Opinion of New Zealand's laws on smoking

[Samof94]

New Zealand passed a law that made it illegal for people born after roughly 2008 to ever buy cigarettes, making them off-limits to their Generation Alpha. What is your opinion of this law?

[President Punxsutawney Phil]

One of those things that could more feasibly work on an island than a continental country.

[progressive85]

It won't stop them from smoking them if they really want to.  Some people might be stopping in a store to buy a pack for an older person.  It also seems ridiculous for the government to tell a grown adult (as all of these people will eventually be) that they can't smoke a cigarette.
Basically, under this law, eventually nobody in the whole country is going to be able to buy cigarettes.

It does seem like its a violation of individual freedom - people should be able to smoke a cigarette outdoors alone or with another smoker, and not around people that don't want to breathe it in. 

Generally what happens most often in the United States is I think fine.  Smokers often ask people they're around if they mind if they smoke, we have our smoking bans indoors in restaurants and stores and on mass transit, and they should be enforced, but at a certain point I think you've just got to let people be.

I also find it odd that marijuana is being expanded while cigarettes are being restricted.  The stench of marijuana is awful in my opinion and I don't want to be around it either, but I voted here in Massachusetts for the legalization.  I don't want it criminalized, I just don't want to breathe that in and I feel it's a person has a right to clean, safe, breathable air.

[President Johnson]

Freedom laws

[Kahane's Grave Is A Gender-Neutral Bathroom]

Ageist and authoritarian.

[Antonio the Sixth]

Extremely based. I wish other countries could be as brave.

[DaleCooper]

Awful nanny statism and very cowardly.

[Santander]

If they had balls, they would just ban them outright, but they choose chickensh**t authoritarianism.

[MABA 2020]

Stupid, ineffective and authoritarian

[LAKISYLVANIA]

It makes no sense to criminalize tobacco while legalising marijuana tbh. Both are usually inhaled. And many of the health concerns regarding smoking tobacco also apply to smoking marijuana.

Due to how expensive marijuana is, usually weed is mixed with tobacco anyways.

[LAKISYLVANIA]

Ageist and authoritarian.

This.

But people are gonna be accusing me of authoritarian because i identify as a communist while they're the ones advocating for authoritarian laws.

If this is the future of the left, there's no reason to ever vote left wing anymore. All hope is lost. Orwellian New Zealand. Outlandish New Zealand

[Хahar 🤔]

I am supportive in principle, but I am curious as to the justification for this particular form of implementation. Is there any other law anywhere that works like this by banning something for all people born after a particular date forever?

[Antonio the Sixth]

I am supportive in principle, but I am curious as to the justification for this particular form of implementation. Is there any other law anywhere that works like this by banning something for all people born after a particular date forever?

Not that I know of. It's a drastic approach to be sure, but the rationale for it seems pretty clear to me. Quitting smoking is a fairly taxing process, and it would genuinely be kinda authoritarian for the state to force it on so many people. On the other hand, never picking up smoking is not something that negatively affects one's quality of life in any way (and of course is a net positive in the long run), so it makes sense to target people who are too young to have started smoking and make sure they never get the chance to.

[Mr. Smith]

Support.

[Aurelius2]

Another horrifyingly authoritarian law from a horrifyingly authoritarian country.

[Benjamin Frank]

Not that this is on smoking directly, but you might like this story about Pierre Trudeau regarding the right to make decisions for oneself. This is from the book 'Just Watch Me' 1968-2000 by John English.

"One day in February 1969, they (he and his girlfriend Jennifer Rae) were in the kitchen preparing smoked oysters on wheat thins as an hor's d'oeurvre before a dinner for four. Jennifer prepared the plate and squeezed some lemon juice over the oysters. Trudeau exploded, demanded to know what she was doing..."The reason I am irritated is that each person has the right to decide whether he or she wants to have lemon juice on the oysters. You have taken that right away.""

Of course, there are general limits in most societies. While most might agree here with Trudeau's principles here (even if he was taking it to extremes), most here and elsewhere probably would be uncomfortable with Pierre Trudeau being around 50 at this time, while Jennifer Rae (the sister of Bob Rae who later became Premier of Ontario) was around 20.

[Sumner 1868]

Pointless - while smoking is a bad thing for anyone's health period, it's the elderly smoking that has the worst impact. Dump the law and fund treatment instead.

[Ferguson97]

Another horrifyingly authoritarian law from a horrifyingly authoritarian country.

Do you think laws banning cocaine are authoritarian? I know cocaine is much more dangerous than cigarettes, I'm just trying to figure out where you draw the line.

[FT-02 Senator A.F.E. 🇵🇸🤝🇺🇸🤝🇺🇦]

Absolutely glorious laws. I look forwards to the day when the concept and practice of smoking is tossed into the pages of a history book.

[Aurelius2]

Another horrifyingly authoritarian law from a horrifyingly authoritarian country.

Do you think laws banning cocaine are authoritarian? I know cocaine is much more dangerous than cigarettes, I'm just trying to figure out where you draw the line.

No, because as you point out, cigarettes are not cocaine.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

Absolutely glorious laws. I look forwards to the day when the concept and practice of smoking is tossed into the pages of a history book.

Not compatible with your Ottoman LARP.

[FT-02 Senator A.F.E. 🇵🇸🤝🇺🇸🤝🇺🇦]

Absolutely glorious laws. I look forwards to the day when the concept and practice of smoking is tossed into the pages of a history book.

Not compatible with your Ottoman LARP.

Cope and seethe

[Ferguson97]

Another horrifyingly authoritarian law from a horrifyingly authoritarian country.

Do you think laws banning cocaine are authoritarian? I know cocaine is much more dangerous than cigarettes, I'm just trying to figure out where you draw the line.

No, because as you point out, cigarettes are not cocaine.

So where’s the line? How bad does a drug have to be that it’s ban is common sense instead of authoritarian? Weed? Shrooms?

[PSOL]

Another horrifyingly authoritarian law from a horrifyingly authoritarian country.

Do you think laws banning cocaine are authoritarian? I know cocaine is much more dangerous than cigarettes, I'm just trying to figure out where you draw the line.

No, because as you point out, cigarettes are not cocaine.

So where’s the line? How bad does a drug have to be that it’s ban is common sense instead of authoritarian? Weed? Shrooms?

The suppression of its use is more harmful than if it was legal

[Senator Incitatus]

anti-American