Big Tobacco Made Me Smoke! |
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| Media Link - Times-Journal (Fort Payne, Alabama) | ||||
| Friday, 01 June 2001 00:00 | ||||
So a jury in Florida has awarded $145 billion in damages to people who chose to smoke. Tobacco companies, they claim, are responsible for the smokers' medical bills. Interesting. Overweight people can't sue fast food chains for their medical bills. People who drink and drive can't sue alcohol manufacturers for the fact that they drove drunk. At least not yet. The victorious plaintiffs claim: "It's not about the money." Then why don't they return the money? Or give it away? Of course it's about money. But it's much worse than that. The darker legacy of this lawsuit lies in its pretense that personal responsibility simply does not exist. In holding tobacco companies responsible for everything, smokers hold themselves responsible for nothing. Once our courts eliminate the notion of personal choice and responsibility, society becomes a war of all against all. Today, smokers sue tobacco companies for "making" them smoke. Tomorrow, violent killers will sue gun manufacturers for "making" them pull triggers. The principle established in this case knows no limits. The dangers of smoking have been well publicized for the past three decades or more. People who smoked anyway, and got sick, do not deserve our pity. Nor do they deserve anyone's money. It's time that smokers face the consequences of their choices -- just like the rest of us. (Date of publication unknown).
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