I started smoking at age 13, back in first year high. Smoking completed the image I was going for- hip, yeah man!. I was already wearing long pants, sported longish hair and know how to play the guitar. I was almost there, well, except I was fat. Smoking somehow won some who teased me for being fat over to my side.
43 years later, I'm still smoking, now for no other reason than the mere enjoyment. My teenage idols have all dropped smoking, others just dropped- because of smoking, may they rest in ashes.
My other sinful pleasure comes from alcohol. Unlike smoking, however, I don't do drinking alone. Dark Dan can not drink anymore. Cranky Cris is out there somewhere in Hawaii and my other drinking buddies turned to wine (yak!) while others have been ordered to stop by their doctors. I told them to get other opinions until they get one that says drinking is healthy. Now, I am forced to drink alone. Well it does have its upside- no sob stories and I pay for only my drinks.
Meantime, I am having the most difficult time of my entire life- at the edge of bankruptcy, threatened with foreclosure and credit suits- and now politics is about to throw another curve ball- the sin taxes. Sin of a botch, errr... whatever.
People pushing the bill say this is to deter the young from taking up the habit. Hey why doesn't the government tax to death all those who are starting to smoke? We'll put detector chips in all citizens who are non smokers and when they pick up the habit-WHAM!!! Nifty eh?
There is way too much government. It wants to be in my computer via the cyber crime law. It wants to be in my bedroom with the RH bills, now they want to be in my simple pleasures, cigarettes and alcohol too? It is choking me to death.
Government says it wants to protect the health of the 17.3M smokers and save the health care cost. I say the majority of the smokers are too late for saving and besides what better way to control population than 17.3 M smokers croaking at the same time.
What about the workers in the tobacco industry, the backward and forward linkages, they are sure of not dying of cancer but of hunger. Maybe that is the plan, another 17M or so croaking for population control. ingenious!
Back to the bills, the bill pushers say that the taxes to be generated could be used to fund priority program. I say, what priority program, the conditional cash transfer? This program gives out cash to the criminals, encourages pilfering by the agencies doling out the funds and is not teaching anybody anything except mendicancy.
Come on man, why tax me for their misfortunes? I've loads myself.
You know what I blame for the proliferation of smoking- Christianity that's what. Magellan with his motley crew came supposedly to spread the word of God but also brought with him tobacco all in the name of Christianity.
Hey, why don't we tax the catholic church and all the religious groups, I am sure there's going to be a lot.
Meantime stay away from my cigarettes and alcohol.
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