The late Frank Zappa was onto something when he said, “There is more stupidity than hydrogen in the universe, and it has a longer shelf life.”

State Rep. John Lawrence, R-Chester, wants to take the concept of the vice tax and apply it to the 66 counties outside Philadelphia. He’s circulating a proposal to levy a higher tax on cigarettes everywhere except Philadelphia to fund property tax rebates for homeowners who are older than 65 and make less than $35,000 a year.

The state already has a $1.60-per-pack cigarette tax.

State lawmakers are considering separate legislation that would help fund the School District of Philadelphia with a $2-per-pack tax on cigarettes sold in the city.

A street survey that aired Aug. 17 on a Pittsburgh TV station reported that many favored this tax because some felt that someday they will be elderly and thus need help while others favored this tax as a deterrent to smoking and believed it would give many smokers the incentive to quit.

OK, let me get this straight: The state will help the elderly pay property taxes that are too high for the elderly to pay using a tax of diminishing returns. Diminishing, because the pundits of the vice tax claim the tax will reduce the demand for cigarettes. So the government in its infinite wisdom believes the threat of cancer and its devastating personal costs is not enough incentive for us naive voters to quit?

Why target just smokers? Let’s raise taxes for state-designated overweight eaters. For every pound you’re overweight, you pay a 5 percent penalty tax at your next doctor visit.

What about more vice taxes on alcohol; or raising taxes on every item that the state deems is a cause of unhealthy chronic use? Stupidity, right ?

How about this new concept: Scrap the new taxes. Instead, lower taxes and create new jobs and then people can afford to pay property taxes and fight the effects of smoking. Will that work? According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, income in 23 red states has risen 4.6 percent since the recession began in December 2007, after adjusting for inflation. Income is up just 0.5 percent in 15 blue states and Washington, D.C. The red states lowered taxes and passed smart laws, not stupid ones like vice taxes, to create a conducive environment for investment and economic development.

Common folks, let’s think smart and stop stupidity.