Tobacco War Hypocrisy

Tobacco War Hypocrisy

Dear Editor:

Blood is in the water, the sharks are closing in for the feeding frenzy. The wounded victim is the tobacco industry, the sharks are state and federal governments agents. They smell big money. Government has an insatiable appetite for money. Having bled individual citizens white, they have now set their sights on a vulnerable industry.

I do not use tobacco. Without doubt it is both noxious and harmful. I have no stock in the tobacco industry. Frankly I would be pleased if every smoker gave up the habit and the producers folded for lack of business. The fact is however, at this point of time, the raising, processing and selling of tobacco is perfectly legal in America. The federal government and all states collect taxes from this legal product. No one is forced to use tobacco products. Millions who once used it have stopped.

I am impressed by the hypocrisy of the sharks that are rushing in to feed on the tobacco industry's finances. I watch their righteous diatribes about tobacco's harmfulness to public health. But what of the harmfulness of alcoholic beverages? Some 25,000 Americans die each year in traffic accident where alcohol is involved. Thousands more are injured and maimed from this social evil. Alcohol is a common factor in domestic violence and in a sizeable portion of criminal activity. It is addictive and is as deadly as tobacco.

The public picks up much of the tab for treating the victims of alcohol abuse. Where is the outrage? Where are the legal actions by government agencies? Is it the liquor industry's lobbyists and money or the politicians' appetite for the stuff that makes the difference?

Suppose that to survive, the tobacco industry decided that it would be more practical to fold up their U.S. operations and move to a more friendly nation? Denied the millions it had formerly received in tobacco taxes and by legal extortion, politicians would have to find another victim for their hungry maw. Someone would have to divvy up the lost revenue. What a scenario!

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