Blowing Smoke characterizes a sentiment that has far reaching implications for many social movements. The author tries to shed light on the issue of the public health problem of smoking, or the lack thereof. The text then goes on to explain the “illiberal vindictiveness” with which the anti-smoking movement has found itself perpetuating. The very people that claim to be champions of liberal ideals are also the ones condemning free thought, and action. Even though the medical community recognizes that smoking is an unhealthy habit, but that doesn’t mean people who engage in it should be shunned and harassed. Finally, it is explained that banning smoking would be quite the hypocritical move, because then you would have to ban seeming less dangerous, yet statistically less healthy activities such as driving.…show more content… I think this article is targeted towards people who are undecided in the debate over smoking. The author tries to lure the reader in with statistics that seem to be legitimate, however, these are never cited, nor explained anywhere in the article. It is impossible to attract the following of more perceptive readers, because they can see right through the shortcomings of this work. However, more casual passersby might be inclined to believe in what the author is trying to convey. I’m not trying to bash this work though; the author makes some very interesting points. Referencing Locke was a great tool to generate authenticity with the values of classical liberalism. However, there are far too many holes, and obviously biased statements and figures within this test for a seasoned reader to take seriously. That is to say, this material must be taken with a grain of