People see it in the movies, on television shows, in restaurants, in barbershops, in bars, and in cars driving down the road. It is a silent killer with major repercussions if not dealt with. What is this deadly phenomenon that I am talking about? It is smoking; a nasty habit that I feel should be done away with.
Whenever someone lights up a cigarette, they are not only harming themselves but others as well. We all know that cigarette smoking is bad for your health; not only does the news tell us this, but magazines and newspapers do also. There is even a warning from the Surgeon General on the carton of cigarettes. The Surgeon General warns the general public that cigarettes can be hazardous to their health. Yet still millions continue to smoke, taking their health and jeopardizing it. Even if the cigarette manufacturers were to put a message on the carton of cigarettes that said,"These will eventually kill you", millions would still smoke. We know all the dangers of smoking, why not create a law to make it illegal? Making cigarettes illegal would reduce the health risks involved with smoking, prolong people's lives after quitting, and reduce the risk of secondhand smoke. Although people will always fight and say that they need the cigarettes in order to live a normal life, a world without anyone "lighting up" would be beneficial. .
The hazards of smoking lead to many fatal diseases and should convince people to quit their habit. First, a major reason why smoking should be made illegal is that many people are dying of cancer. For instance, the statistics say that in the United States six out of ten people are dying everyday due to lung cancer (Benowitz 175). This disease is killing people if it is not detected promptly. Another reason for making smoking illegal is heart disease and its consequences. For example, many people suffer from heart failure, but even though they know about smoking and its dangers, they do not stop their habit until they become ill (Eysenck 72).