Sunday, April 20, 2008
The American Heart Association estimates that roughly 26 million Americans waste fortunes, ruin their quality of life, and stink, all in the name of sucking on cigarettes.
This is in the face of overwhelming evidence: Smoking leads to heart disease, strokes and lung cancer.
The closest I have come to smoking is inhaling the sweet smell of burnt gunpowder. Other than that, I am completely baffled as to why someone would chose to inhale burning anything and call that a good time.
Let's be honest and call it what it really is: prolonged suicide. The jury is not still out.
I'm a big fan of freedom of personal choice. As far as I am concerned, you can munch on broken glass sandwiches if you wish. Go nuts.
But when you knowingly stab yourself in the eye and ruin your eyesight, you shouldn't ask me to pay for your eye doctor expenses. Duh.
Therein lies one aspect of the heartbreaking de-souling of America.
Personal responsibility in America has gone the way of the Dodo bird. People engage in life-threatening behavior and then expect others to pick up the tab when their health fails.
Bloodsuckers
They are irresponsible bloodsuckers. There are no two ways about it.
Just as I am a big fan of personal choice, I'm a bigger fan of personal responsibility.
It is truly mind-numbing that we have presidential candidates claiming that nationalized health care is the answer to our health-care woes.
No, the answer to our health-care problems rests with individual Americans.
According to preventdisease
.com, preventable illnesses compose 90 percent of all health-care costs.
There you have it. Health is almost always a choice. Read that again.
This critical information should be included in the national debate on health care.
The reason health-care costs are so high is that Americans make poor choices.
Instead of acting like lemmings and embracing the Democrats' socialized medicine proposals, Americans should stare at themselves in the mirror for the answer to improving their health and lowering health-care costs.
How about some personal responsibility?
A health warning by the Surgeon General is on each pack of cigarettes. It cannot get more blatant than that. To ignore the warning is to knowingly tapdance in a landmine field.
Do so at your own risk and, for God's sake, quit sending me the cleanup bill.
It must be very tough to quit smoking. Nicotine is very addictive. Be that as it may, if you smoke, do what it is you must to find a way to kick this life-destroying addiction.
The question: Do I want to suffer and die early or live healthy and longer? Is that really a question?
Again, if you want to smoke, stab yourself in the eye, tapdance in a land mine field or jump out of an airplane without a parachute because you believe you can fly, I say live it up.
But if you do, how dare you ask your fellow Americans to pay for your irresponsible and dangerous behavior?
We don't have a health-care crisis in America. We have a personal responsibility crisis.
Ted Nugent is a Waco-based musician and television show host. Contact Ted directly at tednugent.com.
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