How I wish I could edit this boy's smoking habit

You may already have heard of the news of a two-year-old boy who smokes up to 40 cigarettes a day. This Indonesian tot is so addicted to nicotine that he throws tantrums every time he's not given a cigarette.

Well this was the news that spread like wild fire last May and videos showing Ardi smoking created international outrage that even the Indonesian government was criticized for its loose policies on smoking. The tobacco industry is said to be contributing billions of dollars annually to the government and local economy, and there are in fact many young children (as young as 7) who are already into this bad habit.

Looking at the photo of Ardi, there definitely is something wrong with the picture. Unfortunately, this photo wasn't photoshopped or edited in such a way that the toddler was previously holding a bottle of milk instead of a cigarette. The truth hurts even if he's not our own child but just come to imagine young children who are already into this habit. This leads me to think of Ardi's parents. His father once said, "I'm not worried about his health. He looks healthy to me." This statement left me wringing in disgust but thinking about it in a very objective manner, Ardi's father is simply ignorant of the bad effects of cigarette smoking just like thousands of other Indonesians. If there's only a way to edit Ardi's father's train of thought, I could already have initiated the move to make him change his mind.

It's sad to think that illiteracy and ignorance affect a big population of Indonesia. I wouldn't bother editing the photo of Ardi smoking a cigarette- that is simply the truth; a harsh truth at that. But if there's  a way to educate Ardi's parents and other Indonesian parents about the hazards of smoking, I believe that will make them think twice about offering it to their children in the first place. Overall, it's hard to edit what's already been practiced and believed; their ways are deeply rooted in a system that should have been edited in the first place. 

I think we just need to continue hoping that the government will take the time to reflect on its tobacco regulations and hopefully, edit most of them.

Here's the latest news so far on Ardi.