Smoking

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Smoking

In the year 1973, 11 years prior to my birth, my grandfather made one of the most important decisions in his life. In the cold wind of March, my grandfather stood outside of Coon Rapids Bayard High School and smoked his last cigarette. That fall my mom and her sister Eileen had made a deal with my Grandpa that if their team made it to the Iowa Girl’s State Basketball Tournament he would give up his addiction to nicotine. This addiction to nicotine had haunted him since his days as an American soldier in World War II. My mom’s team, Elk Horn-Kimbalton, was up by 19 points at halftime, and it was quite evident they would reach the destination they had worked so hard for. Next to the “victory bell” my Grandpa decided to make this one special night for his immediate family as his daughters would see two of their dreams come true right before there eyes: Their dad to quit smoking and for their basketball team to play at the state tournament in Des Moines.

My grandfather has been one of the most influential people in my life. Both my Grandma and him raised me for the majority of my childhood. He taught me the foundations of hard work, discipline, and dedication. The support he has given us grandchildren has been outstanding. Together they have never missed the biggest sporting events or tribulations that us grandkids have encountered in our short lives. He is in great health, but could he be in even better health if he had continued his addiction to nicotine? According to Peter Brimelow, in his article “Thank You for Smoking…?” he believes that you can receive many benefits from smoking, including the avoidance of many diseases that haunt our nation today. Could my Grandpa have continued to receive benefits...

... middle of paper ...

... without end. Smoking now and never will be valuable to an individual’s health.

The bottom line is that the drug nicotine can be very harmful to one’s health. This has been a wide range fact for quite some time. The health risks of smoking are displayed through advertisement’s daily. Despite scientific value related to smoking, the risks and dangers are too strong to make a valid argument in favor of smoking.

Works Cited

Brimelow, Peter. “Thank You for Smoking….?” The Genre of Argument. Ed. Irene L.Clark. Boston: Thomson-Heinle, 1998. 141-142.

American Lung Association. 2003. Fact Sheet: Smoking. 17 Mar. 2004 <http://www.

lungusa.org/tobacco/smoking_factsheet99.html>.

Carroll, Bill. Smokers Health and Stop Smoking Information Center. Just How Dangerous is Smoking? 2000. 17 Mar. 2004 <http://www.smokershealth.com/

dangers.htm>.

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