It's really asinine that we still have to deal with "sin taxes".

Pardon my French, but it's really bullshit that we still have sin taxes on (for example) tobacco, alcohol, gambling, even sugary foods in some places. <br>Now I'm not saying that we should make these things free, but that the taxes on them either go into treating the issues they cause, or that they just go straight into the general fund. <br>Instead, we should turn the taxes on them into a subsidy to help those get over their addiction.<br><br>If you want to smoke cigarettes, you pay the normal price of cigarettes without a tax, but if you want to quit, you receive subsidies on nicotine gum and other quitting aids. <br>Want to drink? Pay the normal price for alcohol, but receive subsidies on rehab. <br><br>It just feels like a shitty situation for people with addiction, who are already having a hard time, and it feels Callous to me that the government taxes them, and then uses that money on just about everything else.<br><br>Edit: To address some common talking points, because I really don't want to lose my mind typing out the same paragraphs every five minutes.<br><br>- Non-addictive things like sugary foods shouldn't and wouldn't be subsidised, that's just dumb. The idea is to help people with addictions, not poor nutrition habits. <br><br>- Subsidies cost money? You literally get the money to pay for the subsidies from the taxes that would've been on the products. There would be no additional cost. <br><br>- If you get subsidies for addicts, why not subsidise car owners when they choose to buy a new car? Because cars aren't addictive, and don't mess up your life. Addicts would, 100\%, choose not to be an addict, and given the chance, they would. A lot of people smoke because everyone at home smokes, or they're stressed at work. A lot of people drink because they literally cannot stop. This isn't the same as choosing to buy a car instead of a motorcycle.