36 Comments
Jun 5, 2023Liked by Max Read

It fits into the cultural zeitgeist of revisiting and romanticizing the early 90s when smoking was taking its last gasp of cultural relevance. I am very much looking forward to American Spirits, loose jeans, baggy flannels, and music with guitars taking back their rightful place at the center of the cultural universe.

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Jun 5, 2023Liked by Max Read

I read this article to my husband on our post-work smoke break, and he wants you to "stop speaking this into being" and to "step away from the Lathe of Heaven"

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you're thinking about it too much. it's simply, _cool_.

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and followers of GRAPHIC DESIGN will also note Canada's decision to put warnings directly onto individual cigarette. But it's unfortunately QUITE attractive; very Michael Beirut.

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Jun 5, 2023Liked by Max Read

As the creator of the only independent 100% natural American grown cigarette company - this piece certainly collates and crystallizes many many of the thoughts and driving forces that have pushed Hestia Cigarettes for the past decade. Thank you so much for this!

http://HestiaTobac.co

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"both makes people smarter and kills them before they become senile."

is an amazing justification. And really, seeing how people who outlive their usefulness to capital are treated in American society, it's an easy logic to follow.

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Jun 5, 2023Liked by Max Read

I've always been interested in how the danger of secondhand smoke may have been exaggerated to justify laws against indoor smoking. To be clear, I've never been a smoker and I think there are plenty of good reasons to discourage it and for businesses and building owners to prohibit it on their premises. But if there is a renewed pro-smoking discourse, I have a feeling that the pro side will trot out as a talking point the way that lawmakers' pushed the dubious idea that service workers needed protection from customers' smoke.

https://slate.com/technology/2017/02/secondhand-smoke-isnt-as-bad-as-we-thought.html?pay=1685976882616&support_journalism=please

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brilliant piece, surprised no mention of Zyn and specifically Tucker Carlson's advocacy for and use of Zyn

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Jun 6, 2023·edited Jun 6, 2023

PS. My Dad died of Lung Cancer with Emphysema after being a multi-pack a day life long smoker. I presume most of the folks reading this didn't live during the times that cigarettes were everywhere all the time including Airplanes, restaurants, and homes. It was horrible. Cigarettes were designed to be super addictive and they killed.

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🚬

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Great piece, and horrifying implications. That said, it seems like you have encapsulated the trends

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This is amazing. So smart and fun! I appreciate having the context and langue to understand this ongoing/evolving discussion.

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I quit cigs almost exactly a decade ago... and for reasons.. I started vaping like 6 years into it. It's now been ~18 mos since I quit vaping and I still think about smoking in ways I never thought about vaping. That said, even though I think about it a lot, I'm not sure I'd ever actually start smoking again... despite acknowledging its ability to aid hyper-focus & relaxation [which I'm not totally sure is 100% nicotine as vaping never *quite* had the same impact.. unless that had more to do with an individual's uptake of Nic Salts].

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Absolutely brilliant writing, Max. I think your writing now on substack is 67 percent better than at Gawker. I am a proud subscriber.

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Reason number 2 is too real. The only reason my husband and I got together is because we were the only ones in our film class who smoked. All of our friends who have coupled up in the last decade met on the apps.

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I had to keep checking it its April 1st while reading this

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