Recently I came across a blog post from John Straka where he explored the attitudes of tobacco across the last 70 years. He discussed various types of tobacco that were sold, how they were sold (hidden or displayed), and costs. Nothing was left from his list, from cigarettes, to chew, to snuff, and even a powder-type snuff that was directly inhaled.

It’s interesting to read, and consider, the American society’s viewpoint on tobacco use. The general attitude has gone from enjoyable pastime, to middle and low-class pleasure, to widely accepted society behavior, and today it’s viewed as ugly. What’s changed in that time? Today’s lawmakers seem like they’re out to punish tobacco users. Anyone enjoys a smoke or a chew gets hit with tax hikes in efforts to cover gaps in state budgets, and in many states you can’t even smoke in the apartment that you’re renting. Forget lighting up in a restaurant, on a sidewalk, or while drinking a beer and watching the game at your favorite bar. How did we get here?

Naturally this got me thinking about cigars, and the general attitude towards stogies. I venture that not much, save price and advertising has really changed. The cigar, the joy of smoking one, and the stereotype that comes with it has remained relatively untouched. It’s this blogger’s opinion that cigar smoking is viewed as a luxury; an opportunity to step out of the busy world and savor a piece of quiet as you mull over complex tobacco flavors and papers. Cigar smoking is attributed to men (and ladies) of leisure, authors, musicians, politicians, celebrities, and across all classes and societies. Want to give a sophisticated gift? Give a cigar. Celebrating a marriage, birth, or retirement? Smoke a stogie. Cigar smoking is still old world class, but structured with today’s new world rules.

Today, enjoying a puff or chew is no longer “smoke ‘em if you got ‘em,” but more “enjoy ‘em so long as someone hasn’t taken your right away or made you feel bad for choosing to”.

Maybe, as a society, we’ll evolve again to accept that tobacco use, like food consumption or alcohol enjoyment isn’t so much a group decision as it is an age-appropriate personal choice, and individual right.