In the past, most believed the words of the tobacco executives that smoking was not addictive and that cigarettes did not contain carcinogens. Today, the FDA controls tobacco products, but Americans and the rest of the world has not learned its lesson. It should not be forgotten that the people who protect us from tobacco should not be followed blindly either.
It was announced recently that the Food and Drug Administration would be banning the sale of fruit and candy flavored cigarettes. Commissioner Margaret Hamburg said, "These flavored cigarettes are a gateway for many children and young adults to become regular smokers." She went on to say that this ban will "break that cycle of addiction for more than 3,600 young people who start smoking daily."
The problem is that children will go to great lengths to get themselves in trouble. If they are not experimenting with cigarettes, it is in their nature they will get addicted to something else. Philip Morris, R.J. Reynolds and Lorillard are the nation's biggest tobacco companies, and they do not even sell flavored cigarettes. Most flavored cigarettes have long been off the market. Most major producers of tobacco only use menthol in their cigarettes, and this is the only flavor that has not been banned. Go figure.
[Via: townhall.com]
