It's not like if you sit on the computer, you increase the chances of the other people in the room to die of cancer.

Ignifero it's not because it hits the people around you -- it's because the people around you pay for your care.

You don't grok socialized medicine. Smoking is illegal because it's a huge expense on tax money! Smoking is expensive because it causes higher rates of diseases. Make the behavior illegal and you move those funds to other governmental activities.

Using a ladder is risky, make ladders illegal. Eating high fat foods is risky, make junk food illegal.

  Smoking is illegal because it's a huge expense on tax money!

That just isn't correct... smoking isn't illegal, just (depending on what country you are in) smoking in certain public places.

I've no idea about other countries, but in the UK (and I don't have a source to cite for this, and it's possible I'm incorrect, but as I was told by a GP - a General Practitioner docter) the taxes paid on tobacco more than cover the cost caused to our National Health Service by smokers.

Regardless, even assuming smoking does cost more than the taxes it raises, that's not the reason for public bans - that is simply because your personal health choices shouldn't be allowed to have negative impact on the health of other people.

And yet, very few smokers in Greece seem to understand that. There are even posters that read "Smoking is a choice!".

Apparently, going out to a place that doesn't reek of ash isn't.

actually, smoking and eating fatty foods is cheap on socialized medicine. they die early, decreasing overall average lifetime costs of care.

Depends, depends, depends. For example, the ideal (for the government) smoker or fat person would die on the day they retire and do not need any treatment before that.

In practice, their tax paying capabilities might diminish while they are still working. And they might even require expensive treatment while they languish.

Understand that, but it's no small thing to be able to go out of a bar without your clothes stinking of smoke. Maybe you guys have gotten so used to it you 've forgotten how it was. On the other hand, if junk food becomes so junk that it ends up a public health hazard, then it wouldn't be an overreaction to ban it too.

One must keep in mind that, in essence, tobacco, food, alcohol are all addictive substances, tricks to the brain. And when one can be tricked, one can be manipulated.