If you have not been paying attention to the news, or perhaps don't live in the States, Obama has been working on healthcare for the states, and using tax hikes on cigarettes to pay for it.
Now, I was annoyed when cigarette sales doubled. But I got over it. I was annoyed when my own state's tax increased and added a tax to beer and wine, but I got over it.
Now candy flavored cigarettes, or tobacco that includes spice will be banned from America. The reason being is that he feels it will make smoking "less sexy" to underage kids. That these products exist to lure in small children to the smoking world.
As a clove cigarette smoker, I lost it. I only smoke Djarum Black's. I dabbled in normal nicotine, but truthfully, I just prefer that spice. I never smoked before 18, and when I did, I chose cloves. Now, I am left to contend with Phillip Morris awfulness.
This is bullshit. It seems rather clear to me that this is more a legislative piece to create a monopoly on cigarettes and generate more money for the country at the expense of the smoker. Not to mention during the recession. Now you want to take away my small joy of smoking in order to cope?
I feel that this country has become less and less democratic with the ages. Restricting freedoms and choices seem to be the norm after 9/11, and it doesn't seem like it is going in the other direction anytime soon. If anything, people are just allowing and accepting their freedoms to be restricted.
I want the ability to make my own choices about what I choose to put in my body and not. Isn't that my ****ing constitutional right? I hate the governmental parent. But cigarettes will never be illegal. Not as long as you have such wealthy companies such as Phillip Morris and RJ Reynolds. Clove smokers take up maybe 5% of the population. And they are not sold in easily accessable stores. Head shops, tobacco shops, all of which regulate smoking very intensely. Everyone who smoked before 18, that I know, smoked mainstream cigs. It's not the candy, and cloves are less addicting, even if they are worse for you. I maybe smoke one a day and have since I was 18, which is a hell of a lot less than regular cigarettes, which are immensely more addictive.
I want my country to stop taking shit away from me. Small restrictions lead to larger ones in time.