[gridlock]

I'm all for complete freedom WRT tobacco. But I'm warning you, the second after the tobacco industry is no longer under the Government's protection, the lawyers will be all over it like a pack of sharks. And they will leave over about as much as a pack of sharks usually leaves over.

An industry just cannot go on killing that many people so cavalierly for so long. Eventually liability will catch up. The only thing that has saved them thus far is that the government stepped in and negotiated exclusive deals to shield them from general liability. If free markets were allowed to take their course, this protection would be stripped away, and the tobacco industry would be bankrupt within a year.

As well they should be. Product liability is the way companies are forced to shoulder the burdens of suffering and death that result from their activities. The tobacco companies have been able to duck this burden for decades. It is time for that shell game to end.

[MrLeRoy]

Product liability is the way companies are forced to shoulder the burdens of suffering and death that result from their activities.

To the extent that they denied and concealed the harmfulness of their products, they should be held liable. But when new tobacco suppliers come along to meet the ongoing demand for tobacco products, full disclosure should yield complete protection from lawsuits.