by Rep. Ron Paul
Last week, another bill was passed and signed into law that takes more of our freedoms and violates the Constitution of the United States.
It was, of course, done for the sake of the children, and in the name of the health of the citizenry. It’s always the case that when your liberty is seized, it is seized for your own good. Such is the condescension of Washington.
The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act will give sweeping new powers over tobacco to the FDA. It will require everyone engaged in manufacturing, preparing, compounding, or processing tobacco to register with the FDA and be subjected to FDA inspections, which is yet another violation of the Fourth Amendment. It violates the First Amendment by allowing the FDA to restrict tobacco advertising in multiple ways, as well as an outright ban on advertising any cigarettes as light, mild or low-tar.
The FDA will have the power of pre-market reviews of all new tobacco products, and will impose new user fees, meaning taxes, on manufacturers and importers of tobacco products. It will even regulate the amount of nicotine in cigarettes.
My objections to the bill are not an endorsement of tobacco. As a physician I understand the adverse health effects of this bad habit. And that is exactly how smoking should be treated – as a bad habit and a personal choice. The way to combat poor choices is through education and information.
Other than ensuring that tobacco companies do not engage in force or fraud to market their products, the federal government needs to stay out of the health habits of free people. Regulations for children should be at the state level.
Unfortunately, government is using its already overly intrusive financial and regulatory roles in healthcare to establish a justifiable interest in intervening in your personal lifestyle choices as well. We all need to anticipate the level of health freedom that will remain once government manages all health care in this country.
Actions in Congress such as this tobacco bill are especially disconcerting after we thought we were beginning to see some progress in drawing down the wrong-headed and failed war on drugs. A majority of Americans now think marijuana should be legal, taxed and regulated, according to a recent Zogby poll and over 70 percent are in favor of allowing medicinal use of marijuana.
Bills like this take us down exactly the wrong path. Instead of gaining more freedom with marijuana, we are moving closer to prohibiting tobacco. Our prisons are already bursting with non-violent drug offenders. How long will it be before a black market in tobacco fills the prisons with non-violent cigarette smokers?
Hemp and tobacco were staple crops for our founding fathers when our country was new. It is baffling to see how far removed from real freedom this country has become since then. Hemp, even for industrial uses, of which there are many, is illegal to grow at all.
Now tobacco will have more layers of bureaucracy and interference piled on top of it. In this economy it is extremely upsetting to see this additional squeeze put on an entire industry. One has to wonder how many smaller farmers will be forced out of business because of this bill.
Ron Paul is a republican member of Congress from Texas.
June 15th, 2009 at 1:46 pm
And just where in the Constitution is the federal government authorized to do this?
June 15th, 2009 at 2:14 pm
Years ago, when the Constitution still had at least a little meaning left to it, the 18th Amendment was required for prohibition of alcohol. Why? Because such an action was not authorized to the federal government by the constitution.
These days, whether adding crippling taxes or regulations, or fully prohibiting certain activities, all we get is a few-hundred page bill that’s never read and a court affirmation.
Nice, isn’t it?
June 15th, 2009 at 3:29 pm
And there you have it…
One Doctor’s reasons for not banning Tobacco. It’s not about the health risks folks, it’s about the freedom to make our own choices.
June 18th, 2009 at 3:50 am
Government primes the pump first, by allowing lobbyists access to lawmakers. for years the health risks were pointed out. What should have been taken up on a state by state basis, was pushed onto the federal radar by people like the American Lung association. they of coarse get funded with federal money. if there is a special interest for a certain cause it will eventually be regulated.
June 18th, 2009 at 7:41 am
The reason, Larry, that there are so many special interests in D.C. goes even further back than what you’re talking about. It’s not about allowing or disallowing access. Special interests will always exist and will always have influence as long as there’s a massive amount of power in government.
If government were limited to its constitutional functions, the lobbyists wouldn’t have any reason to be there….they’d have to lobby somewhere else, like state governments, or you personally….that would surely diminish any effect that they could have.
Power is the problem.
June 19th, 2009 at 10:05 am
Its MY MONEY, I PAY FOR MY Cigarettes, I PAY FOR MY HEALTH INSURANCE, I Pay for whatever I need. The FEDS are not paying for anything for me. I would rather pay for my cigarettes than to pay for ILLEGAL ALIENS, the people who sit on their asses and don't wrk but get paid anyway, and the kids they keep having,The Health Care for them, etc. I AM SICK OF BIG GOVERNMENT, Including OBAMA. I think its time for States to take back OUR RIGHTS, THE RIGHTS OF THE PEOPLE~ITS TIME.
June 19th, 2009 at 2:30 pm
Angelia - you make a really important distinction. It's the rights of the people! So many call this a 'states rights' movement. But states can't have rights, only people have rights.
States only have powers, and they only have the powers that we the people delegate to them. It's time we get that principle back into reality.
June 20th, 2009 at 1:18 am
Freedom for the people is only possible with total tobacco-prohibition!!! The smokers-tyranny is at least as terrible as government-tyranny. Join our website for resisting the smokers-tyranny: http://www.passivesmoking.org.
"Because being free means being able to breathe freely and a state that does not allow its citizens to breathe freely makes its own citizens guilty of the worst violation of freedoom!" (ADOLF WISCHNATH, former lawyer in Bielefeld and associate lecturer at the FACHHOCHSCHULE DORTMUND [DORTMUND COLLEGE])
June 20th, 2009 at 5:17 pm
I can breath just fine, Frank. And I don't care what you smoke or drink, or think…especially on your property.
June 26th, 2009 at 9:20 am
Ecigs are the way to go if you really want to stop smoking or if you want a healthy alternative to smoking.
June 26th, 2009 at 6:08 pm
Hmm. "Freedom" via "Prohibition," seems kinda like a contradiction in terms. But hey!, I'm just a dumb*ss average guy. What the hell do I know?
July 31st, 2009 at 3:09 pm
Have I lost my constitutional rights as an american? I can’t smoke my favorite brand of cigarettes any longer? Did I lose the freedom of choice somewhere? Why aren’t all cigarettes sold in cartons instead of packs? That would help. Why can’t there be a registrar for adults who have the freedom to smoke cloves so they can legally get their poison via mail order with out having to become illegal cigarette importers. Today I am a respectable businessman but on september 1st I’ll become a criminal that illegally imports cloves. I will quit when I want to, not when you want me to. What about the indo-americans unable to embrace their culture here in america the home of the free. I didn’t see obama sign a bill that banned his favorite brand of cigarettes. He doesn’t care. The new bill doesn’t affect his lifestyle and make it inconvenient or illegal to smoke his favorite brand. Only mine and the people like me. Americans who thought they had the freedom of choice. Why not let clove smokers register and mail order their poison or just sell all cigarettes by the carton. This is a violation of constitutional rights. If you ban my cloves then ban obama’s menthols. They are way more attractive to kids since everyone wants to be a rapper. My best friend from indonesia.. You just took a huge part of his culture away and now he will be a criminal who has them shipped from his family. Just today we were honest business men and now we count the days until we are criminal clove importers. Now that obama banned my cloves and I have to order them like a criminal, I wonder if he would sign a ban that included his cigarettes now that I am scrambling to get a bunch of djarums shipped before september 1st and find a resource to get them after the ban. These cigarettes are $8 a pack and $70 a carton. Why don’t we sell flavored (or all cigarettes) in cartons? Then only smokers who are dedicated can buy them, children and the poor people who can afford a single packs but not health care will have to quit. I thought I lived in america, a free country. Where as an adult I have the privilege to make a decision if I want flavored tobacco or flavored liquor. Flavored liquor is way more desirable to teenagers than flavored cigarettes. Flavored cigarettes are not affordable but any kid can get flavored liquor for a few dollars. We already have a law that prevents minors from smoking, it is really the obligation of the parent. Not the government. Surely we wouldn’t ban menthol or whatever brand Obama smokes anytime soon. These cigarettes I have been legally smoking since college are now illegal. I may as well smoke pot, they’ll legalize that and tax it but won’t let me enjoy a clove with my coffee. These guys get $210 a month from me for a pack of djarums a day and $2500 a year. Kids can’t afford that. Middle class men and women can barely swing that. Especially these day, kids don’t really smoke like they used to. People look at you like you have a disease when you smoke. Kids and the poor are going to smoke whatever they can afford. Most kids start on the brands there family and friends smoke (marlboro,camel,newports) menthols being especially popular with kids during the rise of hip-hop/pop culture. They are easier to smoke. A lot of people won’t even smoke cloves because they are harsh and heavy. I gave my cousin who has been smoking reds for 30 years a clove yesterday and he almost choked to death. Way to much for the average smoker. These clove cigarettes are more cigarish and elitist with their high prices and taxes. Which is weird why in a recession that we take items off the shelf that provide such high tax revenues. Cloves and even other flavored cigarettes are smoked by the college type, the intellectual, coffee shop goers, musicians, goths, eccentrics and other Berkeley types. These enjoyable smokes help me relax, review and reassess while I enjoy a cup of coffee. My friend likes them once or twice a month when drinking. My friend from indonesia smokes them daily like I do except the difference between me and him is you are depriving this man of his cultural right when america is suppose to embrace the ideas of different ethnic groups. We let the jewish go to temple, we let the middle eastern folk go to mosque and put curry on everything, the russian’s get their vodka and the asians get their rice, rotten eggs and dog. My friend can’t ever again smell the clove scent of his country, he and I went from being successful businessmen to having to become illegal clove importers just to enjoy our lifestyles. Just for my friend to enjoy is culture and feel at home with how he was raised. Almost all clove cigarettes come from indonesia and so it really disrupts their market regardless of what the upper brass thinks. This is protectionism. This is a violation of my amendments and rights. This law gives the fda way too much control and makes us a big brother country where the government raises the children since we allow the parents to be incompetent. I am an american who has been stripped of constitutional rights. I will do what I want, this will not stop me from getting my cloves nor will the lack of the 1% of cloves in the market will not curb kids from smoking. Most kids don’t smoke these days. It’s not cool to smoke you get treated like a leper. Like I said, sell cigarettes by the carton only and tax them to death. The real smokers will buy them. The drinking smokers will bum them and the kids and very low income will not be able to afford them. I mean what’s next? Take away my flavored mouth wash? What about super sweet apricot beer that kids love. Kids die from alcohol, not cigarettes, more kids die from fraternity activities. Kids who smoke generally have family that smoke. No one wakes up and says I think it will be cool to pay for bad breath and cancer just to hold this cool stick. Leave us free adults alone. Regulate the parents and do not let the administration and the fda turn america in to a dictatorship and make us 1% of smokers live a harder life of luxury. To much control. I’ve always leaned more democrat but honestly these liberals need to leave me alone with their whole foods infested berkelyish veagan ideas that say I can’t eat meat or ill die, or transfast because ill die or oxygen because ill die. Don’t worry we will all die soon enough and if you don’t let smokers and drinkers kill themselves then you have population control to deal with. Well let’s just let the fda put mercury in our dental fillings, and hormones in our baby’s milk and not let us smoke the brand of cigarettes we enjoy. Protectionism, loss of rights. Damn is the apocalypse comming? I hope indonesia sticks their foot sideways up the behind of the WTO and fight for my rights as an american before I have to move to a country that is a little less motherly. This is how I feel and most people agree. The new ban is stupid.-david
September 1st, 2009 at 8:57 am
Smoking cigarettes isn’t the smartest habit but it shouldn’t be illegal.