[apta]

> which is now used by the government to squeeze tobacco companies by the nuts.

As it should. These companies provide absolutely zero benefit to society, and rely on addicts to keep their business going, and they try to get more addicts in the process. Human greed is truly destructive.

[decebalus1]

mmm.. it depends. Fucking over these companies is a good way to go. But fucking them over just the right amount so that they continue doing business to pay money is not ok. It creates a perverse incentive in which the government actually wants people to buy cigarettes so it can continue the money flow. You'd think that cigarette taxes go into public health but that's not the case. The problem here is that with vaping, people are smoking less, thus buying less cigarettes and paying less to the government via tobacco taxes. Because vape pods/ejuice/ecig hardware is not taxed like cigarettes.

[apta]

The way I see it, tobacco products should be fully banned. If there are companies that truly want to help the addicts, they can work in a controlled manner, overseen by the government, something like a rehab program. There should be deadlines set by when the rehab programs would end when there are no more smokers left. Easier said than done of course, but I see no effort in that direction.