Comment & Debate
Milton Friedman wrote in the 1980s: “If we continue on this path, there is no doubt where it will end. If the government has the responsibility of protecting us from dangerous substances, the logic surely calls for prohibiting alcohol and tobacco. . . . Insofar as the government has information not generally available about the merits or demerits of the items we ingest or the activities we engage in, let it give us the information. But let it leave us free to choose what chances we want to take with our own lives.”[1]
“Banned foods and misinformed consumers.” Los Angeles Times. June 20th, 2008: “From a moral standpoint, it’s absurd for a government that allows the sale of an undeniably deadly product (tobacco) to prohibit the sale of substance that is far less dangerous.”