I never said that smokers that died early in life didn't exist - I was just saying that pointing out that an 80 year old man died from smoking isn't going to change anyone's mind about the dangers of smoking.
In fact, pointing out that Carson smoked actually hurts the anti-smoking cause as he exceeded the average life expectancy and enjoyed a very good quality of life.
There's no way anyone can claim that Carson probably had 10 good years left without the smoking. After age 65 or so, the body can break down almost overnight. Many people who didn't smoke can appear perfectly healthy one day and be dead with 2 months. Maybe Carson had 20 more years left or maybe he had another 2 months - there is just no way to know.
On average, smoking will shorten a person's life, but pointing out an 80 year old guy that exceeded the average life span is not a winning strategy to make this fact hit home with smokers.
Stop it with your reasonable posts! If your not careful you will be thrown in with our "little click" or "cult" from the ping list. Common sense and factual information has no place in trying to make other people live better lives!