. If you smoke three packs a day, you're a true believer and nothing is gonna stop you. I smoke a pack in about 2-3 days and most of the smokers I know smoke about on that level. Not saying it's great. But it's a whole different ballgame from the multiple packs per day crowd.

[Zef]

What can you expect when you smoke...It's so logical.....

[Aerkuld]

My Father has never been a heavy smoker maybe five or six a day tops. He would only smoke a pipe or small cigars, just didn't like cigarettes and all the crap that gets added to them. But late last year his doctor discovered a potential problem which was suspected to be cancer. Upon further investigastion it turned out to be a very - and I mean VERY - small cancerous growth in his bladder. Obviously it gave me and the rest of the family some concern, but they did find it very early. A quick operation and it was removed and he now has a clean bill of health and no signs of anything else nasty.
The good thing to come out of this is that as soon as this was discovered he took it as a warning sign and has stopped smoking altogether. I don't know whether it was related to the smoking or just one of those things, but I do think he was very fortunate. I am not sure whether giving up smoking now will have any effect after 40 years, but it can't hurt.
I'm actually very proud of him for having the ability to stop such a long running habit.

[daepp]

Very sorry to hear of your loss - this will be esp. hard on his children.

The truth is (and you'll seldom hear it) is that between 12 and 30% of smokers dies from smoking. And for those that do, it generally subtracts 2-5 years from their lives.

I am not a smoker, bit I am tired of the anti-smoking hysteria. Nearly 90% of men born between 1920 and 1940 smoked heavily. It's a nasty habit, but the anti smoking crusade has become absurd. There are far more societal problems related to alcohol than smoking - but since most adults drink nowadays, we have no longer hear temperance crusades. And yes, I do like a bit of the grape...

IMHO of course!

[Tobra]

Heart disease will kill you faster than lung ca from smoking, simple fact.

Oh, and if you are diabetic and smoke, do yourself a favor and shoot yourself in the head.

[FrayAdjacent911]

No offense to your friend that passed away...

.. but stupid is as stupid does. Smoking kills. People know it, but they keep doing it.

Young people start doing it, thinking it'll never happen to them. They'll quit before they get any bad diseases...

[rammstein]

The anti-smoking garbage on tv, with the little hippies running around in costumes teaching "the truth", makes me want to smoke SO badly. One of these days, I am gonna get so sick of hearing from these little bastards that I will go buy a carton, put on a fur coat, buy a gun, and find them and throw raw chicken at them (that wasn't raised on a free range). After that I will go around siphoning gasoline from cars onto the ground, and then empty the recycling bins into the garbage.

Suck it hippies!

Rammstein for president '08.

[Jims5543]

My Aunt and Uncle both died from smoking in their early 50's, they left behine 3 grown up children. 2 of them are chain smokers.

Its sad to hear such young kids are left behind. Unfortunatly, I am afraid your lesson falls on deaf ears.

[Jims5543]

Originally posted by Joeaksa
Totally agree. Seen it happen far too often. My Mother passed from smoking and I really hate it, but try to tell that to the addicts.

Yes, I did say addicts. The tobacco companies have continued to push this drug and even added more chemicals to make the nicotine go into their blood stream even faster.

Sad to see it but 99% of the people do not quit until they want to quit and in many cases its too late by then. Wish more people would wake up and realize what this drug does to your body.

Joe

Yet, the FDA bans ephedrine because 12 people are too stupid to use it correctly.

[the]

Originally posted by daepp

The truth is (and you'll seldom hear it) is that between 12 and 30% of smokers dies from smoking.

You mean DIRECTLY die from smoking? Like they are trying to light up at a gas station and blow up kinda thing?

[pwd72s]

Hate to clue folks...but we all are "probaly die,,,from somethin' or oither,sooner or later". A quote from our last "Stutgeon General".

[WOODPIE]

I miss the good old days when nobody much gave a sheiitte what other people did with their lives.

There was a time like that, wasn't there? Or was it just a dream?


Ed

[daepp]

Woodpie - I share your dream.

Ramstein - you've got my vote!

[Rick Lee]

Rammstein has my vote too.

[Noney]

Originally posted by rammstein
The anti-smoking garbage on tv, with the little hippies running around in costumes teaching "the truth", makes me want to smoke SO badly. One of these days, I am gonna get so sick of hearing from these little bastards that I will go buy a carton, put on a fur coat, buy a gun, and find them and throw raw chicken at them (that wasn't raised on a free range). After that I will go around siphoning gasoline from cars onto the ground, and then empty the recycling bins into the garbage.

Suck it hippies!

Rammstein for president '08.

I'm right there with you man!!

Your plan might be easier than you think: The advertising agency responsible for all the "Truth" garbage is conveniently located just over the causeway in Coconut Grove. Crispin Porter + Bogusky has an office located just above the old Borders Books store in CocoWalk.

[scottmandue]

DAYUM, you guys are harsh...

Yeah... right... smoking cigarettes isn't bad for you? Tell ya what why don't you all take up smoking a pack or two a day then after a month run around the block then see how you feel.

I DO have to admit the anti-cigarette "truth" ads are annoying AND the the government needs to stop being our nanny AND people need to take responsibility for their actions i.e. if you eat/drink/smoke too much it will make you sick, but to fly off the handle and say cigarettes are not bad for you is a bit much.

[Noney]

Not trying to say that cigarettes aren't bad for you. It's pretty obvious that inhaling burning leaves and chemicals will eventually take its toll.

What I think we're lashing out against here is the culture that thinks the government and the media should tell us what's best for us and how we should live our lives, and that when our lives don't go quite the way we think they should, then the government and the media are clearly to blame. This is the mindset that brought the lawsuit against McDonald's for making that kid fat. This has become "The Great American Way", blaming everyone else for our actions.

PS Don't Smoke!!

[GO DAWG GO]

All of you....Your chances are far greater dying in your Porsche...You are all going to die...someway somehow...cigarettes dont help...A cell phoner will rear end you and F*ck up your Porsche, you will have a coronary and pitch over on the asphalt....Was that a Porsche related death?. Johnny Carson died from cigarette related emphasema.....at 80 years old.....He died young...what about George Burns... He should of had lip cancer 50 times....

So....Go on next years Pelican New Years day run...THATS POTENTIALLY DISASTEROUS TO YOU HEALTH>>>AND ANYONE ANYWHERE NEAR THE STREET...

Hear me!..... your all dead.....just waiting...

Have a nice day....