Support NeoGAF

[Go_Ly_Dow]

-The new measures
-Drab brownish-green packaging
-Larger health warnings on 65% of the front and back
-Graphic picture at the top of the packet
-Brand name in a standard typeface
-Minimum pack size of 20 cigarettes
-No more "misleading" information, like "low tar" or "organic"

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-39984887

Pics at the link.

Living in Japan at the moment and this kind of legislation is completely lacking over here. Tobacco marketing, smoking indoors, vending machines, cigarettes sold in the most visible and accessible areas of shops etc...

Always nice to see a big fuck you served to Tobacco companies.

 

[Hashmal_Bringer_of_Order]

Nice to see that a broken clock (government) can be right twice a day (month).

 

[lastplayed]

Sadly the anti-smoking measures here seem to have created a black market for cigarettes. Some dairy (corner store) owners here are putting up with almost weekly armed robberies as a result.

Still, I'm glad they're becoming harder to see and buy.

 

[hydrophilic attack]

good

 

[#sorrynotsorry]

Yup. Definitely warranted. I wish America would do this. Or just make anyone born after 2000 unable to legally purchase them. That would kill it right there.

Cigarettes are truly evil.

 

[Mendrox]

-The new measures
-Drab brownish-green packaging
-Larger health warnings on 65% of the front and back
-Graphic picture at the top of the packet
-Brand name in a standard typeface
-Minimum pack size of 20 cigarettes
-No more "misleading" information, like "low tar" or "organic"

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-39984887

Pics at the link.

Living in Japan at the moment and this kind of legislation is completely lacking over here. Tobacco marketing, smoking indoors, vending machines, cigarettes sold in the most visible and accessible areas of shops etc...

Always nice to see a big fuck you served to Tobacco companies.

Japan does it better. Smoking on the street is almost impossible xcept for the few designated areas which I thought was way way more annoying and stopped me from smoking many times there. Pictures and warnings on packs? I dont give a fuck. That will never work for me.

Also for the vending machines you need to get a special card so not easy to get them on the street.

 

[IdreamofHIME]

I don't believe the packaging thing works at all. In fact My friends who smoke don't give a crap, but i have to sit at a pub table with a cancerous heart staring at me all night even when I never intended to smoke.

 

[danm999]

I don't believe the packaging thing works at all. In fact My friends who smoke don't give a crap, but i have to sit at a pub table with a cancerous heart staring at me all night even when I never intended to smoke.

It's aim is more at getting people to never start than convincing smokers to stop.

 

[Pizza]

Literally just phase out cigarettes in favor of ecigs or some vapor equivalent

I recently got to the point where my desire to smoke had ballooned into wanting to just chill outside and chainsmoke for awhile and I quit cold turkey

I'd love to own a vape and hookah, but not until it's something I do for fun instead of an anxious impulse

Tbh labels and shit wouldn't deter me from buying cigarettes when I want them. The huge label on my black and milds was a joke to me.

 

[TheWraith]

Japan does it better.

What?? Out of all developed countries Japan must be the very worst. I can't count the times I've had a meal in restaurant ruined by smokers next to me. Totally disgusting. Also the fact smoking in train cars is still allowed is surreal.

 

[DrSlek]

I don't believe the packaging thing works at all. In fact My friends who smoke don't give a crap, but i have to sit at a pub table with a cancerous heart staring at me all night even when I never intended to smoke.

These measures have existed in Australia for....half a decade now. They have been very effective in that time.

 

[Kthulhu]

Yup. Definitely warranted. I wish America would do this. Or just make anyone born after 2000 unable to legally purchase them. That would kill it right there.

Cigarettes are truly evil.

That's stupid. What if they want to smoke anyway? I'm fine with trying to get less people to smoke, but a full ban is stupid.

Cigarettes are evil? What are you, a preacher?

 

[wonzo]

The point of Plain Packaging is to rob Tobacco companies of their branding, logos, & design. The grotesque health warnings are just an added bonus.

 

[Mendrox]

What?? Out of all developed countries Japan must be the very worst. I can't count the times I've had a meal in restaurant ruined by smokers next to me. Totally disgusting. Also the fact smoking in train cars is still allowed is surreal.

Ehh dont know I have no sense of smell but any restaurant that I visited had a designated smoker lounge on another floor or room. Also smoking in trains? Which one? Only Shinkansen still has it when I was there a week ago and it was an enclosed tight space with ventilation. Way more difficult to smoke in Japan than in Germany.

 

[Barkley's Justice]

Back when I smoked and visited Japan, I thought it would be cool to ride in the smoking section of the train from Tokyo to Kyoto.

Before the train even departed, everyone started lighting up. No ventilation / closed windows (of course). I was nauseaus instantly. Hopped off one stop later in Yokohama.

 

[Mendrox]

Back when I smoked and visited Japan, I thought it would be cool to ride in the smoking section of the train from Tokyo to Kyoto.

Before the train even departed, everyone started lighting up. No ventilation / closed windows (of course). I was nauseaus instantly. Hopped off one stop later in Yokohama.

Fortunately these dont exist anymore.

 

[Onlinehero]

Speaking of Japan... despite the awful smoking culture and prevalence of smoking among adult men, having a swatch at cancer rates (lung, and non-skin) told me that they're nowhere near the top. Countries like Denmark and Finland place above even when looking specifically at the rate among men.

What's up with that? (these statistics were from 2012 and before)

 

[Go_Ly_Dow]

Speaking of Japan... despite the awful smoking culture and prevalence of smoking among adult men, having a swatch at cancer rates (lung, and non-skin) told me that they're nowhere near the top. Countries like Denmark and Finland place above even when looking specifically at the rate among men.

What's up with that? (these statistics were from 2012 and before)

My own observations/hypothesis.

The rate is probably gonna creep up.

Life expectancy is high here because the Japanese are very active and the traditional diet isn't as unhealthy as other countries, however I think with the younger generations, dietary habits are getting worse and I come across a ton of over reliance on convenience foods and less focus on homecooking.

 

[spazchicken]

lol WTF? This doesn't even make sense. Is that someone's foot?

Smoking causes burnt up feet?

 

[Addnan]

Good.

Have been going to Austria a lot lately and still shocked by their smoking. Cigarette vending machines I found so damn weird. Pretty much every bar people smoke. Just nasty.

 

[Mohonky]

We've had that packaging for years in Australia.

Dont know that it really changed anything.

 

[Air Zombie Meat]

Wasn't this already done with rolling tobacco? My packs have been like this for a while.

 

[Occam]

How about taxing tobacco companies to pay for the damage their product does to society?

 

[waveuponwave]

lol WTF? This doesn't even make sense. Is that someone's foot?

Smoking causes burnt up feet?

Peripheral artery disease

It's pretty nasty, yeah

 

[Mohonky]

How about taxing tobacco companies to pay for the damage their product does to society?

They already tax the customers.

When I started smoking a pack of ciggarettes was $10-$12Aud, its now just over $30Aud for the same pack.

 

[Monty Mole]

I barely see people smoking here in UK anymore. It's all vaping these days. Which is great because I can't stand the smell of smoke. And the smoking ban was the best thing ever.

But across the rest of Europe smoking is still a big issue. I couldn't eat anywhere in Italy recently without having my meal ruined by sometime smoking at the table next to us.

 

[Doc_Drop]

The only thing that bothers me is as as someone who occasionally like to smoke a bit of weed I don't want to have to buy a shit ton of tobacco, I would suspect having a large pouch full would encourage people to smoke more in order not to be wasting money

 

[Cabaratier]

I barely see people smoking here in UK anymore. It's all vaping these days. Which is great because I can't stand the smell of smoke. And the smoking ban was the best thing ever.

But across the rest of Europe smoking is still a big issue. I couldn't eat anywhere in Italy recently without having my meal ruined by sometime smoking at the table next to us.

Really? There's still a shitload of people smoking in London, on the streets, especially when people have fanned out like 50m from the pub with their glasses on a sunny day.

 

[milanbaros]

In London I see far more vaping than cigarettes these days.

Edit: Yes, you'll see people outside pubs smoking but still see far more vaping.

 

[YourMaster]

lol WTF? This doesn't even make sense. Is that someone's foot?

Smoking causes burnt up feet?

I know right, smoking just makes you look cool.

Why would they put conditions on the packaging that you can't get from smoking? They have so many to choose from, and there would massive damaging publicity if they lied there.

 

[azyless]

This is already in effect in France and I don't believe the numbers have lowered at all. People don't smoke because the box is pretty.

 

[paperboywriter]

This is already in effect in France and I don't believe the numbers have lowered at all. People don't smoke because the box is pretty.

if it prevents a couple of young people to start smoking thats good enough for me.

 

[John Caboose]

I hate smoking. It would bring me immense joy never having to smell someones smoke ever again.

 

[iFirez]

The article says 17% of adults are smokers. I would have expected higher. Everyone I know except me are social smokers at the very least but maybe people who only smoke when drunk don't count themselves as smokers. I only know 2 actual full time/packs a day smokers.

 

[Air Zombie Meat]

This is already in effect in France and I don't believe the numbers have lowered at all. People don't smoke because the box is pretty.

This and destroying tobacco companies brand marketing is good enough for me.

 

[RoyalFool]

They should force bad kerning on all the fonts and have it make a fart noise when opening the box

 

[azyless]

if it prevents a couple of young people to start smoking thats good enough for me.

I don't think young people start smoking because the box is pretty either, but we'll see the effects long term I guess.
One trimester after the launch of neutral packaging there's even a slight augmentation of cigarettes sold to tobacco shops compared to 2016.

 

[Sakura]

Japan does it better. Smoking on the street is almost impossible xcept for the few designated areas which I thought was way way more annoying and stopped me from smoking many times there. Pictures and warnings on packs? I dont give a fuck. That will never work for me.

Also for the vending machines you need to get a special card so not easy to get them on the street.

You can smoke on the streets in most places in Japan.

 

[British Monsoon]

We know how destructive alcohol can be, so why not plaster beer bottles with pictures of diseased livers?

"People who drink heavily have a greater risk of liver disease, heart disease, sleep disorders, depression, stroke, bleeding from the stomach, sexually transmitted infections from unsafe sex, and several types of cancer. They may have problems managing diabetes, high blood pressure, and other conditions."

 

[MarkMclovin]

Nothing like having a smoke after a good sesh only to be greeted with someones fucked up feet.

 

[eot]

The more anti-smoking laws the better.

 

[Magni]

Good thing about smoking laws in Japan: some cities ban smoking in the street (and the overwhelming majority of smokers respect these bans).

Bad thing: everything else

It's way too cheap, way to easy to buy, there's still ads on TV for it, and probably worst of all: smoking indoors at restaurants/bars/clubs. Fuck that.

 

[Mendrox]

You can smoke on the streets in most places in Japan.

In Tokyo, Kyoto, Hiroshima and Osaka smoking was banned everywhere except in the designated areas for smokers. So yeah you can but have have fun paying the fine. I was there myself just a week ago for three weeks. Kyoto was easiest though with their 7/11 and Lawsons having an ashtray infront of them. But look at your feet every 100m and you see a warning.

 

[paperboywriter]

In Tokyo, Kyoto, Hiroshima and Osaka smoking was banned everywhere except in the designated areas for smokers. So yeah you can but have have fun paying the fine. I was there myself just a week ago for three weeks.

can confirm that. couple of years ago i was roaming tokyo and some random people on the streets signaled to me that smoking wasn't allowed.

The gaming/gambling places (forgot the word for them) are hell though.

 

[Camper Van Beethoven]

Nanny state.

 

[Vard]

Glad to see this going in the right direction. Tobacco is whacko.

 

[Jeff Albertson]

Amazing the change of the last 10 or so years.

I used to be a casual smoker because most of us did, you'd sit in the pub with a pint and a fag it was just normal.

Before then people used to smoke everywhere, my wife's a hairdresser and she had clients that would smoke whilst having their hair done, people would smoke in offices and even on planes.

smokers are being made to look silly and I think it's a good thing myself. Soon it will be seen as a real odd habit.

I just hope my casual smoking over a few years didn't do any major damage.

 

[Shadow Ranger]

I wish smoking zones were enforced and a thing. For ecigs too. Not a fan walking down the street with someone's smoke going all in my face.

 

[MikeHattsu]

In Tokyo, Kyoto, Hiroshima and Osaka smoking was banned everywhere except in the designated areas for smokers. So yeah you can but have have fun paying the fine. I was there myself just a week ago for three weeks. Kyoto was easiest though with their 7/11 and Lawsons having an ashtray infront of them. But look at your feet every 100m and you see a warning.

Most places in Japan ain't the big cities though (although that's where most people live)

 

[Social]

Now increase the price loaaaaads.