Twenty bucks for a pack of fags!
That’s how much smokers can expect to pay under a raft of new measures being considered by the Federal Labor Government.
According to The Australian, a long-awaited health strategy has called on the Government to set a minimum price for alcohol to raise the cost of the nation’s cheapest booze and set an average price for a pack of 30 cigarettes at no less than $20.
The ambitious proposals from Kevin Rudd’s handpicked National Preventative Health Taskforce aim to start a debate about the minimum drinking age and phase out alcohol advertising to under 25-year-olds, starting with sports sponsorships, live sports broadcasts and popular youth television programs.
They also make life harder for takeaway liquor stores in particular, recommending fresh restrictions on hours of sale and the number and type of licences available.
Tobacco companies would face unprecedented sanctions, ranging from possible court action by governments, mandatory plain packaging, an end to all other promotion, the regulation of cigarette ingredients and emissions, and the potential reclassification of movies and videos based on smoking content.
Shops would no longer be able to display cigarette packets for sale and smokers would be banned from lighting up in cars with children.
The strategy, however, takes a less aggressive approach to stabilising obesity levels, allowing junk food manufacturers four years to phase out product advertising before 9pm on television and premium offers, toys and competitions targeting children.
Federal Health Minister Nicola Roxon called the push to keep people out of hospitals “vitally important” but made no new commitments when releasing the strategy.
The taskforce, chaired by University of Melbourne’s Rob Moodie, said more than 800,000 Australians would be saved early deaths if the targets it had set for tackling smoking, risky drinking and obesity were achieved.
“Sitting on our hands is not an option”, Professor Moodie said.
Of course, these measures will hit the ‘Boganville Briefcase Brigade” (otherwise known as cask wine drinkers) and low-income tobacco smokers more than anyone else.
And rightly so.
Providing that cuban cigars, vintage ports, cognacs and premium Australian red wines remain largely unnaffected, surely these measures are to be applauded.
reb
Miglo
Providing that cuban cigars, vintage ports, cognacs and premium Australian red wines remain largely unnaffected, surely these measures are to be applauded.
Exactly.
In all seriousness, on a day when a Labor Minister has resigned from his position because of a bit of harmless extra-marital activity (and has apologised to his church on the way out), we get these “government-saves-us-from-our-own-weaknesses” announcement. What is it with Labor and this new-puritanism?
Labor, Rudd, Roxon, and the various branches of their fun-police can just f**k right off and stay out of my life. OK? Thanks.
In other words, the pleasures enjoyed by us WCPs.
We are beconing more like the United States every day.
By any means necessary – we will protect you from your selves
I don’t smoke even Cuban cigars! Though it seems I should try.
I do drink plenty of good red. This should be given tax exempt status.
I keep asking myself – why did the government put so much into the economic stimulus, and not provide any support for our vital premium shiraz industry?
I’m sure that all reasonable people would agree that taxpayer support for our hard working and essential vignerons rates higher than some of the components, eg home insulation.
Tom, I even managed to get the garage insulated under the Federal Governments initiative.
I’m guessing that’ll make you hopping mad.
“I do drink plenty of good red. This should be given tax exempt status.”
Not only that, it should be subsidised too. People on high incomes should receive a case of Coriole Shiraz once a week.
It would be the Rudd Government’s way of saying “thank you.”
They can shove their insulation up their arse as far as I’m concerned.
Well that’s great news Miglo, it really builds my confidence that the government is on top of the careful spending of our taxes!
Though given the hot, hoon car that is parked in your garage, I’m not surprised that you need insulation. I suppose I’m glad that my taxes are keeping your car warm in winter, and cool in summer.
Very efficient!
I hope they do home deliveries. Saves me taking a weekly trip to the bottle shop.
Mind you, over Xmas I’ll be staying less than half an hour away from the Coriole Winery. I seriously do hope they still have the 2001 and 2002 vintages for sale (and that they deliver to Tasmania).
I’ve also accessed the Government’s generous stimulus package to upgrade the insulation for my carport…
http://www.paul.gilpatrick.name/photos/Maserati/Quattroporte/MaserQP_1000.jpg
Tom, I’m glad that your taxes created employment for somebody. Try seeing it from that point of view. Better still, try seeing it from their point of view.
Reb, don’t those onlookers annoy you?
Migs, not in the slightest. There’s usually a few of them hanging around, waiting to applaud as I pull out of the driveway…
This will be a familiar sight over Xmas.
http://www.coriole.com/files/images/front_scene.jpg
We usually hang a few lights outside the house at Christmas…
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/images/stories/large/2008/12/21/Mandarin.jpg
And we do the servants’ quarters as well…
http://www.lifeinthefastlane.ca/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/christmas_lights_29sfw.jpg
Last year we put up some lights at our weekender too…
http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2006/11/denvercountyAP_468×702.jpg
Reb, have you considered some free insulation for those sleepouts?
Welcome to the nanny state!
What a bunch of puritan wankers we have trying to dominate every part of our life.
Watch the illegal tobacco and alcohol industry boom.
Thanks for the tip scaper. I see the opportunity to make a quick buck.
I’m working on my moonshine label already.
And I’m working on the design of some fake Coriole labels.
I must give this Coriole a try.
I’ve not even opened a 389 yet…this weekend for sure.
Has the Church of Rebitology got tax free status yet?
I have a plan…
“Labor, Rudd, Roxon, and the various branches of their fun-police can just f**k right off and stay out of my life. OK? Thanks.”
Can’t really add too much to that.
Except, perhaps *=u & *=c.
In a strange joke of nature, it will, apparently, soon be cheaper to get a $25 bag of chronic than a packet of cancersticks.
“Twenty bucks for a pack of fags”………………………Yeh gone are the days when you could just visit Tim Dunlop’s blog and get “a pack of fags” for free.
Our cave lights:
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/56/177697097_d7efcc66a2.jpg?v=0
N’
What’s “chronic”?
Hydro???
“According to The Australian”
What else is new?
“The strategy, however, takes a less aggressive approach to stabilising obesity levels, allowing junk food manufacturers four years to phase out product advertising before 9pm on television and premium offers, toys and competitions targeting children.”
Of course.
“start a debate about the minimum drinking age”
Hasn’t worked out in America. If they can go to war & fight for our country then they can drink. Full stop.
“Providing that cuban cigars, vintage ports, cognacs and premium Australian red wines remain largely unnaffected, surely these measures are to be applauded.”
Hit the frackers who can afford it first. Luxury tax full-bore.
N’
The Australian is full of sh*t stirrers. And the population is full of knee-jerkers.
N’
“I’m working on my moonshine label already.”
I’m going to work on some Christopher Pyne Whine Labels. Naturally the product will be completely unpalatable…
by the way *clink* the bar is open in Reb Manor.
I’ve designed some classy looking labels which I’ll print off and adhere to some Jacobs Creek.
http://paris.conciergerie.com/_site/PAR/boutique/tbst03_b.gif
Naturally I’ll suggest that they be cellared for another 30 years by which time I’ll be untraceable.
Jacobs Creek??
But that’s got to cost you at least $8.99 a bottle Migs!
May I suggest you use TB Queensland’s favourite tipple instead – McWilliams Inheritance range at $5 a bottle..!!
http://www.winesale.com.au/ProductDetails.aspx?id=530
Inheritance Range at $5 a bottle…I’m going to pour this Cloudy Chardy down the sink and go out and buy a ute load at that price.
Hey Migs, got a spare 1,000 of those labels?
Send me a case of each Miglo. They’ll make ideal corporate gifts. I’ll fix you up just as soon as I move these cigars toiletboss sent me.
“by the way *clink* the bar is open in Reb Manor.”
“clink” reb.
I’ll have a “Fck me sideways w/ a barge pole” please. I’m rooted.
I might add. Labor now really needs to get on top of its game.
Dump the crap & get on w/ governing responsibly. Tighten up the team. Get the plays down right.
It’s starting to feel like the time prior to Howard & the Tampa. I hope we get a more “integrity” approach than that bit of pathetic, slimey survivalism.
That felt better.
“clink” again.
N’
Scaper, you can have these.
http://www.winevine-imports.com/images/thumbs/t_2024.jpg
Aye carumba! I want those cigars back Tony.
We could sell these outside of churches.
http://www.adrants.com/images/1107051jesusjuice1.jpg
Just watching a Foreign Correspondent program about smoking and cigarette manufacture in Indonesia. The reporter is taking the position of extreme moral superiority. He is an Australian who is severely critical of everyone involved, but is forgetting that smoking and cigarettes are legal in his own country. If tobacco is as evil and immoral as he says, why does the Australian government not ban it outright, instead of just increasing the tax?
By the way, I didn’t agree with the ‘journalist’, and thought the program resembled preaching, not reporting.
Nor do I think smoking should be banned, just in case I didn’t make myself clear. (And I don’t smoke cigarettes.)
I don’t smoke cigarettes either. They reek & don’t have “additional mental benefits” apart from increased possibilities for lethal cancer & other health rewards.
But I would never presume to tell others that they can’t smoke ‘em if they so choose.
Apparently there are 80 million smokers in Indonesia, and, if you listened to that reporter, not one of them smoked of his own accord. It was all due to the nefarious activities of British American Tobacco and Phillip Morris.
(I wonder if Nasking was watching.
)
Tony said:
“extreme moral superiority”? Really? Is that ‘factual’? Or simply a reflection of ‘you’ as expressed via the meaning you gave it? And (as an aside) are you suggesting your ‘position’ is somehow devoid of a moral stance? Yes? No? As for:
Any evidence that ‘he is forgetting’? Or is this simply another example of you selecting the meaning you want to attribute?
Of course there’s so much to unpack but as space is always limited, I’ll just explore one more statement.
Surely you are suggesting that you ‘gave’ the meaning rather than ‘received’ it?
Nature 5,
(Before I face your inquisition.) Did you watch the program?
Well the TV was on in the background, so I’m broadly across the issue. But I’m not sure how my questions relate to this specific programme.
As for ‘inquisition’? Really?
Exactly, and I’m not sure I want to debate you on the meaning of my words; I’d be much more interested in discussing the ideas expressed in the program.
Coward. Lol.
Maybe. Or jaded. Perhaps.
Tony there’s a whole heap of ’stances’ in your ‘positions’ that are worthy of discussion. Nevertheless, it seems to me that your ideas are not as open to exploration as you claim. But then again, I’ve noticed that about most ‘libertarians’.
But of course, that is their choice. Whether such choices be ‘responsible’ or ‘irresponsible’ … is .. whatever. Just sayin …
N5,
I’m quite comfortable with my positions. I just don’t have this burning desire to convince you of them. The thing is, you come across as not so much interested as interrogational. I’m not really in the mood for that.
Absolutely no doubt about that. Hence your acceptance of Simon which you seem to peddle across the net.
As for:
Good! An honest seeker after ‘knowledge’. Some may even call it the ‘Socratic Method’. Does that present a problem?
Only if you expect me to engage on your terms.
BTW, do you have any positions of your own, or do you prefer only to examine others’?
Across the net! ROFLMFAO
(Just spotted that one.)
And the alternative is … your terms? Are you seriously suggesting that ‘libertarian’ thought might be ‘constrained’ or ‘enhanced’ by the thought of others? Think about it Tony.
“I wonder if Nasking was watching”
I recorded it Tony. But was too caught up in Dollhouse & slightly pissed to be bothered. Mebbe tomorrow.
Oneday the womens are gonna kick the crap outa us & we deserve i reckon.
Queen Vic, Maggie, Lizzie (a few) Mary (a few)…and many others knew how to do it.
The kicking of Julia will not go well methinks. There’s bona-fide criticism…and then just sheer bastadry. I see the cobra in my wife’s eyes…righties need to back off. Or somethin’ kick-arse this way comes.
Keep it sane.
N’
I noticed even the Chinese band ‘Cobra’ had a smoking vid.
So much potential.
But will that be nipped in the bud by the corporations that fail to reveal THE TRUTH? For profits…in the name of…
If increasing taxes worldwide ensure that young mothers like that poor Indonesian girl survive to see their babies grow into the LIGHT of their eyes…then by gawd
LET IT BE
and fck the frackin’ arsewipes who deny the toxic carcinogenic sh*t they sell & serve…like grinning skulls attempting to sell the necessity for a torched and wasted Germany, in time of lost war.
No better than the greedy bastrd sods in the UK who sent the younguns into those lung wasting mines all them years ago.
Or the devil’s disciples that stood w/ sh*t-arsed & denialist grin as the naive workers, lit by the sun of a new day’s opportunity for work and to payoff their debts for the good of family and all things worthy, went about their duties here in Australia…in turn sucking in the insidious disease-maker…death by stealth…asbestos.
And frack the stingy…and addicted groaners…
Time to see beyond yerselves
Look into THE LIGHT
and see THE POSSIBILITIES
N’
We humans.
I almost choke
In utterance
Less than baby steps
More like chimps
N’
Michael Palin: My guilt over my great-uncle who died in the First World War
Telegraph UK, 31 Oct 2008
My great-uncle, Henry William Bourne Palin (known to the family as Harry), was a farmhand who at the outbreak of war in 1914 enlisted in the 1st battalion of the Canterbury Regiment of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force. He rose to the rank of Lance Corporal and died in the Battle of the Somme two years later.
We unearthed many heart-breaking stories, such as that of Augustin Trébuchon, the last Frenchman to die in the War. He was shot just before 11am on his way to tell his fellow soldiers that hot soup would be available after the ceasefire. The parents of the American Pte Henry Gunther had to live with news that their son had died just 60 seconds before it was all over.
The last British soldier to die was Pte George Edwin Ellison. He was a regular soldier, 40 years old, who had first fought at Mons in 1914 and survived four years of war before being killed 90 minutes before it ended. He left a wife and a six-year-old son. We arranged for his two granddaughters to come out to France to see his grave in the Saint-Symphorien cemetery near Mons and, in one of the most touching sequences in our film, they revealed that this was the first time any of the family, including Pte Ellison’s own son, had acknowledged his death, let alone seen where he was buried.
As they stood before the grave, their eyes filling with tears for someone they’d never met, I felt I could identify with what they were going through. It was what had caught me unawares when I saw Harry Palin’s name on the wall in Caterpillar Valley cemetery. It was almost as if our emotion was letting itself, for the first time, and with a powerful immediacy, take in the fact that our relatives had been killed in a war. For an instant, 90 years had rolled back, and it was like yesterday.
AND
The White Rhinoceros
or Square-lipped rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum) is one of the five species of rhinoceros that still exist and is one of the few megafaunal species left. It has a wide mouth used for grazing and is the most social of all rhino species. The White Rhino is the most common of all rhinos and consists of two subspecies: the Southern White Rhino, with an estimated 17,480 wild-living animals at the end of 2007 (IUCN 2008), and the much rarer Northern White Rhino.
The northern subspecies may have as few as 12 remaining world-wide—8 captive and 4 wild—although the wild population has not been seen since 2006 and may have disappeared entirely.
(Wikipedia)
AND:
Philip Morris International (PMI) (NYSE: PM) is an international tobacco company, with products sold in over 160 countries. In 2007, it held a 15.6% share of the international cigarette market outside of the USA and reported revenues net of excise taxes of $22.8 billion and operating income of $8.9 billion…
2001: Philip Morris International Operations Center transfers from Rye Brook, NY, USA, to Lausanne, Switzerland.
2002: Philip Morris International operating income reaches US$5.7 billion, a more than hundredfold increase on 1970.
2003: Philip Morris International opens factory in the Philippines, PMI’s largest investment in Asia at the time.
2003: Philip Morris International’s product sales represent almost 14% of the global cigarette market outside of the USA
2003: Philip Morris International acquires majority stake in Papastratos Cigarette Manufacturing S.A., the largest cigarette manufacturer and distributor in Greece.
2003: Philip Morris International acquires 74.22% of DIN Fabrika Duvana AD Nis in Serbia, as of December 2007 this holding was more than 80%.
2004: Philip Morris International re-enters the market in South Africa from which it withdrew in 1986 because of the apartheid regime.
2005: In May Philip Morris International acquires Coltabaco, the largest tobacco company in Colombia, for a cost of $300 million.
2005: In the same month Philip Morris International acquires 98% of the shares of PT HM Sampoerna Tbk, the largest Indonesian tobacco company, for $ 4.8 billion.
2005: Philip Morris International takes back license for Marlboro in Japan from JTI
2005: In December Philip Morris International announces an agreement with the China National Tobacco Company (CNTC) for the licensed production of Marlboro China and the establishment of an international equity joint venture outside of China.
2006: In the fourth quarter of 2006, Philip Morris International purchased from British American Tobacco the Muratti and Ambassador trademarks in certain markets, as well as the rights to L&M and Chesterfield in Hong Kong, in exchange for the rights to Benson & Hedges in certain African markets and a payment of $115 million.
2006: In November 2006, Philip Morris International exchanged its 47.5% interest in E. León Jimenes, C. por. A., or ELJ, which included a 40% indirect interest in ELJ’s beer subsidiary, for 100% ownership of ELJ’s cigarette subsidiary, Industria de Tabaco León Jimenes, S.A., or ITLJ, and $427 million of cash. As a result of the transaction, Philip Morris International now owns 100% of the cigarette business and no longer hold an interest in ELJ’s beer business.
2006: Year-end volume stands at 831.4 billion, operating income at US$8.4 billion and global market share at 15.4%
2007: Philip Morris International acquires an additional 50.2% stake in Lakson Tobacco Company, Pakistan, bringing its total holding to approximately 98%.
2007: In November Philip Morris International acquired an additional 30% stake in the Mexican tobacco business from Grupo Carso, S.A.B. de C.V., or Grupo Carso, which increased its ownership interest to 80%, for $1.1 billion. After this transaction was completed, Grupo Carso retained a 20% stake in the business. Philip Morris International also entered into an agreement with Grupo Carso which provides the basis to potentially acquire, or for Grupo Carso to potentially sell to us, Grupo Carso’s remaining 20% in the future.
2007: Year-end volume stands at 850 billion, operating income at US$8.9 billion and global market share at 15.6%
2008: Philip Morris International spins off from Altria, becoming the world’s leading international tobacco company and the third most profitable international consumer goods company
(Wikipedia)
We live in succession, in division, in parts, in particles. Meantime within man is the soul of the whole; the wise silence; the universal beauty, to which every part and particle is equally related, the eternal ONE. And this deep power in which we exist and whose beatitude is all accessible to us, is not only self-sufficing and perfect in every hour, but the act of seeing and the thing seen, the seer and the spectacle, the subject and the object, are one. We see the world piece by piece, as the sun, the moon, the animal, the tree; but the whole, of which these are shining parts, is the soul.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Do we take it that you’re not a big fan of tobacco companies Nasking?
I don’t know the man’s politics but Prof Harry Clarke is an economist currently working on environmental problems and the economics of addictions including substance abuse. He also saw the Foreign Correspondent program.
Indonesian Smokers:(my bold)
Harry clarke also commented when Malcolm Turnbull proposed to increase the tax on ciggies to fund the budget gap after opposing cuts to Medicare tax concessions for the wealthy.
Tobacco tax proposal deserves support
…There are issues of concern in terms of restricting individual freedom of choice – the claim of libertarians is that people should have the right to use dangerous substances such as tobacco provided they don’t impose external costs on others…
…My counter to this claim is that most smokers begin smoking at early ages – the average in Australia is 15.9 years – when they have poor perceptions of the risks of smoking and when youthful impulsivity is high. For example it is known that adolescents greatly underestimate the difficulty of quitting smoking once a cigarette habit has been established…
…There are many types of equality one might like to pursue but seeking to give people equal rights to contract fatal diseases is questionable…
All smokers pollute the air that others breathe, we’ve all got to breathe so smoking does hurt others (passive smoking), it is difficult to argue that smoking is an individual choice of no concern to other people.
People who peddle cigarettes are the lowest of the low as far as I’m concerned.
I’ve not participated in this discussion in any sensible manner so far, but…
Smoking is a vile habit; the government should develop a long term plan that results in it becoming illegal in 5 to 10 years.
It isn’t simply the long term effects of passive smoking, serious as they are. The problem is the coughing and wheezing smokers cause to those affected by asthma and bronchial ailments.
Outdoor cafes now smell like ashtrays, the tables are occupied by those of weak appearance and weaker disposition. They hold their cigarettes away from themselves, seemingly to maximise the drift to those of us that just want fresh air.
Do us all a favour and ban it. Those with an addiction can go to their doctor and get a prescription for a packet.
Tom,
I once read a very sensible proposal (in my not so humble opinion anyway), that smoking could be banned quite easily – simply by banning the sale of cigarettes to anyone born after a certain date (say 1 Jan, 2012 for example).
Heavy fines would be imposed for anyone attempting to sell or on-forward cigarettes to people born after that date.
This would allow the current generation of smokers to die off, and basically create a new generation of non-smokers.
Sounds very simple and logical if you ask me.
“Do we take it that you’re not a big fan of tobacco companies Nasking?”
—–Tom of Melbourne
Tom,
From some of his postings I get the feeling that Nasking does indeed smoke.
He just does not smoke tobacco.
“Sounds very simple and logical if you ask me.”
And also only sell them from pharmacies on production of an ID.
Lets stay away from prescriptions for them. That’ll just increase the health care bill immediately by bulk billing increases.
Hey………………………but thats all too simple…………………………so let’s just whack a tax on it rather than think logically
Exactly Walrus,
Why address the health issues when there’s money to be made from people dying….
Here’s a proposal for the government and all those who argue that smoking puts unnecessary strain on health services: leave tobacco taxes at their current levels, and allocate all monies raised from now on to an insurance fund whose purpose is to pay for smoking related health problems – which would no longer be covered under the current system.
My prediction is that the smokers’ health insurance fund would soon have a cash balance far in excess of any amount required to pay claims; and those health problems currently deemed “smoking related” would soon become “general” health problems when claims are necessarily assessed on the basis of smoking or non-smoking.
The point is, governments are addicted to smoking taxes, just as smokers are addicted to smoking. The same goes for alcohol, gambling and whatever other “sin tax” you’d like to name. Some grand health care announcement by a government-appointed Professor-Doctor won’t change that, except for the partisan and the wilfully blind.
I really like the idea of banning smoking for anyone born after 1 January 2000.
This is a proposal that should be pushed through any political channels available.
Get the Mayor on the job!!
The Foreign Correspondent video 80 Million a day is now available at their website. I’d be interested to hear from some of this site’s more vocal defenders of the ABC as to whether they think this is an example of the national broadcasters lack of biased reporting or not.
In this case it’s not political bias we’re looking for, of course, but bias against a particular – legal – industry. Plenty of people would agree with the reporter’s sentiments – plenty on this blog agree – but is this crusading the type of journalism we should be getting?
For example, there were no balancing interviews with smokers’ rights groups, tobacco growers or cigarette company employees – not even a human interest angle from one of those extremely dexterous ladies hand-rolling the clove cigarettes.
Or will some people argue that bias is acceptable when it’s “for a good cause”. Would that kind of bias extend to the still unproven theory of climate change? What about when a reporter, their colleagues, and a majority of the ppublic polled, agree that it’s time for a change of government; is it then acceptable to allow a bit of bias in your treatment of an interviewee according to which side of politics they represent? Or in the way you edit a program together? I’d love to hear.
In this case it’s not political bias we’re looking for, of course,
Well why would we bother then? It is political bias that is continually alleged by coalition operatives, now you want to add health isues?
Sorry can’t stick around to follow up, am off to work.
Tony, I believe they asked for Philip Morris to participate in the documentary, but oddly they declined.
Kittylitter,
I’m taking the starting point of asking whether or not it is possible for the ABC to exhibit any bias at all. If the answer is yes, then I’d go on to ask: in what other areas might they show or have shown bias. These are fair questions to ask of an organisation funded by all taxpayers.
Of course I’m not about to suggest it was any more than a coincidence that this program went to air on the same day as the Moodie report was released. It’s a happy coincidence, though, for the government and the ABC.
I hear James Hardie are contemplating expanding into the tobacco industry, fits well with their company policies … ie lung diseases and killing those who use and those who are associated with/exposed to users, equally … telling lies and being as decietful with the public as possible … making profit from others discomfort …
… although reading some posts here a plan to re-introduce asbestos would be seen as forward thinking and free expression …
… ban the f@#kin’ things and be done with it – if the business goes underground who gives a s#!t they won’t be smoking next to me or mine! … and illegal smokers will be easy to find …
… and yes, Tony, we do need stories like the ABC – my son and I were both exposed unwittingly to asbestos as motor mechanics, I smoked from 11 yo to 32 yo, which means my children were exposed to both tobacco and asbestos – for nothing else but PROFIT!
… the Indonesian story showed one thing the callousness of tobacco companies in particular and the free market in general – we need government control over businesses …
… after eighteen months of a GFC things are back to normal profit at any cost factory and cannon fodder groomed for The Robber Barons to feed off and most people still with their head up their arses … nothing changes !
Anyone watch Tony Robinson’s Crime & Punishment?
The Robber Barons are alive a bloodsucking – and people think its OK to “hook” ten year olds on cigarettes GMAFB!
Asbestos cigarettes…I’m sure there’s a market for that, just need to get the young hooked…bloody easy!
Hmmmmm…………..!
Asbestos cigarettes…………..!
I eagerly await the issue of the PDS for a forthcoming IPO
Every two days in the USA, the number of tobacco related deaths equals the number of deaths from the 9/11 attacks.
They should smoke Cubans instead.
“They should smoke Cubans instead.”
Supply and demand would push the price up…let them smoke crack!
“From some of his postings I get the feeling that Nasking does indeed smoke.”
Sorry to disappoint you Walrus but my asthma has me avoiding smoke of any kind these days. The way you go on sometimes I wonder if yer hooked on sniffing writing tools.
Useful links kittylitter. And some useful comments from TB, reb, Migs & Tom.
Tho not sure banning/prohibition is the way to go. Drives people underground. Better to regulate content of smokes.
Tony, I can only shake my head. The Corporate media do little but sell wares, manufacture fear & introduce propaganda campaigns.
It’s the height of absurdity to criticise the ABC correspondent for revealing the pathetic, ignorant, deceitful (?) attitude of the Indonesian Health Minister whilst the youth of that country are being brainwashed en masse at concerts to think it’s cool to smoke cancer sticks – I remember similar happened to me in Europe yonks ago but I eventually wised up after a year or so.
If you think that story represented bias rather than responsible reporting then I feel sorry for you. Speaking of lack of balance – ‘Insiders’.
Nuff said. And yes, we’re all bloody hypocrites cause we yap on about booze…but at least we’re not forcing others to drink it…tho I guess the second hand effects can be just as bad related to behaviour.
Anyway, empowering those younguns & their families is a first step. And compensation should be paid to healthcare departments & not avoided due to “bought out” judges…and those pollies & media tycoons who profit in one way or another. Desperate fools. Anything for a buck & a seat at the RULING TABLE eh?
I guess tax rises help. And scary packages. And getting the ads outa sports & music. And freakin’ TV shows & movies. If they’re included for verisimilitude’s sake (say GI’s in WW2) they need to display a warning at the beginning of the show or such.
My Grandpop smoked & lived til 90+…but he had a pipe and quality tobacco. And I know the Cubans have organic tobacco too. Tho, I guess they still spread the smoke around.
Interesting post.
N’
All driverss pollute the air that others breathe, we’ve all got to breathe so driving cars does hurt others, it is difficult to argue that driving is an individual choice of no concern to other people..
Discuss.
“The way you go on sometimes I wonder if yer hooked on sniffing writing tools.”
Walrus scratches head trying to understand the deeper meaning of the sentence as posted by poster who posts something and then at the very end types “Interesting post. N” presumably in relation to the post he has just posted.
I hope they do home deliveries. Saves me taking a weekly trip to the bottle shop.
So, Migs drives a Kenworth!.
“but at least we’re not forcing others to drink it”, no however with the bludgers I know (well, mates) ,they are forcing me to hide it, my home brew.:).
Home brew…drool.
N’
Some people have commented about the banning of cigs and I was thinking along those lines earlier today.
I wonder if the govt leaves itself open for being sued by new generations of the public if they have known for decades now about the fatal effects of cigarette smoking and have still not made them illegal.
Seems govts are also addicted – to the taxes that they bring in.