I stumbled upon this interesting article on the John Birch Society website called, "The Moralists of San Francisco" that once again points out the hypocrisy of the governments role in protecting our health.

Apparently the new-morality police in San Francisco has decided to prohibit pharmacies from selling cigarettes because they want to create a healthier population. Oh yeah? Then why is San Francisco at the top of the list of cities that promote and encourage homosexuality, which has been associated with premature death?

Anti-smoking measures are based on the belief that it's wrong to harm your own health, that of others and/or to be a burden on society's medical-care system, and many believe it is right to impose this value through government.

"The United States currently has more than 250,000 laws," writes Selwyn Duke, "and most of those enacted in recent times are the handiwork of leftists. They will mandate that people may not refuse to hire cross-dressers, that the Boy Scouts may not have access to public facilities, that religious symbols must not be in schools, and that employers must offer domestic-partner benefits, not to mention the tomes of regulations they have visited upon us. In their eyes, all legislation of morality is unequal, but some is less unequal than others."

The new ordinance will cover nearly 70 city pharmacies, including Walgreens, Rite-Aid and the few independently owned pharmacies that have not yet sworn off tobacco sales. “We don’t allow tobacco sales in hospitals, why should we allow them in pharmacies?” said Nathan Ballard, a spokesman for Mayor Gavin Newsom.

Dr. Mitch Katz, director of the San Francisco Department of Health, said if the legislation works well in San Francisco, the city could pursue broader legislation in the future.