Posted August 21, 2008 02:34
· last edited March 18, 2021 08:07
They can't ban smoking because it's too ingrained in our society. Generally most smokers are working class and would be up in arms if what they see as one of their simple pleasures was taken from them. It (like alcohol and lotto) is used a a suppressor of the masses - keep the plebs happy. All three (smoking, drinking and gambling) are treated like a regressive tax - the poorer you are, the more you are likely to pay.
There'd also be an enormous black market in tobacco that sprung up over night.
If the government really wanted to stop it, they'd tax it a whole lot more. Triple the tax, make them cost $30.00 a packet. But they won't, cos then they'd lose the tax revenue.