The E-Cigarette an Effective Market Solution to Cigarette Addiction, Is Under Attack From the Public Sector
But the nanny statists aren't going to let a promising solution of effective harm reduction stand between them and their hatred of capitalism and independent individuals finding happiness by using something that an enterprising inventor created for profit.
John Tierney reports in the New York Times:
'But there’s a powerful group working against this innovation — and it’s not Big Tobacco. It’s a coalition of government officials and antismoking groups who have been warning about the dangers of e-cigarettes and trying to ban their sale.
The controversy is part of a long-running philosophical debate about public health policy, but with an odd role reversal. In the past, conservatives have leaned toward “abstinence only” policies for dealing with problems like teenage pregnancy and heroin addiction, while liberals have been open to “harm reduction” strategies like encouraging birth control and dispensing methadone.
When it comes to nicotine, though, the abstinence forces tend to be more liberal, including Democratic officials at the state and national level who have been trying to stop the sale of e-cigarettes and ban their use in smoke-free places. They’ve argued that smokers who want an alternative source of nicotine should use only thoroughly tested products like Nicorette gum and prescription patches — and use them only briefly, as a way to get off nicotine altogether.'
The free market solves problems. The public sector usually just fights, blocks, impedes, and harasses the free market every step of the way. Here's example number ??? ...infinity. (And by "the free market" I mean free people cooperating with each other voluntarily in the global marketplace to make their lives better.)
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Wes Messamore,
Editor in Chief, THL
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