Was Golda Meir a heavy chain smoker?

Zbeckabee

One version: There is a weird scene toward the start of the book in which Carter, a born-again Christian, goes to see Prime Minister Golda Meir on his first visit to Israel in 1973. She asks his impressions. “I said that I had long taught lessons from the Hebrew Scriptures and that a common historical pattern was that Israel was punished whenever the leaders turned away from devout worship of God. I asked if she was concerned about the secular nature of her Labor government.” Meir, a secular chain smoker, could only shrug. Carter seems impressed with his own temerity, as he calls it. But the episode hints at his tone deafness about Israel and Jews. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/07/books/review/Bronner.t.html Jan 20 10, 11:32 PM