California smokers may get hit with new tax

[BigDemVoter]

8. Bad food and alcohol don't do the damage that smoking does.

Smoking is by far, by far, by far, the WORST COMMON and AVOIDABLE health hazard out there. It exceeds the damage of bad food, KFC, McDonald's, alcohol, anything else. It not only causes things we know about like heart attacks, strokes, and lung cancer, but it also contributes to other types of cancers as well as less well known heart problems. It's totally avoidable, and trying to call it a nanny tax, or whatever else, neglects the fact that people don't have to do it.

Raising the price of cigarettes is the best way of discouraging smoking. Drinkers already pay a tax on alcohol, but still, alcoholism doesn't hold a candle to the damage that cigarettes do.

Considering adding bad food to the list is like saying we should ban bee bee guns along with assault rifles, because you can put your eye out with one. False equivalence.