Cigarettes are a lawful product in the United States. Many farmers grow tobacco, and big companies such as Philip Morris process the leaves into cigarettes. Thousands of people are employed in the industry, and local, state, and federal governments earn billions of dollars in taxes on the sale of tobacco products.
1. Is the behavior of Philip Morris to aggressively sell cigarettes abroad socially responsible? Explain.
2. Should the foreign governments be as concerned over tobacco smoking as the American government is?
3. Should individual Americans sue tobacco companies because they smoke, although they have been warned through cigarette labels that smoking is harmful?
4. Should Philip Morris have disclosed to the public that cigarette smoking was addictive as soon as it found out?