Oregon Raises the Smoking Age (fastcompany.com)

From a report: Some 95 percent of lifetime smokers pick up the habit before their 21st birthday, so Oregon lawmakers yesterday passed a law making it illegal for anyone under the age of 21 to purchase cigarettes in the hopes of nipping the bad habit in the bud. "By the age of 25, this addiction is cemented in the brain and it becomes very difficult -- almost impossible -- to quit," State Rep. Greg Smith, R-Heppner, told KGW. Oregon is not the first state to do this, and it probably won't be the last. No one under 21 can (lawfully) buy cigarettes in Hawaii, California, Washington, D.C., and Guam to date. It also passed in New Jersey, but noted beachcomber Gov. Chris Christie vetoed the bill -- although it could still become law there. According to the American Cancer Society, at least 250 localities across the country have passed similar local ordinances.

Comments

Is this to save lives?

[Rockoon]

Will it also be illegal to send those under 21 off to die in wars?

Re: Is this to save lives?

[Time_Ngler]

But why can't the same 18 y.o. person who can sign their life away in the military not be deemed responsible enough to decide whether or not to smoke a cigarette?

Re: Is this to save lives?

[drinkypoo]

Because one act contributes to society while the other is costly to society.

Both acts are costly to society, though in different ways.

Re:Nanny state socialism

[AK Marc]

Yeah, the reasonable law would be to raise the smoking age 1 year every year, no new smokers.

Terminology compounds the problem

[garryknight]

It's not a "bad habit," it's a drug addiction.

Hypocrisy

[Anonymous Coward]

You need to be 21 to smoke a cigarette, but at 18 you can go into the army and kill people

Addictive Personality

[zifn4b]

This doesn't solve the root cause problem. The root cause problem is some people have addictive personality. Addictive personality in my estimation arises from an inability to cope with the anxieties of life and reality. Therefore the person turns to self medication. If it's not cigarettes, it'll be something else. If we addressed the root problem, the demand for these self medication "fixes" would reduce naturally.

Re:Age of Consent

[SirSlud]

One thing is risky because it's dangerous to serve in the military to defend the geopolitical interests of your country, while the other thing is dangerous because it's a drug that carries significant health risks.

I don't see why you think you're being smart by appealing to treat these things the same way.

Vehicles are also very dangerous, but using vehicles provides a massive net benefit to society that cigarettes do not. It doesn't take a genius to understand why in actual fact, legally and socially, we view and legislate these activities differently.