The existential questions: Why smoke e-cigarettes?

[sherid]

To the OP, this was an exquisite and honest look at why we smoke and then why we vape. I am disappointed only with the responses that once again parrot the language of the anti-smoker. I am so sorry that we are manipulated into using that language since it shows how easily society can be brainwashed. I see the usual "stinky" "filthy habit" "slave to nicotine" hogwash that has been ground into us for a couple of decades. If smokers really believed that they were so vile, it stands to reason that they would simply quit in order to appease the Puritans. Personally, I love the smell of a freshly-lit cigarette...one reason I have not completely given them up after 4 years of vaping. The other reasons include my enjoyment of that first cigarette with morning coffee and of course a defiance triggered by anti-smokers. Oh, and who really gets yellowed hands anymore? I have smoked for over 40 years and have never had a trace of yellow on my hands. I think that might have come from decades before when most people smoked unfiltered cigarettes. Really, people, you are not slaves of the tobacco companies: you made a conscious choice to start smoking and another conscious choice to not really try to quit smoking until e cigs came along.

 

[boardopboy]

E-cigarettes are not temporally bound. Lighting a regular cigarette necessarily starts a timer – like when restaurants used to have smoking sections, and you had to calculate in your head whether the food would come before you finished the cigarette you were about to light. E-cigarettes wait for you, and they’re ready whenever you are. They’re an enjoyment that exists outside of time and space that you can pick up and leave as you please.

This paragraph... made me swoon!

 

[gthompson]

To the OP, this was an exquisite and honest look at why we smoke and then why we vape. I am disappointed only with the responses that once again parrot the language of the anti-smoker. I am so sorry that we are manipulated into using that language since it shows how easily society can be brainwashed. I see the usual "stinky" "filthy habit" "slave to nicotine" hogwash that has been ground into us for a couple of decades. If smokers really believed that they were so vile, it stands to reason that they would simply quit in order to appease the Puritans. Personally, I love the smell of a freshly-lit cigarette...one reason I have not completely given them up after 4 years of vaping. The other reasons include my enjoyment of that first cigarette with morning coffee and of course a defiance triggered by anti-smokers. Oh, and who really gets yellowed hands anymore? I have smoked for over 40 years and have never had a trace of yellow on my hands. I think that might have come from decades before when most people smoked unfiltered cigarettes. Really, people, you are not slaves of the tobacco companies: you made a conscious choice to start smoking and another conscious choice to not really try to quit smoking until e cigs came along.

I am not an anti-smoke, I'm a former smoker. I started when I was just a kid and didn't know any better. Everyone smoked, and there were no warning labels on the packs then. Your statement "conscious choice to not really try to quit smoking" is unfair as hell. Cigarettes are a marvelously engineered product designed to enslave us. They are one of the most addictive substances available to us in any form. Ask your doctor.

 

[Thucydides]

Bingo!

OP, you realize this is a harm reduction sight, correct? Why in the World would you come on here and glorify tobacco to a bunch of ex-smokers that have switched to vaping? Mostly for health reasons, I might add. I smell your troll. If you really think tobacco is so wonderful, please, go back to it.

Your OP is ....ing insane.

We can disagree about smoking and its place in society without stigmatizing it. It's OK to love or to hate tobacco. I've tried to characterize my opinion on tobacco, and though it may embody a basic disagreement with your viewpoint, I don't intend for it to disparage anyone who disagrees. My opinions don't make me special or morally superior or super smart. They're just my opinions, and I'm a little bit saddened that you find them offensive.

People quit smoking for a lot of reasons. I know people who have quit smoking who can't find anything positive to say about it. I feel like by doing so, they fill their head with a lot of woulda/coulda/shoulda type of regrets. I certainly understand this sort of thinking. We all do it to some extent. I do this daily when I look in the mirror and think about how much more muscular I'd be if I had been lifting weights for the past 10 years. But I think its important not to stew over these kinds of feelings.

If you read my entire post, you'd have gotten to the part where I put vaping on a much higher plane than smoking.

 

[Thucydides]

I very much enjoyed reading your post, and agree with most of your points, though I might argue with your notion that PVs are a clear and unambiguous "step forward" in the history of tobacco/nicotine delivery systems (I don't buy into the myth of progress much anyway), in part because no human activity can ultimately be isolated apart from its role in culture, the ways in which what we do are embedded in myth and ritual in the context of a collective awareness of how the significance of such things become recognized and defined. PVs don't yet have an acknowledged cultural status on our social stage, and it's not at all clear that this will be allowed to ever become the case.

The developed, post-industrial age world suffers from the virtually universal delusion that what something "is" can be revealed by a purely empirical analysis in a vacuum, which is both epistemologically narrow and ontologically wrong. On a political level, this prevailing empiricism functions to enable the designation of quick, knee-jerk tags such as "good", "bad", "right" or "wrong", providing an ever-ready justification for the oligarchic power blocs inherent in complex capital-driven social orders to proscribe this and prescribe that. The puritanical impulse to control human behavior by decree from the top-down has merely changed tactics, substituting the god of health science for the god of Abraham. But spiritually, it's the same people doing the same thing for the same reasons. Functionally, it's what the anthropologists call "the fear of contamination", exploited for the furtherance of economic and political control.

I would opine that this civilization has no notion of what tobacco or nicotine means in the world, which is reflective of the broader catastrophic dysfunctional engagement humankind currently has with the natural ecosystems of the earth and its estrangement from the other plants and animals who live here. Anyone who's truly interested might want to, say, read Black Elk Speaks, and try to understand the meaning of the Lakota story of how the pipe came to the people.

I, too, have often used the driving analogy in discussing these issues with others. The mainstream perception that a lone cigarette smoker hovering in a 5-story parking ramp is somehow singularly "harming the environment" in the context of the many hundreds of gas-guzzling/toxic fume-emitting vehicles moving in & out of the ramp every day can only be seen as a manifestation of socially-engineered collective insanity. There is no other way to look at it.

Thanks for the kind words. I do agree with the myth of progress, yet I recognize that it is only a myth. Mythology is powerful, and the myth of progress allows us to embrace new things by mythically connecting them to tradition, heritage, and legacy. I completely agree with you about the perfidy of knee-jerk moral labels, though I'm not convinced that they're the result of capital-driven social orders.

 

[mariahpoo]

I chose to quit smoking after 30 years and start e cigs because I got tired of not being able to breathe,I'm glad you enjoyed it, I did also, but for me it wasn't about the past, I had just bought Into the propaganda that smoking would " fulfill" and give me "enjoyment" in a way kiting else could..


They didn't mention that it would screw up my " quality of life".

Wonder how many big tobacco company magnates smoke?? Not many I suspect..

Not any more... their was a turning of the tide.

 

[Thucydides]

I smoked for nearly 40 years, anywhere from 1-2 packs a day. Most of that time it was disgusting to me, but I was addicted so terribly I could never stop. It was a rare cigarette that even tasted good for most of those years. I find nothing culturally enhancing in the habit. I suspect that I, and most of us that are in my same position, are already dead because of it and just don't know it. I've ranted and raved at my children their whole lives not to do it.

It does not symbolize leisure, relaxation, fortitude, success, amorousness, nonchalance, or defiance. It is not glamorous. It is a filthy, disgusting habit that kills us and our loved ones. Cigarettes are a carefully engineered device designed to addict us and then kill us. Praise them all you want, I'll never agree.

I respect your opinions about smoking, but I must point out that smoking actually does symbolize those things. In old movies, two people would start kissing, then it would fade to black. When the story resumed moments later, the two people would be smoking. That symbolizes something. Plato disliked art because he felt that it could portray falsehoods as though they were truths. You may feel that centuries of western culture have done this with smoking, but that doesn't make the portrayal any less real.

I belong to a religion that forbids smoking, and this lends itself to a lot of holier-than-thou type of talk about smoking. I've never understood why people insist on elevating their own personal choices to a moral imperative with categorical normative force. We can move beyond smoking without stigmatizing it or demonizing it.

 

[Iffy]

– like when restaurants used to have smoking sections, and you had to calculate in your head whether the food would come before you finished the cigarette you were about to light.

A futile mental exercise, in that I'm sure, back then, that waiters/waitresses were taught two basic rules:

-Only deliver the meal after a diner has lit a cigarette
-Always ask the diner how his/her meal is only when their mouths are full

Enjoyed the OP!

 

[fourthrok]

I'm enjoying vaping in a way they can't experience with cigarettes. For me it's not a smoking cessation device, but a vastly surperior nicotine and flavor delivery system. It turned into much more than a healthier and cheaper alternative to smoking. Even if that was all it was, that's reason enough to shout about vaping from the rooftops.

Along with most of the OP...this is my feeling on the subject. I knew cigarettes were "bad" from the time I was a child...my father had quit smoking before I was old enough to know what smoking was, but all my parents' friends smoked, and many of my relatives. But I KNEW is was unhealthy. How could a person NOT know? The Surgeon General came out with the "cigarettes are bad" thing way back in 1964' I was 14 at the time...and had never smoked (but enjoyed smelling my parents' friends' cigarettes at parties and stuff...like the OP was suggesting: I equated cigarettes with being grown up, socially accepted and sophisticated) I daresay I'm among the older people in this forum...maybe not the oldest (by any means) but definitely a senior. I never knew any children my age who smoked. That simply wasn't "done" in the area I lived in...and parents would never have approved of such a thing (they would have whaled the tar out of us if they found out!). The youngest kids I knew who smoked back in the misty time of the 1950s & 1960s were around 14 or 15 when they started...and it was an act of "rebellion" for the most part. But I digress.

I chose to smoke when I was 18 because I wanted to feel "grown up" and "sophisticated". I continued to smoke for 43 years...and all but the last 10 or so I thoroughly enjoyed. I liked to smoke, but I didn't like the stains and tarry film on the walls, furniture etc. or the stale smell in the car, or burn holes in my clothes and upholstery. And I didn't like my teeth going yellow as I got older. Now I've found vaping...I've found my perfect solution. I have discovered my addiction to nicotine isn't as strong as I assumed it was. I have lowered my nicotine intake from 24-18mg. to 4mg. in under a year, and will be stepping on down to 0 nic in the coming months. I WILL continue vaping, however. Because it makes me happy. Very happy. Not everyone will understand that...but those who understood the OP's intent probably will.

 

[Extraunordinary]

I watched my Mother try to quit smoking for decades; when she was trying to quit she was a miserable "B", but when she would give up and smoke she was happy. My Mother lost her life to a bee sting about 10 years ago... a bee sting, and she wasn't even allergic; she was 51, retired and completely living the dream. This really showed me to do what you enjoy, and don't sweat the small stuff. I only wish she was around now to enjoy the brilliance of vaping, and the wondrous variety of exceptional flavors. I was the guy that said I will never quit smoking because I love my tobacco; I rolled my own for 22 years, and enjoyed specialty tobacco like Perique. I'll always be thankful to my Sister for introducing me to e-cigs, and this forum for making it possible for me to find all the greatness that is vaping! Hopefully it means I'll be around for a long time to watch my Daughter grow, and what not, but you never know when the chaotic nature of this life will come and take it all away.

 

[patkin]

Turning one's pet issues into moral ones seems to be the usual today as well as pretty disgraceful character assassinations and other disparaging commentaries based on them. For the most part, historically I've found smokers in particular to be of a more "live and let live" mentality. But, it does appear that some x-smokers who vape have fallen into that self-righteous mentality. Its been said for as long as I can remember, when referring to self-righteousness and trying to inflict their personal choices on others: "There's nothing worse than an x-smoker." Back when smoking was first being banned in work places and special rooms set aside for it where I worked, it was an x-smoker who attempted to block the provision because he had decided no one should smoke and therefore smokers should not be facilitated. But, in those days the bashing, controlling, nanny-state anti-smokers hadn't yet crawled out of their cracks so now smokers deal with not only those but x-smokers and some self-righteous vapers. Some people, as you said in your post much more eloquently, just HAVE to have something in their lives that makes them feel superior to their fellow human beings.

 

[mariahpoo]

I love the OP. I think this is a great post. There was a lot said about the way that cigs make us feel. And all true.

As for me, well I knew they were bad for me. I picked up my first cig right before my 18th birthday. I had no doubts about that. I loved cigs just as much as op for all the perceived elegance and actually "the moment" they created. However. I got stuck in the addiction. And it turned into my worst nightmare. I could not breath. I had asthma my whole life and it got worse, way worse. At the time I pick up cigs I was VERY depressed. Looking to fill a hole. And it did for a time. But a year ago, as all things go, the time had come for my cycle of tobacco use to stop. At 5-10 life threatening asthma attacks a day and several trips to the hospital at only age 34 I KNEW I was going to die. And e-cigs saved my life.

I love them even more then cigs in a way, but I am not "bound" to the addiction like I was smoking. The e cig for me is freedom to create that same moment and enjoy it without doing harm to myself and others. We are evolving, and in a way our choices do as well. And I am glad that I have it.

 

[Jerms]

So far, I'm really enjoying some of the well thought out opinions and viewpoints on this thread, and hope to see this thread grow. I hope we can avoid any attacking or name calling, just because it may be a touchy subject for many doesn't mean we can't discuss these ideas as adults. There are people on this forum who loved smoking and happen to love vaping more.

I would say smoking for me was a love-hate relationship that vaping removed the hate part. If vaping is purely a reason to stop smoking for someone that's awesome, but for me I love vaping in many of the same ways I loved smoking, plus new reasons added.

I've mentioned the reasons I loved smoking so I'll add the reasons I hated it. I love life, and want to live as many years as my body and fate will allow, and smoking put at risk my later years. Non-smokers find the smell from unpleasent to intolerable, and that was an issue with a couple girlfriends. Big Tobacco added ingredients cigs that they knew were harmful to make us more addicted to their brand. They also targeted children and denied for years the danger of their product. Those are morally repugnant actions and I'm happy to sever my relationship with BT.

I see people with severe health issues from smoking and they are so addicted they continue to smoke. I'm grateful I stopped before that was me. In the past smoking was glorified because we didn't know the dangers and the link to cancer. Now it's demonized as a result of the anti-smoking campaigns and the backlash of actions by BT. How the outside views tobacco isn't as important to me as how I feel about it. I don't regret my years as a smoker and never felt smoking made me a bad person. I'm very grateful I can enjoy nicotine in a safer and much more enjoyable way now.

Sent from my LGL55C using Tapatalk 2

 

[DC2]

Outstanding post!!

I smoked for 27 years, averaging about 6 cigarettes per day.
I smoked because I loved smoking, and I never had any intention to stop.

I didn't smoke for the nicotine though.

I smoked because I am the type of person that often needs something completely thoughtless to do with my hands.
I smoked because I am the type of person that needs to get away sometimes.
I smoked because I did my best thinking when I was smoking.
I smoked as a reason to take a break from life.

If it weren't for electronic cigarettes, I would still be smoking today.
And the only reason I switched to electronic cigarettes is because my wife would always tell me I smelled bad after a cigarette.

Truth be told, I like smoking much better than vaping...

I don't like that I don't have to go outside to vape.
I don't like that I don't have to get away from people to vape.
I don't like that vaping doesn't really have clear start and a clear finish.

I have tailored my vaping experience to help provide some of the things I miss, mostly by dripping.
But I am one of the few that would still rather be smoking.

 

[flintlock62]

Wow! Looooooooooooooong post! LOL!

 

[sherid]

Hmm. I think anyone who really really wants to quit smoking or do anything that is hindering their lives can do it. Otherwise, there would not be millions of ex smokers on this planet. It may not be the easiest thing you have ever done, but it is certainly doable. You cannot be enslaved by anything you do not allow yourself to be enslaved by.

 

[Tail11]

Good points although I don't agree with the title - I don't smoke my PV, I vape. I have removed "smoking" out of my vocabulary when I speak about vaping. To me, it is an important point especially when you have ANTZ in your audience.

 

[MiamiMom63]

I smoked for a little over 30 years. After smoking only for 10 years, I felt fine. But once you've smoked 30 years, it's not so glamorous feeling anymore. In fact, it's downright miserable feeling. I love the flavors with e-cigs, the fact that I can make my own juices and experiment with flavors sort of like cooking, and that I feel so much better physically. So glad to finally be able to live healthy again and still enjoy my vape instead of smoking.

 

[Thucydides]

Good points although I don't agree with the title - I don't smoke my PV, I vape. I have removed "smoking" out of my vocabulary when I speak about vaping. To me, it is an important point especially when you have ANTZ in your audience.

Point taken. I'm new here (though the name of the forum is "e-smoking").

 

[r77r7r]

Point taken. I'm new here (though the name of the forum is "e-smoking").

Good point- when is that going to be changed to "VAPING'?