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Originally Posted by kutulu
Here's how I take your statement:
If a habit is detrimental to one's health and therefore raises health care costs it is right and just to increase taxes on the people practicing that particular habit to subsidize their increased health care costs (whether or not the STATE is paying those costs). Is this correct?
Why stop with the smokers then? Why aren't we taxing the drunks to the point that they can't afford beer anymore? You can get duty free cartons for $15. That's $1.50/pack. These taxes are as high at $1.40/pack , 93% of the retail price. Should your 12 pack of Bud light that sells for $7.99 have a $7.46 tax that pushes the retail price up to $15.44? Drinking is detrimental to people's physical AND mental health. Drunk drivers get in car accidents, resulting in higher auto premiums. The negative health effects of drinking can be avoided by not drinking. Solution!
Let's also tax unhealthy foods. That 69-cent candy bar will now cost you $1.33. Same with the soda you drink that you buy for $2.50 a six pack. Now it's going to cost you $4.83. Chicken is more healthy than beef, therefore beef should be taxed. That steak that sells for $9.99/lb now costs $19.28/lb. We'll hit McDonalds really hard. Heart problems and clogged arteries are less likely if a person has a healthy diet. Eating healthy can prevent those problems. This is great. We'll make people live a healthy life by taxing all unhealthy activities!!!!
While we are at it, let's give people tax breaks for excercising, those people are more likely to be healthy, of course. Let's also tax porn, strip clubs, and adultery. They are all detrimental to one's mental health since there are plenty of studies that show that.
These ideas have been proposed but never go anywhere. Why? Maybe it's because these taxes are fine and dandy as long as they tax those "other people." Unless you want to tax EVERY unhealthy habit that is a personal choice to be a part of you ARE being a hypocrite. Don't lie about it.
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Yes, raising the tax on the people who are causing lung cancer (and I'm just speaking in the context of smoking here) is correct because YOU are the one who's causing it. And I'll say again, IT"S TOTALLY PREVENTABLE. You're the ones smoking; you are the ones who should be paying for the health care while people are laid up in hospitals with lung cancer. Not me. You also said that "The negative health effects of drinking can be avoided by not drinking. Solution!" The same goes for smoking. That's why you pay as much as you do you a pack of smokes.
The price of beer has gone up in recent years. At least from what I've seen. Granted, alcohol hasn't gotten much attention from the media because there aren't people laid up with liver problems as much as there are people with lung cancer. Either that or the media is lazy and doesn't want to put as much attention on both issues.
Taxing unhealthy foods won't work because one candy bar doesn't start you on the road to cancer. You'll start to get fat but excess weight can be dropped.
I don't think that it's about taxing unhealthy habits or activities as it is about trying to help pay for the increased costs of health care from unhealthy activities that deteriorate one's health which at the same time could be avoided entirely is such activity was avoided. I don't think that I'm a hypocrite, I just don’t believe that I should pay for your hospital stay when you get lung cancer because I didn't put a gun to your head and make you smoke that cigarette.