Scared Into Stopping Smoking
The NHS Smokefree adverts that are currently played on TV are horrendous and disgusting. They feature children and are meant to guilt-trip people in to giving up smoking. See an example below:
Now, I dislike smoking intensely. I hate the smell and everything about it. There is no doubt that it is unhealthy. But I think that it is up to individuals to make their own choices in life, about whether or not they smoke or drink or frankly, do pretty much anything.
People should be informed of the dangers of smoking (and drinking). They should be informed in the most graphic ways necessary to make the dangers of smoking known.
Adverts like this, however, are just wrong. They are propaganda. They have no information on the dangers of smoking, just the vague insinuation that you will die if you smoke and your kids (if you have any) don’t want that to happen, obviously. But it also implies that if you don’t have kids your life doesn’t matter.
The issue with this advert is that it plays on fear to make people smoking, rather than education to allow people to take their own decisions.
Dunno – the more disgusting an ad is, the sooner I get the next fag going. But thats’ a perverted smoker’s mind, to be sure.
Since you deceided to comment on RBS I find myself drawn to look at some of your other ‘articles’.
Now whilst I appreciate your viewpoint that people should be able to make up their own minds, do you not think that is a very simplistic view? in relation to this post, have you ever considered:
1. There are a lot of people that aren’t actually capable of knowing what is best for themselves (i.e. not smoking), and need to be helped out/forcefully moved down the right road.
2. When smokers are queueing up for and expensive NHS treatment of their cancer, who picks up the bill? The NHS has a very serious future funding problem, it cant afford to pay for the services it provides for free and it is significantly cheaper trying to stop people smoking rather than curing/comforting them during a very painful cancer treatment.
Thunder, and I am not looking to attack you, but these articles really could be better developed if they were actually a considered opinion rather than a rant about what is immediately in front of you instead of considering that as part of a significantly bigger picture.
Maybe I am struggling to see what the value is in producing such one sided material.
“Now whilst I appreciate your viewpoint that people should be able to make up their own minds, do you not think that is a very simplistic view?”
No, it’s not a simplistic view. It’s the correct one.
“1. There are a lot of people that aren’t actually capable of knowing what is best for themselves (i.e. not smoking), and need to be helped out/forcefully moved down the right road.”
Do you even know how patronising you sound?!
But even if people don’t know what’s best for them, there should be absolutely no force or coercion to make them stop doing something that is legal – eg. smoking. Education should be provided so that people know how bad smoking or anything else may be for them – but it is their choice whether to stop or not.
“2. When smokers are queueing up for and expensive NHS treatment of their cancer, who picks up the bill? The NHS has a very serious future funding problem, it cant afford to pay for the services it provides for free and it is significantly cheaper trying to stop people smoking rather than curing/comforting them during a very painful cancer treatment.”
Smokers have already paid for this through the (growing) tax on cigarettes. This raises billions, which easily covers the costs of their treatment. Plus, of course, they pay tax on their earnings.
Again, I’m not against educational advertising. That I think MUST be done. I am, however, opposed to this sort of fear-based advertising where none of the effects of smoking are mentioned except for death, especially with the use of child actors and voiceovers.
I believe in libertarianism, in people making their own, educated, choices.
“Maybe I am struggling to see what the value is in producing such one sided material.”
My posts are usally (relatively) considered opinions. Maybe you just don’t get the point of blogging?
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