Back when I went through basic training ... just after the civil war .... every time we did get a rare 'break' the drill sergeants always said "take five, smoke 'em if you got 'em, if you don't get one from a buddy" ... smoking was practically encouraged then, as was drinking ... (mandatory alcohol abuse class, scheduled for 16:30 hours ... at the NCO club ... ). Things have really changed, I gather. But cigarettes and the military have always sort of just gone together. We were issued cigarettes with our "C" rations (small packs of five smokes, and a book of matches in every meal. I had the worst luck and always seemed to get the damn Newport menthols.) The non-smokers traded their cigs for some snack item or other ... it was just a tradition and no one thought anything of it .... and we still did our four mile runs with full combat load, etc. with smoke breaks before and after. I honestly don't think cigarettes harmed us as much, being always active and on the go, as they do someone leading a sedentary lifestyle.
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