Quote:
Originally Posted by BetterRed
And lastly taxes - by 2020 a packet of 20 cigarettes will cost at least $40.
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I've been watching that with deep amusement in New York City.
The City decided that cigarettes were Bad Things, and people shouldn't smoke. (This was partially but not entirely due to health concerns.)
They couldn't just outright ban them, but they
could dramatically increase the excise taxes on them. So suddenly, packets of name brand cigarettes were costing $14 US per pack.
They
didn't increase the tax rate on loose tobacco, so people were discovering the joys of rolling their own.
They realized they'd left a loophole, and boosted that tax rate. But
cigars are still under the old rate, so you can get a pack of cigarillos for $5 USD, and an assortment of folks switched.
The most recent amusement came when the state governor approved medical marijuana. A friend who lives in the state capitol area said "He didn't
want to - it was more or less over his dead body!". My response was "It doesn't matter
why he did it. The point is that he
did it, and the camel's nose is now in the tent!" I'm certain there are people in NYC government rubbing their hands together and salivating over the tax revenues they can collect if recreational marijuana becomes legal and can be sold over the counter in the same shops that sell cigarettes.
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Dennis