Wednesday, July 18, 2007

Make mine a Cuban

Federal lawmakers seem dead-set on driving the market for tobacco as thoroughly underground as the market for marijuana. A Senate Finance Committee proposal to hike the tax per cigar from $0.05 to $10.00 -- a 20,000% increase -- seems made-to-order to make stogie smuggling every bit as profitable as packing illegal drugs across the border.

I love a good cigar, but not enough to cough up an extra ten bucks a pop to Uncle Sam. That doesn't mean that I'll stop smoking cigars, though. No, instead, I'll turn to some acquaintances of mine who already supply me with the occasional already-illegal Cuban cigar (I especially favor Romeo y Julieta Churchills). Smuggled Cuban cigars will be much more cost-competitive under the proposed tax, and my friends will no doubt add still-legal but highly taxed cigars from other sources to their inventory.

The reason for the tax hike? Why, it's for the children of course. Specifically, it's intended to fund one of the Democratic Congress's favorite welfare-state programs, the State Children's Health Insurance Program. And how could any of us meanies oppose something that's so intimately tied to wide-eyed little tykes?

That such a massive tax-hike would have the added benefit of reducing demand for an officially disfavored product is gravy for the control freaks who dominate the federal legislature.

As evidence that President Bush isn't completely wrong on every issue, the White House has promised a veto of the bill that contains the tax hike.

Whether or not the tax becomes law, however, I recommend renewing your relationship with your smuggler friends.

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