If you needed yet another reason to quit smoking, here it is.

  • TomMasz@lemmy.world
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    15 days ago

    I live in the US and it’s becoming more and more unusual in many places to see people smoking. As a result, I see fewer discarded cigarette butts than ever. Still not zero, but getting there.

    • Flying Squid@lemmy.worldOP
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      15 days ago

      I live in the U.S. too and I still see a ton here in Indiana, but we also apparently have a nicotine addiction epidemic here that no one talks about much.

      As of 2022:

      Nearly 29% of Indiana adults currently use tobacco. Combustible cigarettes are the most used tobacco product, followed by e-cigarettes.

      https://www.in.gov/health/tpc/files/Indiana-Adult-Tobacco-Survey-ATS-2021_2022-Highlights_Revised_Nov22.pdf

      • TomMasz@lemmy.world
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        15 days ago

        I’m in Western NY, but even in NYC it’s less than 9%. The state offers a lot of support for quitting, perhaps that’s why.

          • TachyonTele@lemm.ee
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            15 days ago

            They’re $15 throughout the state. So they’re probably more in the city.

            Reservation cigarettes negate those prices though.

              • TachyonTele@lemm.ee
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                15 days ago

                The reason they’re cheaper is because they don’t need to charge tax on them. Regular cigarettes are the same price, but they have all of the taxes on top of that, which makes them cost three times as much.

                That’s interesting there isn’t anything on wiki about it. It’s not a secret or anything.

                • David J. Shourabi Porcel@lemmy.world
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                  15 days ago

                  The reason they’re cheaper is because they don’t need to charge tax on them.

                  I understand. Thank you for confirming it.

                  I’ve heard people here in Europe sometimes save on cigarettes in a similar way, by buying them across the border, where taxes are lower, or in duty-free shops at airports, but that’s possibly outdated or even made-up hearsay I’ve never checked.

                  That’s interesting there isn’t anything on wiki about it. It’s not a secret or anything.

                  There may be something I missed, or it might be such an inconsequential and uncontroversial phenomenon that no one deemed it worth documenting.

          • MutilationWave@lemmy.world
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            15 days ago

            That’s exactly it. I’m a smoker from one of the states with the lowest taxes on cigarettes. I’m heading to New York in a couple of weeks and I’ll be stocking up before I leave. If I lived there I would quit, can’t justify spending that money. I’ve already switched to a cheaper brand that has deals at Sheetz that make them roughly $5 a pack.

            I’ve never done this myself, but I’ve known a couple people that take a ton of cigarettes with them when they go to New York. This is highly profitable and highly illegal.

        • Flying Squid@lemmy.worldOP
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          15 days ago

          I doubt there’s much support here at all and there was pretty much a red wave in this state in November, so there will probably be even less next year.

      • dogslayeggs@lemmy.world
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        15 days ago

        I remember when I left Indiana 25 years ago that it was the highest per capita state for smoking, with Kentucky being number 2.

    • dogslayeggs@lemmy.world
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      15 days ago

      It’s the hardest thing about traveling to Europe for me. I love being in Europe, but after living in a part of the US with almost no smokers it is jarring to smell cigarette smoke everywhere on the streets there.

    • ApollosArrow@lemmy.world
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      15 days ago

      Is it just being replaced by other equally bad habits? I just found out that disposable vape pens are a thing. Those have plastics and electronics inside. I have no idea what the numbers there are.

      • MutilationWave@lemmy.world
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        15 days ago

        Although vaping has become really big, there’s a lot more people quitting smoking than there are picking up vaping.

        And vaping is not equally bad by a long shot. Cigarettes are far worse for you. Also, vaping isn’t nearly as annoying for the people around the user. I say all this as a cigarette smoker myself.

        Those disposable vapes are disgustingly wasteful. Apparently you can take them apart and make them reusable or repurpose the battery, but very few people are going to mess with that.

    • MutilationWave@lemmy.world
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      15 days ago

      I love smoking. I know it’s killing me. I realize it stinks to other people. I never smoke indoors. I try my best to be considerate of others and never throw my butts on the ground.

      But it’s getting a bit ridiculous the demonizing of smokers in the US. If I walk to the edge of a business’s property where there is literally no one and smoke a cigarette, I shouldn’t be harassed by cops or security to cross the street, go several blocks away, or similar.