No one is questioning why addicted people keep smoking. We’re questioning why non-addicted people start smoking.
Comment on Anon discovers cigarettes
Rooskie91@discuss.online 1 month ago
Some of y’all have never been addicted to anything and it shows.
kkj@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 month ago
echodot@feddit.uk 1 month ago
Yeah you say that like it’s a character flaw.
“You’re worthless suckers have no vices”
Rooskie91@discuss.online 1 month ago
I’m saying that the person in the green text is judging people for going through something they have literally no experience with.
Obviously addiction is bad, but that doesn’t mean the people who become addicted are stupid or make bad decisions. The way addiction works means there is no choice. If it was as simple as making a choice addiction wouldn’t exists.
Robust_Mirror@aussie.zone 1 month ago
I think the issue they’re having is why are there still young people that smoke, regardless of income, demographic, race, area, every category has some amount of young people smoking. You can’t explain them ALL away by lack of education, unideal upbringing, etc etc.
My mum always said when I was growing up she believes no one will smoke soon since we have so much education on it in school. Yet I’m 37 and teens are still starting smoking. I live in what is considered a fairly rich and well educated area. They’re not addicted before they start. They do have a choice. It is as simple as making the choice not to start. They’re not in a situation that they don’t know better.
We shouldn’t have as many people under 40, under 30, under 20 smoking as we do.
thebestaquaman@lemmy.world 1 month ago
I would like to draw your attention to this truckload of stupid shit teenagers have done despite knowing better. Let’s not underestimate the capacity of the developing mind in making bad decisions despite having all information necessary to evaluate exactly how bad the decisions are.
Rekorse@sh.itjust.works 1 month ago
Thats nonsense. If there was no choice noone would ever quit anything. People need to acknowledge that bad choices got them into the addiction so they can recognize and avoid triggers while sober. Doesnt mean someone’s a bad person, we all make mistakes daily, some bigger than others.
You are right its not as simple as making a choice, but one can’t recover from an addiction without personally choosing to do so. Its essential to the process and generalizing all addicts as helpless doesnt serve anyone.
rickyrigatoni@lemm.ee 1 month ago
Actually, addicts chose to be addicted when they chose to ingest addictive drugs before they were addicted. Hope this helps ♥
Rooskie91@discuss.online 1 month ago
Wow, the world is so black and white! No nuance or context at all, you can just call everything like you see it. You’re so smart for being able to see the world one dimensionally. Thanks for the help 🙏
You must be a trump voter.
Machinist@lemmy.world 1 month ago
Absolute statement like that coming from an obvious place of smug ignorance is always entertaining.
I look forward to your debate with others in this thread.
UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 1 month ago
Vices are social taboos, not iron laws. And if you haven’t ever transgressed, I gotta wonder what kind of life you’re living (particularly in a society that’s puritanical in its ethics)
echodot@feddit.uk 1 month ago
So unless you commit a crime of some kind you are not a real person? I don’t understand what arguement you’re trying to make
h3mlocke@lemm.ee 1 month ago
This MF’ER so scared they ain’t never even jaywalked 🤣
SoftestSapphic@lemmy.world 1 month ago
You sound like you would actually benefit from drugs lol
Loosen up ffs
MutilationWave@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 month ago
I commit crimes on a daily basis. I’m skeptical of people who follow all laws without thinking. Do you really never speed while driving or jaywalk?
SoftestSapphic@lemmy.world 1 month ago
IMO if you go your whole life not trying drugs you’re robbing yourself of important experiences.
Everyone should known what addiction feels like, even if it’s just the slight nagging of a cigarette.
Everyone should do a psychedelic at least once, most people who have had a positive trip rank it as one of the three most important experiences of their life along with things like the birth of their child.
dash_jackson@lemmy.ca 1 month ago
Everyone’s owes it to themselves to do heroin once.
nomy@lemmy.zip 1 month ago
Just a little PCP, once.
SoftestSapphic@lemmy.world 1 month ago
This unironically
I’m saving my heroin arc for retirement
echodot@feddit.uk 1 month ago
Sorry I’m having difficulty reconciling those two sentences. Because personally I don’t think the future version of me would like to have lung cancer, it sort of feels like it would be a detriment to my life goals.
SoftestSapphic@lemmy.world 1 month ago
Smoking 1 pack of cigs doesn’t give you lung cancer
I understand being afraid of things as a defense agaisnt trying them though, it’s a very human response
Robust_Mirror@aussie.zone 1 month ago
Despite understanding your general point, I can’t say I agree with this. I think the issue is understanding that your experience is not everyone’s experience.
Addiction isn’t a mild curiosity, it’s a disease that can and does destroy lives. The notion that “everyone should know what addiction feels like” downplays the immense suffering, loss, and trauma it causes for individuals and their families. You don’t need to burn your hand to understand fire is hot and you don’t need to become addicted to appreciate the power of compulsion, craving, or loss of control. Empathy, literature, conversation, and observation can teach that to a very high extent without the risk. To me this is like injecting something that intentionally causes cancer just to see what it’s like to be a cancer patient/survivor.
Psychedelics are powerful and not universally positive. Yes it’s true many people have profound, life-changing insights from psychedelic experiences, but others experience terrifying, traumatic, or destabilising trips. For those with underlying mental health conditions (which may be undiagnosed), a psychedelic can tip the balance in a lasting and damaging way. There’s no undo button. It’s not a one size fits all rite of passage.
I don’t believe living a rich, meaningful life is simply about ticking off extremes. It’s about integration, understanding, and self-awareness. You can live deeply and wisely without ever ingesting a substance that alters your brain chemistry. Meditation, grief, love, art, parenting, solitude, etc. There are many things that can produce life altering insights without putting your body and mind at risk.
“Experience as much of the human experience as we can tolerate” sounds noble, but some things should not be tolerated lightly. There’s a difference between pushing your boundaries to grow and deliberately dancing with danger. The idea that the future version of yourself will thank you for trying a drug might be true in some cases, but for many that future self is wishing they’d never touched it. I’ve seen it first hand.
The human experience is vast and worth exploring, but not all experiences are equally safe, wise, or necessary to live a rich and meaningful life. You couldn’t pay me any amount of money to go caving and I don’t think my life will be significantly worse having not experienced it.
SoftestSapphic@lemmy.world 1 month ago
You did a great job of ignoring the word “tolerate” in my comment.
SparroHawc@lemm.ee 1 month ago
Although I understand the sentiment, I like how my brain works and doing anything to impact it is something I find very, very not appealing. On top of that, there’s a good chance I am especially susceptible to addiction. I’d rather not tickle that particular tiger’s tail, thank you very much.
Nothing against the people who enjoy partaking; it’s just not for me.
SoftestSapphic@lemmy.world 1 month ago
In order to do things people need to overcome the fear of doing things, there are plenty of other great way to improve yourself in that regard if you do ever want to try new unknown experiences.
Maybe one day you will feel safe enough to give something a try, and there are even ways of temporarily altering your mental state to a lesser degree without drugs.
Uruanna@lemmy.world 1 month ago
Everyone already knows at least sugar. And after that, coffee and alcohol.
Tiger@sh.itjust.works 1 month ago
And social media, online shopping, phone usage or similar.
UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 1 month ago
Idk about alcohol. I’m on the other end of the spectrum with that one. Reflexively loathe drinking because I associate it with feeling like shit in the morning. I usually only touch the stuff when people shove a drink into my hand.
Reddfugee42@lemmy.world 1 month ago
Just say “misery loves company”
SoftestSapphic@lemmy.world 1 month ago
It’s possible to have a healthy relationship with drugs.
It takes more mental fortitude and mental self-improvement than most people are willing to put in tho
Whats_your_reasoning@lemmy.world 1 month ago
I think I see what you’re saying. To go through addiction is to experience life from a novel perspective. If one’s goal is to experience all life has to offer, if they want to touch the very extremes of human existance, “getting an addiction” would probably go on their bucket list. It produces both highs and lows that no other experience can emulate, and has enabled you personally to grow into a wiser, more complete person. I can dig that.
I’m just not sure how many people here are ready to consider taking their own lives to that far of an extreme. Not everyone in a theme park wants to ride the most intense roller coaster, yet they still have a grand time at the park. In the same way, many people are perfectly content without touching the fringe edges of human experience… and that’s a perfectly fine and valid way to live.
SoftestSapphic@lemmy.world 1 month ago
I’m a Stoic and a Hedonist, IMO i get one life and then i go back to nothing forever. I owe it to myself to fully explore my world, mind, and body the the full possible extent before i get snuffed out for eternity.
Rekorse@sh.itjust.works 1 month ago
Being a drug addict doesnt mean homeless on the streets. Also many people have tried hard drugs without realizing it. Adderall feels remarkably like methamphetamine. Vicodin and oxy feel very much like heroin. Benzos like Xanax are some of the most addictive substances weve created, causing seizures in those who quit cold turkey. Alcohol is still one of the most potent substances and causes numerous problems for nearly all parts of society.
I never understood alcohol being legal and promoted while all the other drugs were demonized. Its inconsistent at best.