Anyway, the smokers contribute equally towards social security and healthcare even though they are sure to live much less and die quickly and inexpensively right around their retirement age.
that would be true if the years smoking took off your age came at the end. so that you cruise along with normal health, the same as the non-smokers, until one day you just kick over dead a few years too early from smoking.
unfortunately thats not the way it works. smoking doesn't steal years off the end of your life, it steals them from your prime, you age faster and go through just as long of a frail, sick, unproductive time as non-smokers. you just start falling apart at a younger age, and all your medicare expenes for your hospitalisation and your little O2 bottle you're dragging around come out of the same social security fund.
even so, singling people out because the smoke is stupid. next they'll be nosing into all parts of your life to decide your pay/tax level. whats your colesteral count? how many minutes did you exercise today? vitamin police, did you take your pills today?
we've already got enough gov't nannying going on. back in the old book 1984 we where warned about 'big brother', all the while the real threat was 'big mother'
