Monday, August 27, 2012

Truth column August 16

My August 16 Truth column is now on-line.

I’m a non-smoker and consider my right to be free from other people’s cigarette smoke well and truly satisfied under current legislation. The anti-tobacco religionists are now starting to get up my nose far worse than cigarette smoke used to.

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Other Truth columns here

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

randova2Well yes, jobs etc are relevant but of far, far more relevance is the right of people to do what they want without a govt telling them what they 'shouldn't' do. This is a free speech issue more that it's a jobs issue. Treasury tells us that smokers cost the country less than the rest of us - they pay special taxes and they die before drawing too much super. So if they keep their smoke to themselves let them get on with it and keep govt get out of their way (and everyone else's). Regards

Jeremy Laurenson

Lindsay Mitchell said...

Agree that it is primarily a free choice issue Jeremy. But I have only 320 words and chose to take up the jobs argument as that was the Mayor's angle.

The only aspect of the 'smoker's pay more tax than they consume in healthcare or Super' argument that may be a weakness is many smokers are welfare beneficiaries ie paying tobacco taxes but not out of productive earnings.