>The flag of slavery
There is a huge story underneath the nanny state narrative. Smokers were showed far more resilience to Covid effects than expected, likely due to nicotine. Remember that big tobacco is in bed w/ the FDA - that was part of the deal when the shakedown happened. These companies, which load up cigs with every poison imaginable (not nicotine, which is relatively harmless), have been allowed to operate and enjoyed regulatory protection for decades (keeping competitors at bay). E-cigs fucked up their game all to hell, and it was the cigarette industry that first raised objections to e-cig safety nearly 12-14 years ago, something most people don't know. So you ban the substitute. This to be followed by a ban on nicotine, which Biden is now pushing.
Only option left is to smoke regular cigs, then TPTB can be assured you die of cancer while receiving none of the residual benefit of the nicotine. Big tobacco gets what they want and FDA squashes another naturally occurring substance from the marketplace.