Why You Should Not Smoke!

I'm pretty sure that you often meet smokers during your daily activities, anywhere and anytime. In public transportation, on the road, around the mosque, around the mall, and at various other public places, they are everywhere. For those who don't smoke, it is probably very annoying when you meet person who's smoking and the smoke is directed on you. Perhaps you will say to the man, "Please do not smoke here!". and do you know what he will say? "Does this place belong to your father?" or "It's my right!" or "There's no 'no smoking sign' here, why should I listen to you?" and so many similar expressions. This circumstance (noun = keadaaan) is often found everywhere, especially in big cities like Makassar. It's very difficult to find smokers who can understand those around them. Worse, people who smoke today are not olny adults but also teenagers, children, and even women. Moreover, so many smokers don't really care about their surroundings (noun = lingkungan sekeliling). They don't even show any respect to the people who do not smoke. In fact, by ignoring people - those around them, smokers have actually helped the government reduce the population density (noun = kepadatan) (LOL). This is because those around the smokers (passive smokers) smoke more poison than the smokers themselves. This article was not created to offend those who smoke. I just want to tell you the facts about smoking. I know it'll be painful, but it doesn't mean you can't accept it, does it? ROFL. 

Now, here are the facts about smoking. There are 1.1 billion smokers in the wolrd and if this current trends continue, that number is expected to increase to 1.6 billion by the year 2025. FYI, China is home to 300 million smoker who consume approximately 1.7 trilliun cigarettes a year or 3 million cigarettes a minute. There are about 15 billion cigarettes are sold each day and upwards of 5 trillion are produced and used on an annual basis. Five trillion cigarette filters weigh approximately 480,538 Bugatti Veyrons, 25,000 semi trucks, 2,500 747s, or 10 cargo ships. Great, huh?

Let's talk about more about filter. It's estimated that trillions of filters, filled with toxic chemicals from tobacco smoke, make their way to the environment as discarded (verb = dibuang) waste yearly. While they may look like white cotton, cigarette are made of very thin fibers of a plastic called cellulose acetate. Hm, I think chemistry students understand it well. A cigarette filter can take between 18 months 10 years to decompose (verb = terurai). 

A typical manufactured cigarette contains approximately 1) 8 or 9 miligrams of nicotine. While the nicotine content of a cigar is 100 to 200 miligrams with some as high as 400 miligrams. There is enough nicotine in four or five cigarettes to KILL AN AVERAGE ADULT if ingested (verb = ditelan) whole. 2) Ambergis, otherwise known as WHALE VOMIT is one of the hundreds of possible additives used in manufatured cigarettes. 3) Radioactive lead and Polonium are both present in low levels in cigarette smoke. 4) Hydrogen Cynide, one of the toxic byproducts present in cigarette smoke, was used as a genocidal chemical agent during World War II. 

Secondhand smoke contains more than 50 cancer-causing chemical compounds, 11 of which are known to be group 1 carcinogens (noun = zat penyebab kanker). Worse, kids are still picking up smoking at the alarming rate of 3,000 a day in the U.S., and 8,000 to 10,000 a day worldwide. One in five teens age 13 to 15 smoke cigarettes. Half of long-term smokers WILL DIE a tobacco-realted death. There are even many more terrible facts about smoking. But I think it's too long to write here. 

Although most of society already know the facts about smoking as above, it does not make them stop smoking. Instead, they often excuse. Now what do you think? 

1. Why should I stop smoking? For health? Look, next door neighbor, He never smoked but still dead. Okey, do you want die happily or terribly? 
2. Wah, I can't think without smoking, my brain frezes. Okey, when you were still not smoking, could you think? 
3. How can you ask your children not to smoke if they see you smoke? 
4. Have you ever estimated how much money you spend for smoking? Let's give a simple count. Consider that one pack cigarette costs Rp 10,000,-. You smoke 2 packs cigarette a day, it means it costs Rp 20,000,- a day. Rp 600,000 monthly. Isn't it better for you to buy nutritious food with that money? 
5. I tried to stop smoking many times, but I always failed. Well, are you really serious? Have you got commitment? 

Okey, I want to stop smoking, now what am I supposed to do? Let's discuss it, LOL 

by Naskar Hansam (Hasanuddin University)