Maybe I’m too distracted. But, screw any movies, series, or any such content showing smoking and shamelessly claiming it causes lung cancer as if that makes it okay.
I’m not one of those “social activists” or people who raise arguments about everything others do. I don’t involve myself in anyone’s privacy because I’d like to give them their own space. But addiction is something someone doesn’t choose — they end up doing it mindlessly.
Kids today are driven by social media trends, movies, and all such content. They are distracted and influenced by it. I won’t go into too much detail because you can understand what I’m saying. I’m not going to cite statistics about how it affects their lives.
Movies and series show smoking with a microscope-sized notice that it causes lung cancer. They have no clue that kids are watching and being influenced by it. Yes, most movies nowadays are UA (age <13: watch with caution). There’s this main character who often smokes after a “swag” scene. It’s awful.
I don’t need to convince you or show any statistics on the fact that children below 18 are smoking. The movie and series trend has even spread across social media like Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. In fact, Instagram is the one thing I really hate. What are they trying to achieve with short videos that are clearly adult-rated content? I won’t go further into that.
Maybe because I’m a boomer. I feel sorry for every child out there who is trying to stay balanced in this noisy world of chaos. What we (adults) model is what they become. You don’t need to go to school to understand that smoking causes lung cancer and it’s fatal. I understand having one or two a month. But it eventually becomes a habit. How do you convince me that it’s not the case? For adults who have it once or twice a month and can keep it controlled — fine, I’m not fully against it. But kids are impressionable. They latch on to any habit. They don’t yet know how to think critically.
I’ll add this too. Movies (not all) and social media are shaping a generation — teaching them how to think, walk, and behave. You need to be mature enough to understand that they aren’t literally promoting smoking. If you can make that distinction, you can watch anything.
Dear kids, don’t be the person who imitates a movie character and loses yourself in the process. It’s the worst thing you could do to your life. Everyone is already trying to fix existing health issues. Why would you want to invite more? If you’ve had it very rarely, you know it’s controlled. But when something goes wrong in your life, your habit becomes the escape. Ask anyone who’s been there — they’ll tell you what that means.
I wish you a very good weekend. 🕶️