Why, indeed? Why ever? I’m 60 years old, and even in my parents’ day, long before I was ever born, there was plenty of recommendation to not smoke. Tobacco has always been addictive, which is why it was especially taxed and regulated (BATF, always a part of the Treasury Dept until the events of 9/11).
It’s ALWAYS been about peer pressure. Sure, long ago, peer pressure was much more prevalent in that it was seen as a rite of passage to adulthood. But even way back then, there was the additional pressure, “What’s the matter, chicken?”
Now, with all the negative advertising, the expense, the restrictions on indulgence, there is much less smoking, but the peer pressure is still there. The pressure to rebel, to establish your own [perceived] independence, to show you’re “cool.” I have four grown kids, boy, girl, girl, boy. The oldest boy doesn’t smoke. The oldest daughter does. The younger daughter doesn’t, but the youngest boy does. Has nothing to do with household, obviously, or upbringing, nor is it related to sex or age relationship. But the ones who do smoke were (are) more susceptible to peer pressure, and more rebellious to the status quo and rules.
My wife never smoked in spite of peer pressure, but I took it up as a teenager primarily by that reason. I finally quit, after the kids had all left home, so I can’t even rationalize how my smoking, or my wife’s lack of it, contributed to our kids. Certainly I’d think the sheer expense would be prohibitive. When I started, a pack cost less than 25¢. Even adjusting for inflation, that’s $1.30 in 2011 dollars, compared with the $5-$6 a pack cost today.