The problem is that we now have “anarcho tyranny” (term coined by Sam Francis) where some “vices” are fine and others are banned or harshly punished—and a bunch of bureaucrats get to pick which is which.
That is pure insanity.
That is pure insanity.
I totally agree with you.
My main pushback on this whole article was the OP saying "I hope smoking comes roaring back".
Looking back at the subsidization of tobacco by New Deal programs, the absolute corporate evil perpetuated by the cigarette companies, and the death toll cigarettes took on the modern world, I couldn't fathom why anyone would want to see more young people killing themselves.
I used to think drinking whiskey in a casino while smoking a cigarette meant you were living in a "free" country. It takes some life experience with seeing friends lives destroyed with addiction, and seeing how much government is involved in the business of addiction through taxation and government grants and subsidies, and the corrupt corporate culture pushing addictions on people when they're young, whether it's alcohol logos and commercials on television and in every public place, sports gambling, or prescription drugs.
Even something as seemingly inoffensive as scratch off tickets should disgust decent people. Every time I'm in a convenience store, I see people who are clearly struggling (economically, psychologically, or otherwise), shuffling their coins and cash around to buy more lottery tickets. The whole idea that the government runs a numbers racket and uses it to fund "education" should be a warning to everyone that it's the Deep State that is pushing this crap on people. If you want to waste your rent money on the lottery, be my guest. But the government shouldn't be running it.
The Deep State wants us addicted, sick, and broke, and it was surprising to see Freepers conflate more smoking with more freedom, especially when it's spouted by some ginger leftist at The Guardian.