New York Times: Prohibition is “Perfect”

This is a great day in America, according to the New York Times, because the FDA now is “regulating” cigarettes, but its editorial demonstrates the fascism that now governs the “Newspaper of Record.”

After more than a decade of struggle — and countless smoking-related deaths — the Senate overwhelmingly approved a bill on Thursday that gives the Food and Drug Administration the power to regulate tobacco products. The House approved a similar bill in April, also by an overwhelming margin. The days when this rogue industry could inflict its harmful products on Americans with impunity are drawing to a close.

Me?  I had no idea that the tobacco industry had this much power.  How does someone “inflict” something on others when it does not have the power to “inflict” anything?  But it gets even better:

The bill is not perfect. It will not allow the F.D.A. to ban cigarettes or nicotine — a concession made years ago to avoid drawing intense opposition from smokers and free-market advocates. But the agency will still have far-reaching powers.

So, a “perfect” bill would be something akin to Prohibition.  No doubt, the NYT would endorse a “zero-tolerance” policy of smoking in which police would engage in no-knock raids anywhere where people might be puffing away.  Of course, the NYT also must love drive-by shootings, as these new policies will increase gang activity, since gangs now will have a new source of income.  (No doubt, the police won’t bust into the Oval Office, where President Obama is puffing away.)

For all readers who don’t like my reference to “fascism,” remember that the greatest anti-smoking fanatic in history was Adolph Hitler.

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7:07 am on June 12, 2009