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Originally Posted by jeffk
{snip} Since society has decided that they are going to "take care" of smoking's victims and we all have to foot the bill, maybe it's time to outlaw cigarettes so we can all stop paying for the damage done.
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I agree with most of what you said until the above. When we "give in" then the sharp lines get lost again. I guarantee you this will come up in the health care debate that will happen in a few years time. We'll be faced with the choice to "punish" (via taxation and some bans) certain "bad" foods so as to mitigate their abuse by those who don't take responsibility for their actions or decide to hold the person with the fork in their hand responsible. We can start now with smoking or set the bad, IMO, precedent you mention above. It won't be the high minded private vs public points you've outlined that are debated but rather what will the cost be and how best to demonize anyone objecting.