Tax Smokes

Dear Editor,

I am writing in response to Mr. Gary Berry's letter on smoking.

First of all, I will say that I have never smoked a day in my life but have always been around second-hand smoke. Needless to say, I now suffer from what is commonly a disease a smoker will get. It is COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease). It is not too much fun to be homebound and on O2 just because of second hand smoke. My lungs are "shot" from it, according to my Pulmonologist. It isn't the least bit fair that someone who has never smoked, and I'm not just speaking of myself, has to go through something like I have just because others are smoking and not realizing what they are doing to themselves too, as well as others.

Mr. Berry, when you get lung cancer or COPD, emphysema or whatever, just realize that you did it to yourself, no-one else did it. It was your choice. We, the rest of the people, have the choice, too, of not smoking, and we shouldn't have to suffer from the habits of others. As far as I am concerned they could raise the taxes on tobacco products 100 percent and it wouldn't bother me a bit. In fact, every time you light one up, think of the dollars you're just burning up. I guess I have said enough about it for now. I just wish that I could recover from what has been caused by others throughout my life.

Donna Eckstrom

McCook