Did you know nine out of ten regular smokers began using tobacco products before age 18? Every day, about 3000 kids become addicted to tobacco products. We all know that cigarettes are highly addicting and growing in popularity among youth and teens. Therefore, the Food and Drug Administration is trying to ban menthol cigarettes—to help our youth.
However, Bill Wilson, president of Americans for Limited Government, issued the following statement regarding this issue: ""Now, we have news report of the first study of the issue and it confirms the concerns we raised earlier this year that a menthol cigarette ban would likely lead to a multibillion dollar illegal market in tobacco."" This enormous black market would only mean one thing: easier and cheaper access to cigarettes for kids. Wilson also continues to say: ""This is a classic case of government interference leading to devastating outcomes. Since the charge to ban menthol cigarettes is led by the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, it may be time for them to change their name to the Campaign for Tobacco Access for Kids.""
Not only will this create a large bureaucracy that strictly limits liberty and prosperity, but this crackdown would also fail to achieve its primary objective. Although the cigarette ban is a minor example of government intervention, it represents the big picture of many government interference issues. In the past two years alone, the government has issued universal health-care, become the majority owner of major corporations, raised taxes in order to increase spending and even bailed out Wall Street. The government is becoming too powerful and too big all too quickly.
What we have to remember as a self-governing society is that it is we, the people, who must be controlled. And it was precisely in order to control us—to fix boundaries for our power—that the United States Constitution was established.
So, I ask, if it was not the people who gave the government all of this extended power, who was it? The government.
—Jordan Heifitz
UW School of Business
