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私がたばこを吸わない理由
雅子さんは先週、自分が車を運転しない理由を説明しましたが、今週はたばこを吸わないわけを取り上げます。たばこは運転と同じように、若者が大人の気分を味わうために一度は試してみたいと思うものの一つ。10代のころ、周囲に流されないよう心がけていたのが、スモーカーにならずに済んだ理由だ、と雅子さんは言います。
喫煙しないことを誇りに思う
マリファナ吸引は道徳問題
Why I Don'T Smoke
By MASAKO YAMADA
Compared to countries in Europe or Asia, America is often considered to have a strong anti-smoking stance.Indeed, increasing numbers of cities are banning smoking inside restaurants or public buildings. Boston is one of these cities.
Furious debates rage over whether this kind of widespread prohibition protects personal rights or infringes upon them. I usually try not to involve myself in these arguments. I basically consider myself an observer, especially since I've never smoked anything in my life.
People often express surprise over this, since even non-smokers have often tried a puff or two in their youth. Sometimes they ask me why. I can't say I have a clear answer. I'm certainly not a health fanatic. I love fried foods and I dislike exercise. I know that smoking is bad for you, but most people who smoke know this, too. I can try saying that I don't want to be addicted to chemicals, but one can counter that I'm addicted to coffee.
I suppose the main reason I never started smoking is that as an adolescent, when the urge
to begin smoking is strongest, I had the clear vision that I did not want to be the sort of person who succumbs to peer pressure. Now that I'm in my late 20s, this sort of peer pressure is almost nonexistent. This is fortunate,considering that I'm much more apt to go with the flow now than when I was a teenager.
I know lots of people who truly cannot stand smoke and who show visible distaste when smokers light up in their vicinity. Some of them go as far as to criticize them. Watching
other people smoke actually doesn't bother me. I often chat with my friends as they smoke outside the science building, and I don't even mind when people smoke in my apartment, as long as they do so near an open window. Certainly, they have no excuse for being rude to non-smokers, but they don't need to be lectured on how smoking harms them. They already know.
Interestingly, many people I know who don't smoke cigarettes do smoke pot. This may seem counterintuitive, considering that smoking marijuana is considered a serious crime in Japan, but smoking
cigarettes is socially accepted. Actually,possession of marijuana is also a crime in the States, but the rules are often ignored.
It's true that a history of smoking pot can hurt the prospects of a presidential candidate and disqualify one from competing in sports, but this is usually treated as a moral issue, not a criminal one. Maybe I've been exposed to a more liberal atmosphere than most, but it seems that the people around me are actually quite sympathetic to those who have experimented.
I know lots of people who have smoked pot at some point in their lives: brilliant professors, boring graduate students, young girls in the suburbs, worldly club-goers. They are my
friends, and as long as they don't hurt others and, ideally, they don't hurt themselves I can't reject them for being drug users or criminals.
Undoubtedly, drugs are at the root of many social ills in America, and I certainly don't want to advocate anything that harms society as a whole, especially the innocent. However, the fact
of the matter is that many pot smokers are honest, intelligent people who make life better for many others. It would be a shame, and a loss, if such persons were locked up in jail or even just kicked out of school.
than with people who self-righteously follow all the rules but who have no interesting ideas to voice or kindness to share.
Given my past history, I don't think I'll ever smoke anything in the future. However, I still do hang out with smokers quite often, and in some cases, I find myself defending them.
Compared to countries in Europe or Asia, America is often considered to have a strong anti-smoking stance.Indeed, increasing numbers of cities are banning smoking inside restaurants or public buildings. Boston is one of these cities.
Furious debates rage over whether this kind of widespread prohibition protects personal rights or infringes upon them. I usually try not to involve myself in these arguments. I basically consider myself an observer, especially since I've never smoked anything in my life.
People often express surprise over this, since even non-smokers have often tried a puff or two in their youth. Sometimes they ask me why. I can't say I have a clear answer. I'm certainly not a health fanatic. I love fried foods and I dislike exercise. I know that smoking is bad for you, but most people who smoke know this, too. I can try saying that I don't want to be addicted to chemicals, but one can counter that I'm addicted to coffee.
I suppose the main reason I never started smoking is that as an adolescent, when the urge
to begin smoking is strongest, I had the clear vision that I did not want to be the sort of person who succumbs to peer pressure. Now that I'm in my late 20s, this sort of peer pressure is almost nonexistent. This is fortunate,considering that I'm much more apt to go with the flow now than when I was a teenager.
I know lots of people who truly cannot stand smoke and who show visible distaste when smokers light up in their vicinity. Some of them go as far as to criticize them. Watching
other people smoke actually doesn't bother me. I often chat with my friends as they smoke outside the science building, and I don't even mind when people smoke in my apartment, as long as they do so near an open window. Certainly, they have no excuse for being rude to non-smokers, but they don't need to be lectured on how smoking harms them. They already know.
Interestingly, many people I know who don't smoke cigarettes do smoke pot. This may seem counterintuitive, considering that smoking marijuana is considered a serious crime in Japan, but smoking
cigarettes is socially accepted. Actually,possession of marijuana is also a crime in the States, but the rules are often ignored.
It's true that a history of smoking pot can hurt the prospects of a presidential candidate and disqualify one from competing in sports, but this is usually treated as a moral issue, not a criminal one. Maybe I've been exposed to a more liberal atmosphere than most, but it seems that the people around me are actually quite sympathetic to those who have experimented.
I know lots of people who have smoked pot at some point in their lives: brilliant professors, boring graduate students, young girls in the suburbs, worldly club-goers. They are my
friends, and as long as they don't hurt others and, ideally, they don't hurt themselves I can't reject them for being drug users or criminals.
Undoubtedly, drugs are at the root of many social ills in America, and I certainly don't want to advocate anything that harms society as a whole, especially the innocent. However, the fact
of the matter is that many pot smokers are honest, intelligent people who make life better for many others. It would be a shame, and a loss, if such persons were locked up in jail or even just kicked out of school.
I would even go as far as to say that I'd rather associate with smokers with true character
than with people who self-righteously follow all the rules but who have no interesting ideas to voice or kindness to share.
Given my past history, I don't think I'll ever smoke anything in the future. However, I still do hang out with smokers quite often, and in some cases, I find myself defending them.
Shukan ST: Aug. 25, 2000
(C) All rights reserved
chu.htm
- staunch
- 揺るぎない
- gas-guzzling
- ガソリンを大量に消費する
- strong stance
- 強い姿勢
- are banning
- 禁止している
- Furious debates rage over whether
- かどうかについて盛んに論議されている
- widespread
- 広範囲の
- prohibition
- 禁止
- rights
- 権利
- infringes upon
- を侵害する
- try not to involve myself in
- に関与しないようにする
- observer
- 傍聴者
- have often tried a puff or two
- 一度や二度吹かした経験を持つ場合が多い
- health fanatic
- 健康オタク
- be addicted to
- の中毒になる
- counter
- 言い返す
- adolescent
- 10代の若者
- urge
- 衝動
- succumbs to
- に負ける
- peer pressure
- 仲間の圧力
- fortunate
- 幸運な
- considering that
- を考えると
- (am)apt to
- しがちである
- go with the flow
- 流れに乗る
- cannot stand
- が我慢できない
- visible distaste
- あからさまな嫌悪
- light up
- (たばこに)火を付ける
- in their vicinity
- 近くで
- Some of them go as far as to
- 中にはまでする人もいる
- doesn't bother me
- は私の気にならない
- excuse
- 言い訳
- rude
- 無礼な
- be lectured on
- の講義を受ける
- harms
- 害する
- pot
- マリファナ
- counterintuitive
- 常識に反した
- serious crime
- 重犯罪
- cigarettes
- たばこ
- possession
- 所持
- (are)ignored
- 無視されている
- hurt the prospect of a presidential candidate
- 有力な大統領候補者の名を害す
- disqualify one from competing
- 競技の出場資格を取り上げる
- (is)treated as
- とみなされる
- moral issue
- 道徳上の問題
- (have)been exposed to
- に触れてきた
- liberal
- 自由な
- sympathetic
- 思いやりがある
- have experimented
- 試した
- brilliant
- すばらしい
- boring
- 退屈な
- suburbs
- 郊外
- worldly club-goers
- ナイトクラブに通う世なれた人
- social ills
- 社会悪
- advocate
- 弁護する
- innocent
- 罪のない人
- shame
- 残念なこと
- were locked up in jail
- 刑務所に入れられた
- (were)kicked out of
- を追い出された
- associate with
- と付き合う
- with true character
- 人柄がにじみ出るような
- self-righteously
- ひとりよがりで
- voice
- 主張する
- Given
- を考えると
- hang out with
- と付き合う