I listened to Talkback this week. Talkback is radio show on my local public radio station. The station managers come up with a topic, bring in local "experts", and allow people to call in with questions and comments. As you can imagine in the this day and age of Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck, these discussions can become rather heated.
The latest guest was a health economist from the Milton S. Hershey Medical Center. The topic was the economic effects of smoking. My grandfather passed away from the effects of emphysema. Another dear relative was recently treated for throat cancer, something that was definitely caused by years of heavy smoking. After visiting him a few days before my grandfather's passing, I am well aware of the painful effects of this deadly disease. I don't smoke, my children are strongly warned against smoking, and I avoid walking near smokers at any cost.
When hearing the topic of this radio show, l (as well as you) would expect to hear statistics on the medical costs and loss of work days from the negative effects of smoking. You would probably expect a representative of a major medical center to rail against the bad effects of smoking tobacco products. You would expect this person to share information on successful smoking cessation programs.
This didn't happen. I was and am still shocked. Instead, this person spoke about the detrimental economic effects on the great state of PA that would happen if smoking were outlawed. The poor farmers (here I'm thinking of the corporate farms, not family farms) would suffer greatly if they didn't have tobacco as a major cash crop. Of course he ignored the call in question by a listener that suggested that farmers start growing corn for ethynol production. He also said that the state of PA couldn't afford to lose the tax dollars that were gained on each pack of cigarettes that was purchased in the state. He also spoke of the medical personnel who benefitted from treating people for smoking related illnesses. Finally, he touted the benefits of smoking cessation programs of programs that cost the most for taxpayers . . . not the more inexpensive programs.
This person, who works for a major medical center in central PA, truly believes that from an economical perspective, people needed to keep smoking. Really! I wonder if he has a favorite brand of cigarettes!
