To the Editor

I have been a “smoker” for 60 years and enjoyed smoking every time I lit up. I only smoke a pack a day, and especially enjoy one with my coffee each morning. It didn’t bother me when they stopped smoking on an airplane. I flew to different destinations, Israel, Hawaii, San Francisco, and had no problem with not smoking. When they banned smoking in public places and restaurants, I easily complied with that. When they determined that smoking, alone, caused cancer, I had a complete check-up, and my doctor confirmed, I didn’t have any cancer.

But, I don’t think I can survive this last attempt by the antagonistic, discriminating, squasher’s of freedom of choice, group. The price of a cartoon of cigarettes is now $47.69 since the government put another $1.00 per pack tax on them. This includes $2.70 tax, which means I am paying a tax on a tax!

This same group says this extravagant price will stop teenagers from smoking cigarettes. They are right on that. For the price of a cartoon of cigarettes, they can purchase an amount of marijuana. They throw out all these stats, saying the number of teenagers smoking cigarettes, are declining. I don’t know how they arrived at these stats. Every teenager I know, lies about smoking until you catch them!

So, I guess I will finally have to give up another one of my pleasures of life. I am greatly concerned , this won’t be the last pleasure or freedom of choice, I will have to give up. Especially the way the Health Care debate is going. Is this a great country, or what!

Amon Louis

Lehigh Acres