I only socially smoke when I go to a party or somewhere like that and people don't seem to have too much of a problem with it, though I agree it does stick to clothes and stuff and after a night out I can smell it on my clothes from the night before.
Personally, I don't want to smoke regularly (because I play quite a bit of sport and don't want become addicted) but I know a couple of people who are regular smokers and chewing gum does help reduce the smell, but you can still smell it because it's on their clothes.