Let There be Light

There are always people who tell you what to do, aint it? During childhood we were constantly reminded about the bad effects of eating chocolates, but did we give up on this exotic pleasure? You would have exerted restrain but you would also love to be able to exercise your right. Every single day in our lives is about choices.  We expect to be treated as adults, in the sense that we ought to be given platform to exercise our very own choices. This is what defines the new generation. Now think about this, smokers are adults, and they deserve to have their informed choices respected by others.

It is no brainer that smoking is bad for health. It is because of this very reason that tobacco companies have been mandated to follow variegated consortium of stringent restriction - abnormally high taxes, pictorial representation on packets, warning messages in movies, minimum smoking age, ban on cigarette advertisements, blanket ban on public smoking.  

In the movie, Thank You for Smoking, the protagonist emphasizes consumer choice and responsibility and, to the dismay of a Senator, who has launched a vicious campaign against smoking claims that perhaps his state of Vermont, as a major cheese producer, is likewise guilty of cholestrol -related deaths, the top cause of deaths in America. So would he be willing to ban cheese production? Obviously not. Also he points out that unlike cigarettes, major death causing products do not give warning labels and they are given complete leeway.

The anti-smoking movement is hardly a grassroots phenomenon. It is one of those issues where a group of loud-mouthed individuals allow no space for debate whatsoever and are fixated on achieving their preposterous goals. A growing number of independent policy experts from a wide range of professions and differing political views are speaking out against the anti-smoking campaign. Usually, people who oppose smoking bans see these laws as an example of the government interfering in people's lives. These persons aren’t defending the tobacco industry, they defend smokers for several reasons:

·         Smokers already pay taxes that are too high to be fair, and far above any cost they impose on the rest of society.

·         Smoking bans hurt small businesses, tobacco farmers and violate private property rights.

·         Punishing smokers “for their own good” is repulsive to the basic libertarian principles that ought to limit the use of government force. The society is moving towards objectivist movement. This is apparent in the debates on pre-marital sex, euthanasia, opposing ban on pornography and so on.

Moreover, Anti-smoking activists give smokers a stark choice: Stop smoking or die! In fact, there is a third path:shifting to less-hazardous products that provide similar enjoyment. For example, smokeless tobacco products or electronic cigars For many years, Swedes have used “snus”, a kind of spitless tobacco,and guess which coutry has the lowest rate of lung cancer in Europe.

Now what does this mean for public policy: Electronic cigarettes are reducing smoking rates and hence should not be discouraged by over-regulations

Saying we need high taxes on cigarettes to discourage teenagers from smoking is hysterical, since most teenage smokers don’t buy their cigarettes, and get them instead from parents and adult friends. It is unfair to impose dramatically higher taxes on the adults who buy 95 percent or more of all cigarettes sold in order to make cigarettes less attractive to the few teenagers who actually pay for their cigarettes.

According to Micael DeBow, a professor of law at Cumberland School of Law, litigation against the tobacco industry is an example of lawsuit abuse. Tobacco companies put great effort in exposing the harmful effects of smoking. Even after that, people keep on suing these companies for their choice. No tobacco company points a gun at someone and forces smoking. Consumers ought to bear responsibility for their own actions rather than blame corporations. This might resonate to people who have watched South Park and Boston Legal. South Park is famous for prodying issues, most of the time taking a stand that resonates with people who have not been able to give out their “radical” opinion due the inability of the other side to listen. It featured an episode – Butt Out. Reiner classic This Is Spinal Tap was an inspiration for the creators.Rob Reiner, the Hollywood actor is shown constantly eating, pointing out that although fast food is as dangerous as smoking, it is overlooked. "You just hate smoking, so you use all your money and power to force others to think like you. And that's called fascism, you tubby(in reference to the iconic  Yul Brynner youtube video) . Cartman, a spoilt brat says that that Rob goes on imposing his will on everyone, so he is my hero.

Let us think about this in terms of economics. Now, If enough people want to go to non-smoking bars, there is an inherent market opportunity and companies will follow suit. But there are no non-smoking bars, this suggests that very few, a negligible percent want a ban on smoking in places such as bar. A ban on smoking will drive many pubs, bars out of business; which are important socializing places. They also provide jobs for people bereft of skills. Also, there is this case of outright banning of smoking in all places of work. I say, workers and management should be given the prerogative in this issue. After all some people are quite happy to work in smoky places. Instead of shoveling a rule of complete ban of smoking in their throats, the issue should be left to management to tackle. For instance, setting up of restricted smoking zones during break, installing ventilation fans.  

Also, think about this. Tobacco companies would not want young kids to die, they would be losing customers. Infact it is the anti-smoking organizations that ride on the death of youngsters, to increase their budgets. Tobacco companies spend billions of dollars on anti-smoking campaigns. Yes you heared it right. Tell me how many industries do this?

I would like to end by giving a sapid, straight forward argument -  If we pass laws forcing smokers to change their behavior “for their own good,” we need to ask: Where do we stop? Do we pass laws against smoking in private homes? Against frying food indoors ? Eating the wrong kinds of food? Eating too much? Drinking too much (and not just when driving)? Exercising too little? Should we ban other risky behavior, such as skydiving, bungee-jumping, or riding motorcycles? How about drinking more than one cup of coffee each day? So, if you feel that you want to take the weighted risk of putting that smooth blended cigar between your lips and savour the puff as you relax on your couch after a day of hectic work, go ahead do it, it is your call and should remain so. As the saying goes - Let there be light.

 PS: I am in no way affiliated to any tobacco or related industry at the time of posting this piece.Also, I aint a smoker. I choose to exercise my choices

IIMC Armageddon club Induction run

“The long run puts the tiger in the cat”

- Bill Squires

After making a stupendous run through a rigorous selection process, June mein hum Joka aye. As is always the case, this wasn’t the end. After a week, life at IIMC had gone into full swing. As has been aptly said, IIMC fondly called Joka, is not just a place – it’s an experience. There was scurry by Jokars to have a piece of this ‘pie’. People were running all over the campus, buoyant with the ‘Joka spirit’. Amidst all this,Armageddon – The Adventure Club of IIM Calcutta conducted its Induction Run. It is conducted every year for the first year students as a preliminary round of its selection process. And run here we did. After a day of hectic classes, Fachaas turned up in drones to participate in this refreshing, albeit challenging event. We chose to run the day, after the day had run on us. (We Jokars are found of challenges, aint we? We take them head-on).

Even though the rain god had tried to play spoilsport, Armageddon team had come fully ready. The event started without any glitches. The route was laid out. Start from White Hostel, run till the main gate , take a detour towards the Mini-Howrah bride, and then cross the grand Audi(torium) to complete one round. Multiply this by three and that is how much the boys had to run. The girls had to run 2 rounds. Team Armageddon constantly kept the runners motivated and also energized by providing glucose water at different points throughout the track. Tim Noakes has aptly said “Body argues that there is no reason to continue. The only recourse is to call on the spirit, which fortunately functions independent of spirit”. This was pretty evident during the run. Participants pushed their limit, displaying tenacity in strength and fortitude in spirit.

After everyone had done the requisite rounds, bananas and juice were served as refreshments. There was a flurry of chatter among participants. Few participants had stuck together as a band and made the rounds, each being there in others time of distress. This was felicitous of the Joka tribe and its culture. The winner from the men’s group turned out to be a PGPEX student having clocked a time of 22 minutes.

After resting the aching muscles, it was time for the ceremonial group pic. Everyone cluttered together, with beaming faces; forgetting the recent adversity. While a few held the Induction run banner, quite a few others held out their fingers signaling victory, thumbs up. It was time to disperse and indulge in other experiences. A gem of an experience had been added to the jar of life.