The Washington Examiner reported on Wednesday that Congressional Democrats have introduced legislation to raise the smoking age to 21. I don’t smoke, but this is ridiculous. If you look back over the past thirty years, you can see the slow cultural demonization of smoking and smokers. It began with the culture–movie heroes were no longer shown smoking, anti-smoking campaigns began in our schools, and eventually smokers were huddling in door ways trying to have a cigarette after lunch or dinner. Again, I don’t smoke. I hate the smell of cigarette smoke, but I regard this as an assault on personal freedom.

The article reports:

The act would cover conventional cigarettes, as well as smokeless and vaporizing options, ascendant in national popularity, especially among millennials. The bill notes this phenomenon.

“Young adults aged 18 to 24 are more than 2 times as likely to use smokeless products as compared to older adults aged 45 to 64.”

After the “Tobacco to 21 Act” was introduced, an adjoining campaign, #TobaccoTo21, was launched on Twitter and other social media. The campaign is supported by a gauntlet of health groups, including the American Heart Association and the American Lung Association.

The bill is co-sponsored by Minority Whip Richard Durbin, and seven other senators, all Democrats, including Sen. Elizabeth Warren.

If smoking is so horrible, make an offer to tobacco growers to switch to another crop. As far as I know, we are still subsidizing tobacco farmers. Our policy on smoking is schizophrenic–if tobacco is a dangerous substance, it should be banned. Also, why are we legalizing marijuana, which is more dangerous to the lungs, while restricting tobacco? It’s time for a new Congress–this one is broken.