A deadline implies a publisher waiting for you to finish. An enviable position.

A few comments:

Cigarettes are indeed another subject. The tobacco industry makes from 20 to 30 cents profit on a pack of cigarettes. State and Federal government sucks in, on average, about 60 cents on that same pack.

Ever wonder, when you listen to legislators rail against evil, money-grubbing tobacco companies, why none of them will simply stand up and propose making cigarettes illegal? Now you know why. For a good time, do the same math for a gallon of gasoline.

If government had as big a piece of the action on thalidomide as they have on cigarettes, most of us would have flippers.

--Putting trans-fats in the same category as botulism is a bit much, but your examples are part of a pervasive myth that, if somehow released from the watchful eye of the incorruptible State, the first thing all businesses would do is try to kill off their customers to make a few more cents. (I used to work for a food processor in high school, and know something about going above and beyond the legal requirements for quality.)

Note how many companies are voluntarily reducing or eliminating transfats. It's because customers want it that way. That's usually all it takes. Doesn't mean I want to eliminate the government food inspectors, but when they get past worrying about food poisoning and start worrying about my arteries, I think it's getting to be a bit much.

Where do you draw the line? Imagine what it would be like if the government was actually paying for all our medical care. What aspect of how you live your life would be beyond their legitimate concern?