3 ms·

And Cigarettes, Gambling & Alcohol don't?

• whimsicalism 4y ago
  The primary impact of all of these things is on the purchaser. So not an externality. Of course, there are arguments around the externalities of all of these things. I view most of those arguments as society contextual (people don't like others smoking, so it is an externality) as opposed to something like carbon which would have a negative externality regardless of this societal/cultural context.
  • datadata 4y ago
    Some externalities of smoking for non-smokers include increases in health care coverage costs, reduced access to health resources, and loss of loved ones to smoking related health issues.
  • at-w 4y ago
    >Of course, there are arguments around the externalities of all of these things. I view most of those arguments as society contextual (people don't like others smoking, so it is an externality) as opposed to something like carbon which would have a negative externality regardless of this societal/cultural context. I agree with you here and find the obsession many people here have with advertising weird. Still, alcohol pretty clearly has a negative externality "regardless of societal/cultural context." The consistently high percentage of vehicular deaths, assaults, rapes, damage to developing babies through FAS, and so on are all largely borne by people besides the drinker themselves.