Robert A. Levy, interviewed by Stephen Goode

The health risks of smoking have been overstated, Robert A. Levy claims in the following viewpoint. Although Levy acknowledges that there are medical problems associated with smoking, he maintains that dependency on tobacco is less damaging than alcohol or drug dependency and that tobacco’s link to certain diseases cannot be proven statistically. Levy contends that antitobacco lawsuits pose a greater risk than smoking because they eliminate personal responsibility and lead to government infringement on individual rights. Levy is an attorney and a senior fellow in constitutional studies at Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank; Stephen Goode is a senior writer for Insight.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. According to Levy, what problems are associated with epidemiological studies?
2. Why does Levy believe tobacco is less dangerous than...