I now know why they want to ban e-cigs...

[chrisl317]

Seems that Uncle Sam needs cigarette smokers right now to make up for lost revenue. Look at what the tobacco companies did with the new tax laws the White House enacted.

Excite News - Tobacco loophole in child health law costs $250M

 

[5cardstud]

That is another one of Obamas insane clown policies.

 

[R&C]

It's all about the money!

 

[CJsKee]

It's not about Obama...it's about exorbitant tobacco taxes and how they are used. What are they gonna do when all smokers start using e-cigs? I know, I know...they'll figure out a way to tax them. But IMO it's just wrong to base government programs on a tax that is levied on a minority. This may not make any sense, but hopefully you get what I'm trying to say...I'm not a very good wordsmith

 

[Bobnoxious]

That's been going on for a long time. Way before Obama. I'm not sure how they were able to pin it on him, but I heard it a long time ago. When I was rolling my own cigs.

 

[Stephra]

It's not about Obama...it's about exorbitant tobacco taxes and how they are used. What are they gonna do when all smokers start using e-cigs? I know, I know...they'll figure out a way to tax them. But IMO it's just wrong to base government programs on a tax that is levied on a minority. This may not make any sense, but hopefully you get what I'm trying to say...I'm not a very good wordsmith

It is a bizarre conflict of interest. On one hand, taxes on cigarettes are meant, in part, to curtail smoking in the general population. On the other hand, those taxes are used to fund health care, so you'd theoretically want to collect of lot of tax money. The two goals are at odds. If everyone stopped smoking, tons of tax revenue would vanish!

Sort of like the American Lung Association... If they achieve their goal of a smoke-free society, they no longer have a reason to exist!

I'm learning over time that these sorts of contradictions exist everywhere in life. If you look at things closely enough, the world really does begin to resemble Wonderland.

 

[smokin n jokin]

That's been going on for a long time. Way before Obama. I'm not sure how they were able to pin it on him, but I heard it a long time ago. When I was rolling my own cigs.

It wasn't going on long before Obama, in fact Bush vetoed the same SCHIP bill that Obama signed that raised the tax on SYO tobacco from $1.00 a pound to over $24.00 a pound. The sad part is that either the tobacco manufacturers or the retailers started selling pipe tobacco as SYO tobacco that was taxed at less than $3.00 but charged the $24.00 a pound tax for it.

 

[Moonflame]

Companies have been finding loopholes in laws, well, since there were companies and laws that governed them. This is really nothing new. This is also why tax lawyers make boatloads of money, they help find all of the loopholes they can find. Toabacco companies realized they might start losing money from people not buying RYO and found a way around it. Are we supposed to be surprised? And why would we blame the greed of Big Tobacco on Obama? They have been greedy for as long as they have existed. Look at how long they tried to hide how dangerous cigarettes are.

 

[rtbob]

Really thinking about learning how to grow my own tobacco. Just in case they totally ban ecigs. Several web sites with instructions and links to buy seeds out there.

So next they will slap a huge tax on tobacco seeds I suppose.

 

[uba egar320]

I think growing your own would be a hassle.After you grow it I think it needs to sit around for a long time(maybe a year?not sure).So even if you did manage to grow some,it wouldnt do you any good for a while.Sounds cool though.

 

[SpiritAir]

That would be a great idea to grow your own tob( especially organic)...but they would find a way to place a huge tax on it..... I so agree with many on here...This and many other issues have been going on forever....They have to keep the "thumb" on us!! Wake up .....look around...remember what has happened in the past, ask questions!! Now...do YOU want the red pill or do you want the blue pill????

 

[D103]

Just to add another perspective for Stephra: 1) The exhorbitant, extortionistic tobacco taxes were NEVER meant, not even in part, to curtail smoking in the general population - they only serve as 'smoke-screen(pun intended) for our government to look good, appear caring and altruistic, and appease the raving anti-smoking idealogues. 2) The huge amount of monies collected from these unconscionable tax revenues are not put back into health care but rather are used-as are the mutimillion dollar Tobacco-Lawsuit settlements-to spend on other state and federal concerns, usually to make up for ever- increasing fiscal irresponsibility - (it seems that with such a Large Cash Cow as tobacco revenues, governemnts just can't help themselves and they tend to spend like drunken sailors-no disrespect to true sailors by the way.) I would encourage interested parties to read articles written by Washington Post journalist George Will on this deceptive dance that state and federal governments play while all the while literally 'bleeding us dry' and, in fact counting on, in an actuarial sense, our premature death, thus saving millions in retirement, pensions, medicaid, medicare, etc. aging entitlements.

 

[chrisl317]

Just to add another perspective for Stephra: 1) The exhorbitant, extortionistic tobacco taxes were NEVER meant, not even in part, to curtail smoking in the general population - they only serve as 'smoke-screen(pun intended) for our government to look good, appear caring and altruistic, and appease the raving anti-smoking idealogues. 2) The huge amount of monies collected from these unconscionable tax revenues are not put back into health care but rather are used-as are the mutimillion dollar Tobacco-Lawsuit settlements-to spend on other state and federal concerns, usually to make up for ever- increasing fiscal irresponsibility - (it seems that with such a Large Cash Cow as tobacco revenues, governemnts just can't help themselves and they tend to spend like drunken sailors-no disrespect to true sailors by the way. I would encourage interested parties to read articles written by Washington Post journalist George Will on this deceptive dance that state and federal government play while all the while literally 'bleeding us dry' and, in fact counting on, in an actuarial sense, our premature death, thus saving millions in retirement, pensions, medicaid, medicare, etc. aging entitlements.

Problem is, usually a drunken sailor will quit when he's out of money, the gov't just prints more.

 

[Enigma32]

I think growing your own would be a hassle.After you grow it I think it needs to sit around for a long time(maybe a year?not sure).So even if you did manage to grow some,it wouldnt do you any good for a while.Sounds cool though.

depends, you can dry it in a month or two, but we grew broadleaf (cigar wrap) not shade tobacco. altogether its about a 6 month process from greenhouse to warehouse.

I don't know current prices but I can arrange to get a few bundles but I'm sure it'd get stale on you before you could use up that much tobacco

 

[Dkrom68]

Dude lovin the new Avatar and yes thay are money hungry

That is another one of Obamas insane clown policies.

 

[Vocalek]

It's not about Obama...it's about exorbitant tobacco taxes and how they are used. What are they gonna do when all smokers start using e-cigs? I know, I know...they'll figure out a way to tax them. But IMO it's just wrong to base government programs on a tax that is levied on a minority. This may not make any sense, but hopefully you get what I'm trying to say...I'm not a very good wordsmith

Not only are they taxing a minority group, they are taxing the least wealthy group.

 

[telsie]

I just hope government learns the errors of it's ways (hahahahaha) in why you don't put such an undue tax burden on a segment of the population. At the time I quit, I was paying like $50/week in cigarette taxes. That's insane! I don't blame anyone or any company for trying to find ways around the ridiculous taxes on cigarettes or tobacco in general.

I look forward to the day when I can walk into 7-11 or a tobacco shop or a drug store and pay regular sales tax on reasonably priced nic liquid. But I will never again tolerate the kind of taxation that I did when I was a shunned and shamed smoker.

Sorry, I may have gone a bit off topic.

 

[Brenden]

It would be more beneficial for them to put a nicotine tax on e-cigarettes. I wouldn't mind paying a little extra dough if there was going to be no threat of them banning vaping. That's my two cents though...

 

[chrisl317]

We shouldn't capitulate anything to our gov't based on any future gains to be had. Let's face it, Uncle Sam has a short memory when it comes to giving back or fufilling promises.

 

[Vocalek]

It would be more beneficial for them to put a nicotine tax on e-cigarettes. I wouldn't mind paying a little extra dough if there was going to be no threat of them banning vaping. That's my two cents though...

I wish it were that simple. There are many dark forces at work. There are those among the tobacco control community who are die-hard nicotine abolitionists. Nothing we can do or say will sway their opinion.

There are those among the t.c.c. that have a financial interest in companies that make smoking cessation products. These would include the Alphabet Soup non-profits. They want to protect their income, donations, or research $ no matter what the cost in human suffering.

Big tobacco probably doesn't enjoy being beat out by Chinese invention, but I don't see any evidence that they have made any comments or taken any action against e-cigarettes. They may be waiting to see how things shake out and if the products are not banned in the end, they will jump in with the U.S. version.

The lawmakers who depend on tobacco revenue probably don't see us (yet) as a threat to their bottom line. They are more likely to be led astray by the lobbyists for the Alphabet Soup organizations, and pose laws to ban the products thinking how good it is going to look in the news that they are protecting the children.