Hi Bob,
Well I learned! Back in 1976 I worked for Siemens Medical Labs, you know, the company that builds linear accelerators that many of us have been treated on (it's usually either them or Varian). When I would go out to hospitals to work on the machines I would watch the sometimes near dead patients being rolled in, ashen and gurgling -actually saw a few die in the middle of treatment. I would also read the cover page of their charts, during downtime, and EVERY one stated "...patient, heavy smoker, 25 years, carcinoma of the lower left (right) lobe..." I admit I was far more concerned about lung cancer than oral cancer but it made a lasting impression on me. In 1976 smoking was still legal in the workplace. In spite of this, many who worked at Siemens were heavy smokers (even more ironically, I received my treatment on a Siemens LINAC).
I am sorry that the culture there has such disregard for good health in the amoking area. The Europeans aren't much different. The last time I was in Munich there were no no-smoking sections anywhere.

Since I only smoked for about 5 years, I believe my cancer was the result of second hand smoke from all those years of playing in smokey bars and clubs (I am sure that the pot I smoked didn't help either - and then there's the folks who have suggested to me to obtain "medical marijuana" but that's another story).

My stepkids smoke -go figure -they have been fairly up close and personal with this through me and it hasn't made an iota of a difference. I mean what part of "... this is the most preventable cause of death..." don't they understand???

I had a neighbor who smoked through the hole in his throat (gross) -appropriately, he died. And yes, there were patients who snuck cigarettes in the bathroom at the UCSF Medical Center in the radiation oncology area. God bless 'em - they make my statistical survival odds go up! Keep smoking those cigarettes!

(footnote -this is irony -get it? I really wish that no one smoked and that the product had never been invented)

In the almost 20 years I have owned my home there has NEVER been a cigarette smoked in the house. I feel strongly enough about this that they would be marched out at gunpoint. If God came over and wanted to light up - He'd have to do it on the porch. A nearby city is passing an ordinance that it is illegal to smoke within 20 feet of a building -my how far we have come! I guess living in the People's Republik of Kalifornia has some benefits after all.

There is a renewed push for the FDA to regulate the nicotine content in tobacco products - Write your congressperson to tell them you support this. It will have to be written into law in the Federal Register before the FDA can enforce it. In lieu of an outright ban, this might be an important first step.