The government is proposing that people who are fat and people who smoke pay more for their health insurance. Too many commentators and political talking heads seem to be in agreement with this idea, without thinking.

The premise is that fat people and smokers require more medical care. Yet no statistics can say whether those same people would need medical care if they weren't fat or didn't smoke.

If I'm thin and I don't smoke, I won't get sick? I wish that was true. A fat person is prone to having high blood pressure, so the statistics report. But it is also reported that thin people are prone to have low blood pressure, and that also needs medical attention.

As for cancer, we're told to protect ourselves from the sun because of the risk of skin cancer. And statistically, breast cancer is often found to have genetic origins. So in that case, should a woman whose mother had breast cancer pay more for her health insurance? And how about the tanned man who works outside, should he pay more?

Fat people and smokers should pay more? They cost the system more? What about alcoholics? Don't they get sick? Their livers are damaged from the alcohol, right? It seems there's a lot of expense in medication for that, and hospitalizations. And even rehab. Some insurance policies pay for rehab or counselling or both. But fat people should pay more?

How about drug addicts? A fat person needs more medical attention than a meth addict? Never mind the cocaine, heroin, crack? And their rehab...

Then there are the millions addicted to prescription drugs. Let me get this right. They go to a doctor for the sole purpose of getting a prescription. The doctor gives a prescription for a month's worth of pills. But that's not enough for the addict. So he goes to four different doctors every month in order to get what he needs for his habit. But the smoker needs more medical care?

Last, but certainly not least, I'm sure there are others I'm missing, how about the promiscuous? Men and women who engage in unprotected sex. They're bound to get infected, with anything from STD's to HIV to AIDS. Why don't they have to pay more for their health insurance?

The fact is, there's no telling who is going to need medical care or who won't.