So I'm watching television and there's a commercial from thetruth.com, an organization which is extremely explicit in stating that smoking will indeed kill you. In effect they are actively advertising against a legal product.

I was curious as to who is funding The Truth, so I paid a visit to their Wikipedia entry.

Its ads are financed by the tobacco industry, stemming from an agreement between tobacco companies and state attorney generals in which large companies, in particular Phillip Morris, agreed to fund the ads.

Just as I figured: our very own governor's extortion scheme while she was attorney general is the reason why companies are forced to finance an advertisement campaign against themselves.

How is it right for the government (which was the entity behind organizing thetruth.com) to create a campaign which warns people to avoid purchasing a legal product?

Although I don't agree with the government funding advertisement campaigns focusing on driving while intoxicated or smoking marijuana, these are at least aimed at activities and products which are illegal.

And yes, this is the type of stuff I ask myself when I'm watching TV.