smoking | Cryptic Philosopher

(Inspired by the article “E-Cigarettes Can Churn Out High Levels Of Formaldehyde,” h/t Lynn.)

I’m gonna churn out high levels of whoop-ass if I hear the word “vape” again.

Here’s the thing, though: The most passionate defenders of these things (I hate the term “e-cig” almost as much as I hate the word “vape”), at least in my circles, are the people who were finally able to quit smoking actual cigarettes thanks to these things (I’m just gonna have to suck it up and say “e-cigarettes,” aren’t I?)

I can absolutely respect them for helping smokers to quit, but we’re not talking about Nicorette here. It’s a replacement for smoking that precisely mimics the act of smoking, and it’s introducing a whole new concept of how it’s “cool” to suck on a stick and exhale some sort of mist. Plus, people think it’s okay to do indoors and they have douchey new words for it.

Via AmazingSuperPowers

On the other hand (overshare of personal information alert), I will say that cigarettes were just about the only thing that kept me on my feet during my brief time in the retail business. If there’s a way to give people that sort of energy boost without the associated particulate matter, I guess that’s good. We sure as sh!t aren’t about to reconsider whether people ought to be working such insanely long hours with only two 15-minute breaks, which would be the actual sane thing to do under these circumstances.

As long as I’m being ranty, I support marijuana legalization in part because I never want to hear idiotic slang like “420,” or metaphorical uses of the term “herbal remedies,” ever, ever, ever again.

Image credit: Wes + Tony [CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 US], via AmazingSuperPowers.

You shouldn’t smoke, because it’s a bad habit and you set a bad example. In particular, you set a bad example for orangutans.

Via Tecca:

The Satwa Taru Jurug zoo in Indonesia announced that it is launching an intervention for Tori, a 15-year-old orangutan with a smoking problem. The great ape started the habit about 10 years ago by picking up old cigarette butts and imitating the people she saw. After that, zoo visitors began throwing lit cigarettes into her enclosure.

The zoo has decided that it would set additional volunteers to watch Tori’s home and putting up a mesh screen so she cannot reach any cigarettes. She and her mate will soon be moved to an island preserve where she will have even more distance from visitors and possible sources of nicotine. According to The Associated Press, the Center for Orangutan Protection is helping to launch the intervention to stop Tori’s smoking cold turkey and will test how the nicotine has impacted Tori’s health.

Smart ape, asshole visitors. It’s good that they’re getting moved somewhere safer, hopefully where people aren’t quite such…..I mean, who the hell throws lit cigarettes to an ape at the zoo???

Anyway, here’s a video of a monkey playing Angry Birds, sort of.

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Tag Archives: smoking

A Short, Curmudgeonly Rant About E-Cigarettes

This is why you shouldn’t smoke, kids