People have smoked tobacco for thousands of years. Cigarette smoking can be hazardous to a person’s health. But to forbid smoking merely for that reason, to my mind, is beyond question.

　　First, cigarette smoking for pleasure and relaxation has become common. The effects of nicotine help make smoking pleasurable though its effect on the nerve system also causes many people to become addicted to it. If we forbid this history-long habit of smoking, an innumerable number of people will immediately be affected, directly influencing the work they are engaged in, especially for heavy smokers.

　　Furthermore, tobacco ranks as an important crop in more than 60 nations. China leads in tobacco production, followed by the United States and India. The taxes on tobacco products provide a major source of revenue for tobacco-growing countries. To forbid smoking means to end the tobacco industry and its related industries, thus weakening the economy of tobacco-growing nations and throwing a large number of workers into streets, leading to social instability.

　　After all, the decision to smoke is considered purely a personal choice. Since the surgeon general first warned about the health hazards of smoking in 1964, millions of people have quit smoking. The popularity of smoking has been dropping because of decreased social acceptance, increased cost of tobacco products and increased awareness of health risks.

　　In conclusion, it is imperative for governments to formulate policies regulating smoking to provide protection for nonsmokers and to influence smokers to smoke less or quit rather than forbid it.(250 words)