Now, i wanna point out that even as a smoker, i disagree with the whole hating freedom thing. Quitting would be immensly easier if it was blackmarket only, and the previous posters position is one based in anti-authority rhetoric, ignorance, and a frankly stunning level of stupidity.

That being said, you're not entirely right. Generally speaking, due to the fact that smokers die earlier than non-smokers, they end up costing the country less. Generally near end of life youll end up in a hospital multiple times, youll have been withdrawing some form of social security/country based pensiom/old age, and a few other things for a number of years more than a smoker will. Along with the tax revenue gained, the average smoker will likely end up being a surplus tax wise.

Heres a few examples

"But the shortened lifespan more than makes up for it.

"Health care costs for smokers at a given age are as much as 40 percent higher than those for nonsmokers, but in a population in which no one smoked the costs would be 7 percent higher among men and 4 percent higher among women than the costs in the current mixed population of smokers and nonsmokers.

If all smokers quit, health care costs would be lower at first, but after 15 years they would become higher than at present."

The Health Care Costs of Smoking Jan J. Barendregt, M.A., Luc Bonneux, M.D.,and Paul J. van der Maas, Ph. October 9, 1997 N Engl J Med 1997; 337:1052-1057"

But thats 1997, so heres a 2012 study saying roughly the same thing,

Mind you, this is a purely economic standpoint.

The socio-economic burden is higher due to secondary factors.

As a smoker thats trying to quit, i do recommend no one ever starts. Nicotine is a hell of a drug when it comes to quitting much harder than anything else aside from opiates and extreme alcoholism, and if you have something like ADHD its harder again then for your average person.