1. You are probably surprised that I have posted a lot of old ads on smoking during this “smoking week” in the blog. In fact, in my understanding, back to the 90’s people did not have an enemy anymore, the Cold War was over, but then they needed to “motivate” their lives. They found a new enemy: the cigarette. I have friends that started smoking because of the ads, stopped smoking because of the anti-smoking campaign, and are unhappy until today.
2. On a side note, the next step after this campaign against tobacco was the politically correctness, followed by the Stalinist vigilance on how people should behave, then the good guys X the bad guys, – and see the state of the world right now… Instead of educating people, the NGOs are spending millions of USD on saving the pandas, greenhouse effect, etc. I believe that educated people will care for the planet (how can the main characters of “Slumdog Millionaire” of “City of God” care about anything but survival?).
3. But the NGOs are not transparent, and their behavior, with a few exceptions, is not too different from the banking system. The difference is that they will not collapse, because they are not accountable, and they don’t need to return the money.
4. Mark Forster’s “Quantum of Solace” touches on the subject. There is a scene on a charity dinner to raise funds for a “good cause” while the organizer is at the same time provoking (behind the curtains) the problems that he wants to solve.
5. I am not preaching smoking, but I believe that when people know “what is better” for his/her neighbor or for the planet, then we are stepping into dangerous waters.
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{ 26 comments… read them below or add one }
I have one thing to say, I smoke because I enjoy it, especially after meals or with coffee in the morning. I only live once, and why should I give up something I like. Anyway I read in the paper that cigarettes will be coming out with some grusome pictures on packs just to repel people and make them quit. Hmmmmm, we’ll see…here is a link if you are interested.
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504763_162-20022483-10391704.html
here is something better to be free of…
http://www.freetheslaves.net
I am thinking right night about smoking the “Peace pipe”.
Love to all.
Most anti-smoking campaigns are rubbish and aggresive. I live in Romania and there are a lot of NGOs which spend a lot of money on stupid pretexts.
Also here, there are a lot of stupid women who preach the eco life style, eco – eating and other things they read about in some glossy magasines. Eventhought they dont know exactly what that means.. But it doesen’t matter: it makes them feel they are “cool and modern”.
As a physician who’s helped numerous people quit smoking I can attest to what most smokers already know: tobacco is one of the most addictive and harmful substances on the planet. I actually wrote a post called “Cigarette Smoking Is Caused By A Delusion” on my blog to provide an alternative way to look at why quitting is so unbelievably difficult. I’d invite anyone interested to have a read.
http://happinessinthisworld.com
So who is right, the person who wants everyone to smoke, or the person who doesn’t want anyone to smoke. (If they both believe thaat they are right).
In my opinion neither.
It is free choice – we live, we die
But that aside Plato once said that democracy leads to despotism, and having just attended a local council meeting last week, in which we have been trying to save our local swimming pool which has been shut for the last three years by the Council, (long, long story), I have to say that I am shocked to the core.
It seems you do have to fight to even stay healthy these days, for your children to have somewhere local to swim, (it isn’t considered safe for them to play in the streets anymore and so the parents are getting blamed for the fact that our children are getting fatter too, just to add insult to injury).
Many Councils are closing down pools all over the UK, and selling the land for housing.
The faceless despots with no accountability are everywhere. Manipulating figures for budgets, making calls to threaten people’s jobs if they interfere, i’ve heard it all now.
And the fight goes on .. .
Why are we holding the preacher responsible for their words?
Why does everybody agree with everything?
WE are responsible for our own actions. But yes, we are heavily influenced by the media:
- Breastfeed, don’t breastfeed
- Smoke, don’t smoke
- Right wingers are bad!
MY truth is that nobody is right, including me. But what I do know is that my friends have my best interest at heart. I trust them and I love them for their opinion. Even when I dismiss that opinion. And in that case I am still loved, because they don’t want to change me, they want to share their opinion.
I’ve changed a couple of times in my life and every time there was someone present who watched over me, who gave me feedback. I can’t observe myself objectively and I trust them.
I might be guided to the wrong thing and it won’t matter, I will learn from it, I will share my experience and perhaps others will as well.
So, I once hated smoking, then got on the pot, got smoking, stopped the pot, stopped smoking. I might have been influenced, nothing to do about it now is there?
“Drugs ‘r bad, mmkay?” ;-)
Dear Paulo you are so right, I’m a free person FREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE, nobody is gone tell me what to do:)
ALEXANDRA:do not feel ridiculous,cos u’re right of all u said furst and i am ready to sit and chat with u as long as u wish without any cigarettes.i am the one who feels ridiculous,cos i find myself intelligent enough to realize the consequenses of smokink and still i practice it,giving more than 60 euros a month (and at the same time i don’t want to give the same for a pair of good shoes).and i think in itally all bad is possible.not the good.
love to u
oli
p.s. i can’t enter in the blog af alexandra:((if someone sees her will tell her my message,pls?thanx
I feel ridiculos already ,being against smoking…Seems I am in an smokers club,or what..Sorry,but now is me feeling as panda,rare and endangered..lol.Sorry once again,but is a problem already finding company that is not smoking.At least would be nice if someone invents some non-toxic cigarettes,that would solve all problems.I apologize for my point of view again,bye ,all best wishes to everybody.
i am ready to kill anybody who trys to bring away my 2-3 cigarettes in the morning, maybe be i will let him make whatever he wants whith the rest of the day.
the same i am ready to kill anybody who smokes round non-smokers,espetially kids.in my house we r 4 smokers,but it is absolutely forbidden smoking out of the room we pass most of our time(mom tried to make us smoke out of the house even,but in winter is impossible :))i smoke mainly in town,but when i go to the mountains i can say i forget for the cigarettes.as i said once,in town is the bad environment and life that kill me,not the cigarettes. enough on this,for now.
as for the education,i think it is important for one to make him live better understanding with his neighbours,but!here in italy,or should i say haples,just don’t care about nothing but themselves.they don’t care they can live better.they don’t like the way they live.they don’t like working.don’t like reading.don’t like goung out.don’t like ospits.the things most love here r taking coffe (the best in all the world),eating and cleaning (they say italy is the most clean country,but none of my collegs washes her hands before lunch?!?).clean means take all the garbige from inside house and leave it wherever seen out of the house.
i’m sorry i wrote so much,but sometimes is so hard to find a reason to live (especially here; i’ve got one,don’t know if its’enough,sometimes i wonder if it’s worth ),but this is the only place i can espose my real thoughts whithout fear.i don’t care if someone reads it,but i will thank anybody who explains and gives me some practical advice how to change this world.
love to all of u
p.s. did anybody see ‘Gommora”?so good,so true…it’s not a fairytail
Mr. Coelho,
I totally diagree with what you said about smoking. Why should one not tell other people about what one knows will hurt them? Wouldn’t you tell a person to leave a house if you know it’s on fire?
If you walk through the corridors at the lung ward of the hospital you will see that most of the pasients have diseases which are caused by smoking. Statistical 50 percent of the persons who smoke will die because of smoking. People have to know this to be able to know the consequence of what they choose. This is not preaching, this is warnings. To be able to choose the right thing people need knowledge. Without knowledgde one are blind. Even democracy will fail if people don’t have enough knowledgde (and therefore controlling the media is one of the main reasons that dictators may controll a country).
I agree that sometimes organizations may try to “controll” peoples thoughts (pushed to the extreme), but as long thay just try to bring information to the people who need it then I think it’s okay. You have a free will, you don’t have to agree!
Wow I never really thought about Non-Government Organizations not being accountable for their actions and spending! Thanks for the insight.
I do agree that it is dangerous when people know “what is better” for his/her neighbor or for the planet, then we are stepping into dangerous waters.
Prime example: Iraq and Afghanistan!
Very sensitive subject, but then again (in my opinion) some subjects have to be brought to the table for resolutions. Right?
Paulo & freinds
it’s courageous of u to say things which are not in confirmation to present trends.
to me it appears that it’s OK to know what is better for other people,afterall, life of men of god are a testimony to that. problem starts when one tries to force other by making laws, or by thretening ( come to think of it. laws are also a threat, do this or else…. )
i too smoke, and on umpteen number of occassions my freinds have tried to get me off this ‘bad’ habit. u know how i silnce them, in india swami vivekananda is a big name ( as indeed it should be ), he too was fond of smoking, specially his after dinner smoke & stroll. this has been my ‘habit’ too. so i tell my freinds, everyone is trying to take the good things from vivekanda, let me be the one who inherits the bad. ha ha ha. ( laughetr is included ),
speaking of NGOs’ : name a good initaitve in teh world which was not abused by vested interets for their stupid objcetives, take for example chritianity or any other releigion.
love
aditya
I have been and still am involved in the field of social development (specifically, providing public school youth access to modern science and technology educational resources, while acting as tutors and mentors to students seeking assistance in their studies) since 2005 – that is, when I was 16 years old. Sure, I have had my share of opposition from The People Above when we implement our projects – “too ambitious”, “not feasible”, “making us look incompetent”, “you think you can change the world?” – and yes, I’ve had my share of battle scars from fighting within the organizations I’ve worked with.
However, it’s unfair for one to say that “knowing what’s best for others” is what we do – in fact, part and parcel of social development is working alongside the community or sector that you want to improve. We walk in their shoes/slippers/feet, sleep on the same floor, eat, drink and breath the same things, and in general live as part of their lives. Only then can we understand where action (or inactivity) is required.
Also, it’s unfair to say that we don’t try to educate people about their Situation (correct me if I am wrong Paolo, but this is how I understand the second paragraph). Certainly, many (but not all – that is the way of the world) organizations know that change cannot happen unless all parties are made fully aware how their life is before intervention and how it can change afterward. As Alexandra previously said, “Poverty does limit the power to react and to make good choices”. Advocacy helps in that we both aim to educate people about their situation AND provide them the means to improve their lives. That is, if they consent to do so. As Brigit said, “All the knowledge we have as a western civilisation, through education and the media won’t help those that don’t have it unless we use it.”
Looking on the bright side though, I’m thankful that there are some people like Catherine M who think that “And, that’s true the system seems to be corrupted, while they are making good deeds. They heve been seeing its limits for some years now.” Yes, we can only do so much. We are but people who hunger, dream, love and fail. But we don’t let that deter us. The university that I came from has a credo that goes something like this: “Let me be the change I want to see, and let that change begin with me.” Unless people begin to stand up and move against oppression, while at the same time taking failures as chances to learn about how to better change the world one little issue at a time, nothing will ever change.
@Brigit “NGO’s, NPO’s and charities, I’m tempted to put into the one basket. The cost of running these organisations, including the salary of their CEO’s and executive staff, often is more than the cost of the cause the organisation supports.”
Yes, I perfectly agree with you. In the last organization I worked with, people in the field (like I) earn about $311.11 per month (72 hours a week) after taxes and other deductions, and before factoring other cost-of-living expenses. Our executive director earns about several times as much, and only works for about 8 hours a week. Also, he is entitled to use our organization’s resources for “whatever purposes which will further the objectives of the organization” – his purposes, possibly. Sadly, I could think of a thousand ways in which I could use the money to help those who deserve it.
I apologize if I might sound too defensive, but it takes a person who’s seen the world at the grassroots level to grasp the heavens from that perspective. Peace.
There is no need to have private schools if you live in a true democracy, everybody is educated in the same way and fulfill its potential in life.Democracy is only a make-believe word now.
Remember, we are the ones responsible for what happened in Africa, the Middle East, South America, everywhere we went and colonise, we went to war, we put puppets in those countries to do our dirty jobs.If we had respected these nations, we would not be in the mess we are in now and there would not be any reasons for these organisations to exist. It was done in our names.
The way I see a democratic process if for the citizens to sit down around the table and have their say as well.
Our children, our grandchildren have a right to be educated the right way, the fair way. It is not too late.
in canada there is a law that no one can smoke in the car with kids in,,, so in a way we dont own our kids- we cant decide in this case,,,, sowe r more and more forced to do as the law said,,,,even though its our own private car (property),,,,
Paulo, education is paramount. There are many people in the world uneducated. There are also those educated according to belief systems, or religion geared toward extremism. There are those with accademic educations. Those intelligent enough, and often wealthy enough to have gone to university. There are those with private school education. Their parents have been able to give them what they saw as the best type of education they could. In the scheme of things though it depends on what you do with the knowledge your educataion has provided you with.
NGO’s, NPO’s and charities, I’m tempted to put into the one basket. The cost of running these organisations, including the salary of their CEO’s and executive staff, often is more than the cost of the cause the organisation supports. I think there needs to be a much greater degree of transparency of these organisations, and stronger legal governance. However I do believe these organisations are of benefit. They do educate. Without the publisising of the Panda plight for instance, we wouldn’t be aware of that plight. The organisation has therefore educated us in the plight of the Panda. What are we doing with that bit of education, with that knowledge? Anti-smoking campains have educated us in the dangers of smoking. What are we doing with that knowledge? It is a matter of what we do with the knowledge that we have. All the knowledge we have as a western civilisation, through education and the media won’t help those that don’t have it unless we use it.
It is a special subject for me.First I am not a smoker,so thats why I can not realy anderstand people who smoke.I`ve tried for many years as a child to smoke,but thanks God ,it didn`t works.More than that,I don`t feel confortable wen sombody smoke in my area.I am sure it is like many other things(alkohol,etc.),if people are consuming those substances withought an ritual(unconscience),it will influence in bad way their helth.But more interesting is that all the people that I love, begining with my mother were, or are smoker!It`s clear, I hate this art of vicios because of fearing to lose the most important persons in my life!
To the birth of my first child,my mother stoped to smoke.
In order of that ideas ,
the point is not that people are smoking or are consuming other art of drugs.The comerciality and advertising behind those and the coruption give them such a power and bad influence,and let them be so popular.
At least ,I agree with the new reglements in more european countrys,and USA that smoke in public institutiones etc. is not permited.
To use The Mask,of doing Humanitary Actiones ,with a few procent of their yearly win,that is a behavior that allready big cosmetic companyes are doing too.Theykill slowly with their chemicals a lot of humanbeing!
And other organisations are informing the populations obout these and that,I hope only with positives reasones!
No matter how and what they do manipulate,through word or pictures, it will works at the end against them selves.
Love
Mirela(the woman in elevator)
I have to agree with some of the stuff said here, but not all of. Fact is, many organizations do a lot of good for the world, many others do not.
Smoking is a good example. For a long time in America cigarette companines were targetting kids with their advertising, in essence selling their products to people who are not even old enough to buy them (you must be 18 in America to purchase a tobaco product). This was a problem because prayed on kids nature to rebel, be cool, fit in and such and got them addicted long before they were old enough to make these types of choices. However, several people took this to far, and decided since they did not like smoking, no one should be allowed to do it. Instead of trying to educate people about the health risks, it became better to try to make smoking illegal.
Problem here is, that outside of inconvenince or discomfort, smoking really only harms the smoker. I am not a big fan of smoking, though both my parents smoked my entire life. My dad quit about 10 years ago, my mom is the living example of why people should never start smoking as her lungs are in very bad shape. I don’t like the smell of smoke, and don’t like coming home with my cloths smelling like smoke either. However, that is really a dicomfort to me. I don’t like, but that does not mean somone should not be allowed to do it. One thing to remember, there is not a single study ever conducted that shows a link between second hand smoke and cancer. Oh, people will say there is, but take the time and read the studies and they show no link.
And now here in America, people are taking this tact on everything. If I don’t like it, no one should be allowd to do it. People don’t like smoking, so they want it outlawed. They also don’t like Christianity so that has to go, starting whith Christmas because they just can not take another year of that. People don’t like it when someone lets their car idle, so that has to be outlawed as well (this was done sucessfully in NJ, which really sucks in the winter when you have to drive a car you just turned on when it is -4 out).
Problem is, all these people preach is tolerance, but all they practice is the ellimination of tolerance. They talk about how we need to be accepting of everyone, but what they really mean is accepting only of people who think the way they do.
If you don’t like something…try to educate people instead of just getting politicians to make it so they can not do what you don’t like. A person here in America who I very rarely agree with on anything said it very well and I will quote him on this as it was his answer to a question about how he did not oppose something politically although he did persoanlly:
“My job is to convert, not to compell”
Rev. Al Sharpton
NGO’s permit to people to reach their dreams. Many of them are helping for the planet and its inhabitants to feel better. Many of them discovered themselves a good goal. We’re ok. And, that’s true the system seems to be corrupted, while they are making good deeds. They heve been seeing its limits for some years now.
If I say I am the change I want to see in the world, then my behaviour counts to. Gandhi means: by my inner self.
Then I’d have to live with dignity: to see then dignity around. As for myself there is work… That’s why there’s not always dignity.
If the little me is not living with dignity, then the big me is corrupted. What I like in this idea, is that we could always negotiate with the corrupted, he will ever end on betraying
Since, if I make plans with myself, unless I don’t do, it will ever end with one centimeter higher for my little me. To one day, be bigger than this corrupted higher me.
When I use imaged measure adjectives there, it is within the vision of the society, not spiritually. Though, my little me could gain in, by separating what is good and bad inner, and work on it.
Rather than considering the corrupt is too big, it’s a lot by fighting oneself, that we reach the target. Middle.
what are NGO’s ?
‘A Toy’.Material things can not be good or bad.The way,how we are going to use them,makes them helpful or dangerous.And where is the criterion?How can we find out when ‘the toy’ stopped be ‘a helper’?Perhaps,by noticing how many people it renewed or hurted,including ourselves.By changing an useless ‘toy’ for a useful one,we change ourselves and change the world.
Every time I see an anti-cigarettes poster or commercial it makes me light another one. Although I realize this is a rather childish and irrational behavior, it bothers me that at some point of time, someone decided that we, smokers, do not understand the real threats smoking poses to our health and by “educating” us on the matter they can somehow make us stop. I do not smoke inside my house or in my car, or any other place where I might be exposing others to second-hand smoke. So why is it such a big issue? Alcohol is much worse for people in terms of altering your perception of reality and causing the death of thousands of innocent people around the world, but yet, it’s somehow ok to drink…
From my understanding the NGOs are nothing but another arm of the government and establishment under a different name. They are a law onto themselves, are not accountable to international law.
There are so many of them, it makes your head spin. What are they doing and what are they achieving? As you said, a nice picture here and there with a panda and a lot of hot air about the greenhouse effect.It looks nice and sweet and re-assuring when you read the newspapers to see all those wonderful things they have achieved or so they say, until you realise that the media are nothing but puppets working on their behalf.
Education is a good one for a start, why on earth do we have private schools? What is wrong with Government ones? If they are not up to scratch how about fixing them first instead of pouring money into private ones. It that sort of thinking that has been generated for centuries that is creating division and the “I’m better than you” types. We can do better than that.
In a way you are right.Poverty does limit the power to react and to make good choices.Education,I dont know.Just remember an educated man invented the atomic bomb.The real problem might be the consciousness.An intelligent person make choices,at times the right ,at times maybe choose the wrong paths,for different reasons.I think smoking is bad,more,is bad for the people around us.I saw mothers carying babies with cigarettes in one hand.People are more and more selfish,I see.But sure industries that polutes are far more dangerous,as well as destroying green spaces.I cant understand why they build only malls,numberless,but none park?With the problem of fake help ,I saw a case of an italian actor,who for years gathered “founds” for poors in Kenya.But,poors never received a penny.After a big scandal in tv,finally the actor donate to the poors something like 10000 euros.How can be so miser a famous actor,that for sure is not poor?