To say that smokers should pay more tax because they risk their health and cost more on public health expenditures is the exact same logic behind the controversial new health insurance scheme for the elderly.

Friday 27th June, 06:04 AM JST

Akira Hashiuchi, author of “Tobacco is a gift from God,” reacting to chairman of the Nippon Foundation charity organization Yohei Sasakawa’s plan to increase cigarette prices to 1,000 yen a pack. (Asahi Shimbun)

10 Comments

VOR at 09:39 AM JST - 27th June

The perils of National Health Care. On the surface targeting smokers to pay more into the system makes sense but then all you have to do is take a casual look around to see more than a few other vices.

Fast food, overeating, lack of exercise, too much booze, not enough sleep, driving too fast, running red lights, breathing Tokyo air are all risk factors. Why pick only on the smokers?
cleo at 09:45 AM JST - 27th June

Mr Hashiuchi is dead right. All those old codgers chose to grow old, just like the smokers choose to clog their lungs and arteries with tar and fill the air around them with toxins.

Anyone who deliberately risks their health by wilfully growing old when they could simply choose not to should be taxed to high heaven.

(rolls eyes)
roughneck at 12:31 PM JST - 27th June

Well, my overeating doesn't cause health risk to you. But your cigarette smoke is giving me lungs cancer through passive smoking since most of you smokers can not keep your smoke to yourself!

Lets not make the smokers pay more taxes, lets ask the cigarette companies take care of all the waste (smoke) their product is creating. Currently they are among the few industries which doesn't have to take care of the waste that their product makes. Let them create smoke disposer, a device that the smokers will exhale to and all the smoke which usually goes to other peoples lungs, will be trapped. The cigarette companies can collect all the nicotine filled devices and recycle. I bet that will increase the cigarette pack price!
KyouNoNippon at 03:26 PM JST - 27th June

I think that this is just a red herring.
VOR at 03:28 PM JST - 27th June

roughneck, the mere fact that you are on the internet tells me you are a willful participant in modern society. if you were just a mountain vegetible eating back woodsman the pollutants created to keep you alive would be so minimal it would be hard to argue your point. The problem is you contribute as much to my health problems as I do to yours and it appears neither one of us smoke. the point that is to be made here is quit singling out smokers. their nasty filthy habit is only slightly more dangerous to themselves and to others as non smokers nasty filthy habit.
Altria at 03:36 PM JST - 27th June

Altria pays more than enough in tax already, thank you very much. Of the 300 yen you pay for a pack of our cigarettes, only 123 yen is the cost of the actual product. Our profit margins are squeezed to breaking point already!
Zen_Builder at 03:39 PM JST - 27th June

I don't smoke so I don't care what the cigarettes cost. Said that higher cost will it make less likely for my child to start smoking.
Taka313 at 05:08 PM JST - 27th June

But your cigarette smoke is giving me lungs cancer through passive smoking since most of you smokers can not keep your smoke to yourself!

So...not only is it not healthy, but if the smoker is Akira Hashiuchi, you've got someone forcing their religion on you to boot!

Taka
roughneck at 05:39 PM JST - 27th June

the pollutants created to keep you alive....

their nasty filthy habit is only slightly more dangerous to themselves and to others as non smokers nasty filthy habit.

VOR, I guess you have pointed out few things your self. Yes, there are "pollutants" being created for my "living" but their nasty filthy "habit" is making me smoke their poisonous smoke involuntarily when they are smoking on my office compound, footpath, outside convenience store and everywhere else. I hope you do understand the difference of living and having a nasty filthy habit?

their nasty filthy habit is only slightly more dangerous to themselves and to others as non smokers nasty filthy habit.

And this is something making me wonder, what other nasty filthy habit you may have that is contributing to my health problem?
Pukey2 at 10:48 PM JST - 27th June

Shouldn't smokers pay for their own operations and medical expenses due to lung cancer and other diseases which arise because of their refusal to stop smoking?