teenage smoking
This is a story about Stephanie. When she was 16 she had her first cigarette, in the back of her friends car. Her friend lit up a cigarette for herself and then offered Stephanie one. Stephanie knew that smoking was bad for you, but everyone else she knew had tried it. She wanted to feel like she fit in. She smoked the cigarette and thought to herself, “Hey, this is pretty cool. I feel so relaxed. Two years later, Stephanie was a senior and smoking a pack a day. She found it hard to make it through her eight hour school day without having a smoke. She knew she was addicted, but liked the fact that she was part of the smoking crowd in her school. Four years later and about 450 packs of cigarettes later, Stephanie was in college, and addicted as ever. She knew she wanted to quit, but didn’t think she could hack it with all the stress of college. She wished that she had never had that first cigarette when she was 16, because she wouldn’t be addicted now. If there had been a law, prohibiting teenage smoking, she never would have started. According to the National Institute of drug abuse, each day, 3,000 teens smoke their first cigarette. That is more that one million annually. Despite government att
Although most teens are aware of the risk factors, many still continue to smoke. According to Trish Fraser, a trustee of the Smoke-free Coalition, when kids were asked why they started smoking, they gave two contradictory answers. They wanted to be part of a crowd. Children do not want to be left out, they want to be wanted. If their peers are smoking, than they will want to smoke as well. They want to reach out and rebel at the same time. But, will it work? This type of law, one that makes it illegal for teens to smoke, has been used in states such as Washington, Texas, and Illinois. Their laws are constructed similarly to this proposal, including prohibition and punishment. So far, in Texas, 164 teenagers has their driver’s license suspended for tobacco-related offenses, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety. Also, 3,000 youths have taken the tobacco-awareness course since the anti- smoking law took effect. In, Morrison County, Illinois, police chief, Bob Snodgrass said that “underage smoking, once prevalent on the streets, has become rare since their law went into effect.” In Vancouver, Washington, most adult and teens, despite whether they smoked, believe the law is a good thing, according to interviews conducted by their local news, KOIN. Nineteen-year-old, Tony Smith was safe from the new law, but said he never would have started smoking if the law was around a few years ago. A solution to this gigantic problem would be for Ohio to set up a state law that would penalize minors for possession and use of tobacco. Currently, state law prohibits teens from purchasing cigarettes, but there is now law prohibiting them from using them. Seems backward, doesn’t it? Punishment for teens caught smoking would be a fine of up to $250, attendance at a day long tobacco-awareness class and 4 hours of community service. Those who skip class, community service, or fail to come to court, would lose their license for up to 180 days and have a warrant issued for their arrest once they turn 18. For teens who do not yet have a license, they will have to wait 6 month after they apply for a license to get one. Stiffer penalties would be given for repeat offenses. The benefits of this policy would be tremendous to our country and our population. If fewer teens start smoking, years from now there will be fewer adult smokers, which means fewer smoking-related deaths. Health care costs could be cut dramatically
Some common words found in the essay are:
Tony Smith, Covington Kentucky, Smoke-free Coalition, National Institute, Stephanie Stephanie, Control Prevention, House Representatives, Services Americans, Texas Illinois, Philip Morris, teenage smoking, community service, teens smoke, adult smokers, percent adult smokers, fine teen, police officer, tobacco products, prohibits teens, care costs, health care costs, tony smith,
Approximate Word count = 1672
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)
|
