[microgood]

And taxes on cigarettes that cost us a great deal of money for health insurance and lost productivity.

This is not true. If you look at how much more smokers pay in taxes than other people, they pay way more than any offset in their costs.

In addition, they tend to die earlier saving both Medicare and Social Security costs. What they usually die of is the same thing that overweight people or people who do not exercise do, heart or cardiovascular related illnesses.

In addition, more people die from obesity than smoking related illnesses and most cancer is genetic so people with cancer who have children greatly affect the cost of health care for all of us. It is just easy to pick on smokers because they are a minority.

It is also very regressive in that it affects the lower incomes way more than anyone else. Ironically, it is a lie which the liberals have been promoting and now it looks like the the Republicans are doing it.

Government officials are similar to crack addicts in that they will do or say anything to get their fix. One thing you can count on with government: everything they say is a lie. Everything.

[gondramB]

"
This is not true. If you look at how much more smokers pay in taxes than other people, they pay way more than any offset in their costs."

I remember reading that the lifetime health care and missed work cost of cigarettes is about $5 a pack... I'll see if I can find that study and we can see who did it and whether it was obviously biased.

[PhilipFreneau]

>>>Government officials are similar to crack addicts in that they will do or say anything to get their fix. <<<

Damn, that is a good (and accurate) line.

[Dawgreg]

I agree microgood. Our health premiums are outrageous. We smoke, don't intend to quit any time soon, but the gist of the matter, imho, is the gooberment on Crapitol Hill, talk a big talk about tobacco like it was the plague, but if you really want to see them get their drawers in a wad, just start a movement to BAN tobacco products and watch them in full melt-down..........taxes on tobacco products are where they get their pork money. They grandstand about the evils of tobacco, but they don't want it to go under. Damned two-faced hypocrites!