Cutting cigarette tax is foolish and reckless

I thought I was reading an article from April Fools' Day in the July 11 edition of Daily Press & Argus ("Senator wants cigarette tax slashed 50 percent").

State Sen. Joe Hune's idea to cut cigarette taxes by 50 percent while imposing more barriers to women, children and people with disabilities (i.e., the overwhelming majority of Medicaid recipients) to make up the difference from revenue loss of the tax cut is ridiculous.

I understand why the senator wants to cut benefits for poor people because that's what the hard-right, "tea party" perspective embraces. I may not agree with it, but everyone is free to have their own opinions.

But, the thing that is so blatantly terrible on a multitude of levels is his idea to decrease cigarette taxes. What? Cigarettes are addictive and dangerous and cause cancer. The last thing Michigan needs is more people smoking particularly when demographics show that it is largely people from lower socioeconomic levels who smoke and many, if not most, of these people do not have health insurance. Thus, Michigan would end up paying more and more and more money for their short- and long-term care when they end up in hospital.

The idea of decreasing the Legislature-approved tax on cigarettes is foolish, stupid and reckless.