I recently quit my cigarette smoking habit and had tons of cartons of cigarettes left that I had no need for, so I called the food bank and asked them if they took cigarette donations, explaining my situation. They informed me that they did not and that their mission was to feed the hungry, not to give them cancer and kill them off. I explained to them that practically everyone who goes to the food bank seems to smoke and if they got their cigarettes for free, they could spend the money that would have gone to cigarettes on food. Am I an asshole for even offering?
No, you’re not an asshole for offering, but they could have simply said “No thanks, we only accept food” and left it at that.
Hit the streets and start giving them out to homeless people… they will love you for it, much moreso than if you did the same thing bearing food. (I know this because I’ve actually tried the latter, and was usually refused asking if I had money or cigarettes instead)
Do you work in a downtown or urban area? If you can stand to have them on you and can bear the temptation of doing so, carry an extra pack or two around. When you see a Butt Bandit (a usually homeless person who raids public ashtrays for cigarette remnants - really disgusting), give them a pack.
This. When I smoked I would always give cigs to homeless guys in lieu of cash. It was never unappreciated. Even the ones who don’t smoke like them because they can trade them with the ones who do.
Not at all. And if I were you, I’d find a way to give them to the people who are still addicted and can’t afford them.
(I’m an ex-smoker, 10 years and counting, and can’t stand them. But I know what it was like to be in the addiction, and it would be incredibly nice of you to give your cigs away - you aren’t going to be curing anyone else’s addiction by NOT doing it.)
I don’t have the time to go out and find who smokes and who doesn’t and figure a way to evenly distribute them so it’s fair…
How many cartons are we talking about?
Fair? I suspect not much is fair about the lives of people who are eating from food banks.
Why not just hand them out?
I counted 42 cartons, I bought a ton of the at a reservation while I was visiting my sister in North Carolina.
Ummm, wow, that’s a lot.
Something else you might want to consider (and I’m sure this is frowned up at the SDMB) would be to hit up some of the local corner bars that have cigarette machines and see if they’ll buy some from you. You wouldn’t have any problem getting 30-50 dollars a carton if it’s good brand (or just take $1000 for the whole lot and be done with it).
ETA since you said North Carolina I assume that’s out of state, so it might not be that easy. A buddy of mine that owns a bar will drive 50-100 miles away from his bar in search of cheaper cigarettes but he won’t leave the state or order them online because they have to have the (our) state tax stamp on them…but you could try.
Fair? 
If you’re concerned about giving them to deserving smokers, check and see if there’s an American Legion or VFW post nearby. A lot of the smokers I know are ex-military – that’s where they picked up the habit.
What AuntiePam said.
And no, you’re not an asshole. I don’t smoke but I don’t see any reason to NOT give them to someone who already smokes actively. Pretty damn nice of you, I’d say.
Although the food bank might not have been the best place to call, you were just trying to help someone out. I agree with PandaBear77 and others in this thread who don’t think you’re an asshole at all for this.
I personally hate tobacco but recognize that many people don’t hate tobacco and would be more than grateful for the free cigs. (and woah, you sure have a *lot!)
(It sounds like the person at the food bank was a little uppity, imo.)
(edited to fix spelling)
No, you’re not. But the scold-y little lecture the lady at the food bank gave you sort of is. Sheesh, I can’t STAND cigs but jeeez, some people, you were trying to be nice and generous.
Like DCnDC said, just hand them out to anybody who’ll take them. Even if they don’t smoke them, they’ll get traded to someone else who does. It’ll even out. It would probably be more unfair to not distribute them at all.
Find a place that the poor go and hand them out. Bring someone with you so you don’t get mugged. That is a lot of cigarettes!
42 cartons? How long would that have lasted you?
Wouldn’t that amount fill the back of an average car???
Not even close. Probably about three grocery sacks.